Promoting Generalization of Reading: A Comparison of Two Fluency-Based Interventions for Improving General Education Student’s Oral Reading Rate

The generalization effects of empirically-supported fluency-based reading interventions have been largely ignored. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of two fluency-based reading interventions, Repeated Readings and Multiple Exemplars, on elementary-aged children’s immediate and generalized oral reading fluency rate. Using a within-subjects group design, a total of 42 second (n = 25) and fourth (n = 17) grade general education students were administered both interventions and their generalized responding to passages containing high word and medium word overlap was assessed. Results indicated that children’s oral fluency on intervention passages was significantly greater during the Repeated Readings intervention. However, children’s oral reading fluency on generalization passages containing medium word overlap was significantly greater following the Multiple Exemplars intervention. This difference was however possibly due to the Multiple Exemplar medium word overlap passage being easier for students to read. No significant differences between the two interventions were observed in children’s oral reading fluency on generalization passages containing high word overlap. Implications and limitations of the study are discussed in relation to improving students’ reading fluency on generalization passages.     

Programming for the Generalization of Oral Reading Fluency: Repeated Readings of Entire Text versus Multiple Exemplars

This study compared a multiple exemplar approach involving the training of key words and sentence structures to a typical repeated readings procedure for their effects on students’ generalized oral reading fluency. The two training approaches were also compared in terms of their relative learning rates (i.e., fluency gain per minute of instruction time). Participants were 111 first- and second-grade students from three public schools in a large urban school district. This study utilized an across students pre-test/post-test experimental design and one-way analyses of variance on the gain scores from pre-test to post-test to assess the effectiveness of multiple exemplar instruction, listening passage preview/repeated readings, and a time and attention control condition. Results showed significantly higher gain scores for students in both the multiple exemplar and listening passage preview/repeated readings groups versus controls on the trained and generalization passages. Multiple exemplar instruction also resulted in significantly larger learning rates than listening passage preview/repeated readings. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.     

Fluency Training in Phoneme Blending: A Preliminary Study of Generalized Effects

We examined the generalized effects of training children to fluently blend phonemes of words containing target vowel teams on their reading of trained and untrained words in lists and passages. Three second-grade students participated. A subset of words containing each of 3 target vowel teams (aw, oi, and au) was trained in lists, and generalization was assessed to untrained words in lists, trained and untrained words in target passages, and novel words in generalization passages. A multiple probe design across vowel teams revealed generalized increases in oral reading accuracy for target words presented in both lists and passages for all 3 students on 2 vowel teams and for 1 student on all 3 vowel teams. Generalized increases in oral reading fluency in both lists and passages were found for all 3 students on the vowel team that was trained to a fluency criterion, with two students showing increases prior to training on the other two vowel teams. Implications of these results for building fluency in prerequisite phonemic awareness skills as an intervention for promoting generalized oral reading fluency are discussed.     

Evaluating the effect of parent reading interventions on improving reading fluency of students with reading difficulties

The current study examines the effect of parent reading interventions on the reading fluency of students with reading disabilities. The experimental procedure was carried out in two stages. In the first stage, the Brief Experimental Analysis procedure was followed to determine the most effective reading fluency intervention for all participants, and in the next step, the parental delivery of the selected intervention procedure took place. Brief experimental analysis was used to identify appropriate reading fluency intervention for each participant. Parents were trained to use the intervention strategies with their children. They implemented the procedures during parent‐tutoring sessions at home and results were measured continuously to determine whether generalization occurred. Parent and child satisfaction with the interventions was assessed. Results demonstrated generalized increases in reading fluency in both high‐word‐overlap and low‐word‐overlap passages as a function of parent tutoring. Also, acceptability ratings by children and their parents indicated that they viewed the interventions as acceptable and effective.     

Recorded Readings: A Taped Parent-Tutoring Intervention

Parent tutoring has been successfully used to increase children’s oral reading fluency. However, commonly used procedures pose a challenge for parents who are not proficient in reading or who speak English as a second language. A taped reading program that included listening passage preview, repeated reading, and performance feedback was developed for parental implementation during home tutoring sessions. A multiple baseline design across participants was used to evaluate the effects of parent tutoring on the oral reading fluency of two elementary-aged English language learners. Data were collected on oral reading fluency using high- and low-word overlap passages. Results revealed an immediate increase in generalized oral reading fluency for one child upon intervention implementation and continued growth for both children 2 months following termination. Findings suggest recorded readings was an effective and acceptable parent tutoring intervention for increasing reading performance for language minority families.     

Effects of Performance Criteria during Reading Instruction on Generalized Oral Reading Fluency

Although there is some evidence that setting performance criteria may improve oral reading fluency interventions, little is known about the generalized effects of these criteria. The present study trained two third‐grade students to three different fluency levels on instructional passages and assessed generalized performance in corresponding high word‐overlap passages within an alternating treatments design. Results indicated no discernable differences across experimental conditions. Follow‐up analyses revealed that generalized gains per trial were actually larger in lower criterion conditions, suggesting that performance criteria may not be as helpful as previously thought. The results are discussed in terms of the need to empirically investigate the number of instructional trials necessary to maximize instructional efficiency. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Promoting Generalization of Oral Reading Fluency: Providing Drill versus Practice Opportunities

Extensive evidence exists demonstrating the benefits of repeated readings (RR) interventions at increasing students’ fluency on intervention passages. Few studies however have examined the extent to which repeatedly reading one passage improves students’ reading fluency on similar passages. Using an alternating treatment design, we examined the extent to which two interventions resulted in improvements in students’ fluency on generalization passages. While both interventions incorporated RR, one intervention involved students reading one passage four times and the other involved students reading two similar passages each twice. Intervention effects were evaluated by having students read a generalization passage prior to and following intervention implementation. Results indicate that both interventions were effective in increasing students reading fluency on generalization passages. For 3 participants the RR intervention produced greater gains in fluency on the generalization passages, while data for the remaining 3 participants are inconclusive. Implications of these findings for practice and for better understanding application of the instructional hierarchy to the development of reading interventions are discussed.

A comparison of three interventions for increasing oral reading performance: Application of the instructional hierarchy

The instructional hierarchy is a behavior-analytic model that links level of academic skill development (i.e., acquisition, fluency, generalization, adaptation) with appropriate instructional techniques. The present study used the instructional hierarchy to compare the effects of three instructional interventions (listening passage preview, subject passage preview, and taped words) on subjects' oral reading performance on word lists and passages. Subjects were 4 male students with learning disabilities who ranged in age from 8 years 10 months to 11 years 11 months. A multielement design was used to compare the effects of the three interventions to each other and to baseline. Results indicated that the listening passage preview intervention (which contained modeling, drill, and generalization components) produced the largest performance gains. The implications of these results for selecting academic interventions based on the instructional hierarchy are discussed.     

Prescriptive Analysis: Further Individualization of Hypothesis Testing in Brief Experimental Analysis of Reading Fluency

Brief experimental analyses (BEA) have been used to identify effective individualized interventions for improving reading fluency with school-age children. Interventions involving incentives, modeling, repeated reading, and error correction are most often tested in a BEA. However, these interventions are rarely modified according to individual student needs. The current study examined the effects of varied levels of modeling (passage, sentence, word) and varied contingencies (tracking and fluency) on fluency in non-treated high-word overlap passages and general outcome measure passages. BEA-identified interventions were effective for improving reading fluency on non-treated passages for both second grade students and the third grade student. Notably, the effects reversed when intervention was withdrawn with one of the second grade students. Results are discussed in terms of considerations in the application of BEA technology in the schools.     

The Impact of a Precision Teaching Intervention on the Reading Fluency of Typically Developing Children

This research investigated the efficacy of precision teaching (PT) on the reading fluency of typically developing children, aged 7–8 years. Seven participants were assigned to a PT intervention group and received 6 weeks of fluency training using Say All Fast a Minute Every Day Shuffled (SAFMEDS) fluency cards (Phase 1) and a Dolch story (Phase 2). Outcomes were measured using multiple baseline design (MBD) data, Standard Celeration Charts, and pre‐intervention–post‐intervention fluency scores. The MBD data show increased correct responding for PT participants from baseline to the end of each intervention phase. These improvements were maintained at a 3‐week post‐intervention follow‐up. The MBD clearly demonstrated a replication of intervention effects across participants. The study supports prior research in this area showing that PT can lead to large and socially relevant gains in children's reading fluency. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

THE EFFECTS OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATCH AND CONTENT OVERLAP ON GENERALIZED READING PERFORMANCE

This study examined the effects of instructional match and content overlap on students' ability to generalize from passage reading instruction. Four students with mild disabilities served as participants. Using a multielement design, students were instructed with passages at two levels of text difficulty (instructionally matched vs. instructionally mismatched), and generalization was assessed with passages at two levels of similarity to those instructed (low vs. high content overlap). Results indicated that students' oral reading accuracy and fluency showed the greatest degree of generalization when instructional materials were matched to the students' skill level and assessment materials were similar to those used during instruction. Moreover, these results were maintained at 1-month follow-up. The implications of these findings for classroom reading instruction and the assessment of students' reading skills are discussed.     

A BRIEF EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS FOR IDENTIFYING INSTRUCTIONAL COMPONENTS NEEDED TO IMPROVE ORAL READING FLUENCY

Brief experimental analyses of oral reading fluency were conducted with 4 participants who had been referred by teachers and parents for reading problems. The procedures involved the sequential application of reading interventions to improve students' oral reading fluency. Following a baseline condition, instructional treatments were combined with prior conditions until there was improvement in oral reading fluency in the instructional passages and passages with high content overlap. Differentiated response patterns, assessed via a multielement design, were obtained for all participants. Results are discussed in terms of the potential benefits and limitations of conducting brief experimental analyses for selecting reading interventions.     

Examining Immediate and Maintenance Effects of a Reading Intervention Package on Generalization Materials: Individual Verses Group Implementation

Fluency has been identified as an important outcome of effective reading instruction, and intervention packages utilizing the method of repeated readings have been shown to improve oral reading fluency. In order to improve the efficiency of these intervention packages, more research is needed on the effectiveness of small group reading interventions. An alternating treatments design was used to compare the effects of two versions of an intervention package that included repeated readings on generalization and maintenance of oral reading rate for 6 second grade students. Both intervention packages included listening passage preview, repeated readings, error correction, and contingent reward. The intervention packages differed only in whether intervention components were provided to students individually or in groups of three. Gains in oral reading rate were observed across conditions, with individual and small group interventions resulting in comparable gains for most participants. Individual differences in performance and implications for reading instruction are discussed.     

Improving reading outcomes for children with learning disabilities: using brief experimental analysis to develop parent-tutoring interventions

The present study assessed the effects of summer parent tutoring on 3 children with learning disabilities using empirically derived reading interventions. Brief experimental analyses were used to identify customized reading fluency interventions. Parents were trained to use the intervention strategies with their children. Parents implemented the procedures during parent-tutoring sessions at home and results were measured continuously in high-word-overlap and low-word-overlap passages to determine whether generalization occurred. Parent and child satisfaction with the procedures was assessed. Results demonstrated generalized increases in reading fluency in both high-word-overlap and low-word-overlap passages as a function of parent tutoring. Also, acceptability ratings by children and their parents indicated that they viewed the interventions as acceptable and effective. Results are discussed in terms of structuring reading fluency interventions that promote generalization and maintenance of treatment effects.     

Effects of a Fluency-Building Program on the Reading Performance of Low-Achieving Second and Third Grade Students

This study evaluated the effects of a fluency-based reading program with 15 second and third grade students and 15 matched controls. Gains in oral reading fluency on untrained CBM probes were evaluated using a matched-pairs group-comparison design, whereas immediate and two-day retention gains in oral reading fluency on trained passages were evaluated using an adapted changing criterion design. Increases in WRCM due to training and number of trainings to criterion were also evaluated as a function of pre-training fluency levels. Results showed statistically significant gains on dependent measures for the treatment group, mean increases of two to three grade levels in passages mastered, and an optimal pre-training fluency range of 41-60 WRCM. Implications for fluency-based reading programs are discussed.     

An experimental analysis of reading interventions: generalization across instructional strategies, time, and passages

This study examined the generalized effects of three treatment conditions (performance based, skill based, and a combination of the two) on oral reading fluency by an elementary school student. Results indicated equal effectiveness of all treatments, maintenance, and possible evidence of generalization across passages.     

An Investigation of Student-Selected and Parent-Delivered Reading Interventions

In this study, we examined whether individualized, student-selected, parent-delivered reading interventions would produce generalized oral reading fluency improvements. Three 3rd-grade students received reading fluency interventions (repeated readings, modeling, error correction, and flashcard instruction) 1 at a time and were shown the results that each intervention produced. The students then selected the intervention strategies they wanted their parents to use. We trained parents in the student-selected reading intervention package who delivered the interventions for 4–5?weeks, and students were given the opportunity to earn rewards for generalized performance improvements at the end of each week in school. Using an alternating treatments design, results of parent tutoring were compared to a control condition that included a reinforcement contingency for generalized performance improvements to control for reinforcement effects across conditions. Generalized improvements in oral reading fluency (to high-word-overlap passages) were found for all participants. Results are discussed in terms of how educators can improve parent-tutoring outcomes by influencing students’ motivation to engage in tutoring procedures.     

Improving oral reading fluency by influencing students' choice of instructional procedures: an experimental analysis with two students with behavioral disorders

Choice as an antecedent intervention has been shown to improve student behavior in a variety of ways. This investigation examined whether students could be influenced to choose whether and how to be instructed while directly measuring effects on academic performance. Using a multiple‐probe design, the reading fluency of two middle school students with Behavioral Disorders was measured repeatedly across passages. Students could earn a tangible reward for meeting a pre‐determined performance criterion in passage reading. Prior to reading the criterion passage, each student was told that he or she could choose to be instructed or not be instructed in a similar passage with high content overlap. Both students consistently chose to be instructed (as well as how they would be instructed) and stable increases in oral reading fluency were obtained. Results are discussed in terms of how motivational variables can be used to influence students' choice of instructional procedures in ways that increase their opportunities to respond and measured learning. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Examining the maintenance and generalization effects of repeated practice: A comparison of three interventions

Repeated reading (RR) procedures are consistent with the procedures recommended by Haring and Eaton's (1978) Instructional Hierarchy (IH) for promoting students' fluent responding to newly learned stimuli. It is therefore not surprising that an extensive body of literature exists, which supports RR as an effective practice for promoting students' reading fluency of practiced passages. Less clear, however, is the extent to which RR helps students read the words practiced in an intervention passage when those same words are presented in a new passage. The current study employed randomized control design procedures to examine the maintenance and generalization effects of three interventions that were designed based upon Haring and Eaton's (1978) IH. Across four days, students either practiced reading (a) the same passage seven times (RR+RR), (b) one passage four times and three passages each once (RR+Guided Wide Reading [GWR]), or (c) seven passages each once (GWR+GWR). Students participated in the study across 2 weeks, with intervention being provided on a different passage set each week. All passages practiced within a week, regardless of condition, contained four target low frequency and four high frequency words. Across the 130 students for whom data were analyzed, results indicated that increased opportunities to practice words led to greater maintenance effects when passages were read seven days later but revealed minimal differences across conditions in students' reading of target words presented within a generalization passage.     

Promoting parent use of empirically supported reading interventions: two experimental investigations of child outcomes

Two experimental investigations of the effects of parent delivered reading interventions were conducted. Tutoring packages consisting of empirically supported intervention components were delivered by parents for at least several weeks after initial parent training. Both experiments used single‐case experimental designs and measured participants' oral reading fluency in passages. Experiment 1 used a multiple‐probe design across tasks (passages) to evaluate tutoring effects for two students with learning disabilities. Results indicate that both students increased their reading fluency and maintained those increases over time. Experiment 2 used a brief experimental analysis that included both experimenter and parent delivered instructional trials to validate the treatment package. Next, the treatment package was evaluated using an alternating treatments design. Results were uniformly positive. An interesting but not surprising correlation was also found between treatment integrity and student outcomes. Results are discussed in terms of the framework and skills that behavior analysts have for working with parents and schools to improve their children's academic responding. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.