Effects of a Reading Intervention Implemented at Differing Intensities for Upper Elementary Students

Students with disabilities who display severe reading difficulties may require intensive interventions in order to make progress. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of a multicomponent reading intervention implemented at two different intensities, in two separate randomized control trials, for a subset of fourth-grade students who displayed severe reading difficulties, and who had or were at risk for disabilities. We use multilevel models to examine the effect of a standard, less intensive implementation in Study 1, and of a more intensive implementation in Study 2, relative to typical school services. Analyses revealed no significant effects of treatment for the standard, less intensive implementation in Study 1. Significant effects for word reading and word reading fluency outcomes for students assigned to receive the intensive implementation were noted in Study 2. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.     

An Experimental Evaluation of Guided Reading and Explicit Interventions for Primary-Grade Students At-Risk for Reading Difficulties

Abstract

Considerable research evidence supports the provision of explicit instruction for students at risk for reading difficulties; however, one of the most widely implemented approaches to early reading instruction is Guided Reading (GR; Fountas & Pinnel, 1996), which deemphasizes explicit instruction and practice of reading skills in favor of extended time reading text. This study evaluated the two approaches in the context of supplemental intervention for at-risk readers at the end of Grade 1. Students (n = 218) were randomly assigned to receive GR intervention, explicit intervention (EX), or typical school instruction (TSI). Both intervention groups performed significantly better than TSI on untimed word identification. Significant effects favored EX over TSI on phonemic decoding and one measure of comprehension. Outcomes for the intervention groups did not differ significantly from each other; however, an analysis of the added value of providing each intervention relative to expected growth with typical instruction indicated that EX is more likely to substantially accelerate student progress in phonemic decoding, text reading fluency, and reading comprehension than GR. Implications for selection of Tier 2 interventions within a response-to-intervention format are discussed.     

Intensive Interventions in Reading for Students with Reading Disabilities: Meaningful Impacts

We use three data sources to build a rationale for why intensive interventions are necessary for students with pervasive reading disabilities: current data on the performance of students with disabilities on reading achievement measures over time, observation studies on students with reading disabilities in general and special education classrooms, and findings from intensive intervention studies for students with reading disabilities. Results of these data sources indicate that students with disabilities are not making progress in reading at the same rate as students without disabilities, reading instruction for students with reading disabilities is comprised of excessive amounts of low level tasks, and findings from intensive intervention studies suggest positive impacts for students with reading disabilities. We argue that students with reading disabilities require ongoing intensive interventions that are likely to require schools to change the contexts and practices for these students.     

A Meta-Analysis of Interventions to Improve Reading Comprehension Outcomes for Adolescents with Reading Difficulties

This meta-analysis synthesized 97 effect sizes extracted from 37 intervention studies for students with reading difficulties (RDs) in Grades 6 to 12 published between 1982 and 2021 to identify the overall impact of reading interventions and the moderating effects of intervention characteristics and study design characteristics. Random-effects robust variance estimation (RVE) was used to account for dependencies within studies. Overall, interventions designed to improve reading comprehension outcomes for adolescents with RDs were effective (g = 0.63). Meta-regression analyses identified several significant moderators that were associated with intervention efficacy, such as text content, duration of intervention, agent of intervention, status of student, type of dependent measure, and study quality. We provide study limitations as well as implications for research and practice.     

Keyboarding Difficulties: Frequency and Characteristics among Higher Education Students with Handwriting Difficulties

Word processing is often considered an alternative writing mode or test accommodation for students with specific learning disorders who have handwriting difficulties (HD). Therefore, it is important for researchers and educators to understand the difficulties these students may encounter while using this technology. We examined the frequency of keyboarding difficulties (KD; i.e., slow keyboarding) among higher education students with HD, and the underlying functions (language, fine-motor, and attention) of these disabilities compared to students with only HD. Of the 50 students with HD, 24 percent were found to have KD. This group had significantly lower scores in phonological and orthographic skills, but not in fine-motor and attention functions, compared to students with HD alone. These results support models suggesting that handwriting and keyboarding share linguistic processes. They also suggest that for students with lower linguistic functions, word processing via keyboarding may not be an effective writing mode, and that these students may require tailored accommodation.     

Interventions for Secondary Students with High Functioning Autism in General Education Settings: A Descriptive Review

In recent years, there has been a rise in the number of students with high functioning autism (HFA) enrolled in general education classes. Many of these students struggle with academic and social–behavioral expectations in school, and minimal research is available to educators related to meeting the needs of such students in secondary educational settings. Educators must identify effective, evidence-based strategies to help adolescent students with HFA meet academic and social goals. This review represents a comprehensive search of the literature in which 23 studies, published in peer-reviewed journals from 1985 to 2015, examined social–behavioral and academic aspects of students with HFA in regular education classrooms. Results indicated that several interventions were used successfully to change the behavior of students with HFA in general education. Implications drawn from the research and quality of the studies are provided.     

美国中小学暑期阅读计划

美国联邦教育部近期发布的中小学暑期阅读计划是为了防止中小学生暑期阅读能力下降，巩固提高其阅读能力，达到《不让一个孩子落后》法案所提出的确保每个儿童到三年级都能阅读的目标而制定的。     

Effects of Technology-Mediated Vocabulary Intervention for Third-Grade Students with Reading Difficulties

Abstract

In this experimental study, we examined the effects of a technology-mediated intervention to improve students’ understanding of academic vocabulary and its impact on measures of vocabulary and comprehension. The Vocabulators program was implemented in two states involving 24 teachers and 200 third-grade students identified as in need of supplemental vocabulary instruction. Individual students within each classroom were randomly assigned to treatment (n?=?100) or typical instructional practices (n?=?100) conditions. In the treatment condition, students received, on average, 29 lessons on vocabulary and comprehension. Results of linear regression analyses showed statistically significant and practical effects on experimenter-developed proximal measures of decoding (ES = 0.52), expressive vocabulary (ES = 0.78), receptive vocabulary (ES = 0.51), and near transfer measures of understanding vocabulary in sentences (ES = 0.65), and informational text comprehension (ES = 0.28). Group performance did not differ statistically on near transfer measures of sentence verification with vocabulary and narrative text comprehension as well as distal standardized measures of general vocabulary or reading comprehension. Findings suggest the potential impact of technology-based vocabulary/comprehension lessons to supplement typical instruction.     

受助家庭经济困难大学生的心理特点与教育援助之对策

随着资助政策体系的完善,高校家庭经济困难大学生的经济问题已得到解决,学校对社会的决不让一名学生因经济困难而辍学的承诺已完全实现.因此,系统化研究家庭经济困难大学生教育援助问题,探索积极有效、科学合理的家庭经济困难学生的教育方法,对家庭经济困难大学生的顺利成长成才具有重要的理论和实践意义.本文通过分析家庭经济困难学生的人格心理特点,结合对家庭经济困难学生教育援助及引导工作的现状,提出了一些思考.     

A Root Awakening: Vocabulary Instruction for Older Students with Reading Difficulties

There is reliable evidence that new vocabulary is primarily acquired through wide independent reading. However, struggling readers tend to avoid reading, resulting in limited word encounters and inadequate vocabulary growth, and they often have difficulties inferring the meanings of new words from context. While there are no clear solutions to the problem of vocabulary acquisition for older students with reading difficulties, there are instructional approaches that have some evidence of effectiveness for this population. We describe the research base and promising practices related to three aspects of vocabulary instruction: (1) creating a verbal learning environment that fosters word consciousness, (2) selecting and teaching specific words, and (3) teaching an independent word learning strategy through a combination of contextual and morphemic analysis. These instructional approaches are grounded in overarching principles recognized by researchers as being characteristic of effective instruction for students with learning difficulties, including explicit instruction, promoting cognitive and collaborative engagement, and providing many opportunities for practice, including distributed practice, with teacher feedback. Finally, we discuss the possibilities inherent in a cross‐content schoolwide approach to vocabulary instruction at the secondary level. We conclude with a call for additional research examining the effectiveness of instructional approaches to vocabulary development for secondary school students with reading difficulties, including a schoolwide collaborative model.     

高校经济困难学生的特点及教育对策研究——基于建构自我概念的视角

经济困难学生是高校中的特殊群体.本文从自我概念的视角分析了高校贫困生不同于非贫困生的心理和行为特点,即更能以积极的心态面对逆境、更容易出现自我期望值高与自我认同度低的矛盾心理和具有更强的独立性.同时,从培养贫困生积极的自我概念的角度,提出了指导贫困生形成全面客观的自我认识与评价、开展贫困生教育时给予积极的社会反馈、指导贫困生在学校中建立自己的社会支持系统等三个方面的建议.     

谈农村初中数学学困生的转化问题

在农村初中数学教学中,学困生的问题常常困扰着教育工作者,如何做好学困生的转化工作,也是当今数学教学的重要课题,所以,分析数学学困生的表现,探讨数学学困生的形成原因,寻求转化数学学困生的策略,有着非常重要的意义。     

浅谈小学班主任工作与“问题”学生的心理健康教育

在小学教育中,因为这样那样的原因,会产生一些问题学生,我们不但不能放任问题学生不管,而且要用细心、耐心、恒心,对"问题"学生做到以心育心,并努力使学生的思想文化和身心得到全面健康的发展,使他们快乐成长、快乐成才。     

小学体育教学中德育的渗透

体育是小学生成长过程中的重要学科,对学生强身健体有着积极的意义,能够培养学生积极向上的精神风貌,让学生更具个人魅力。但是,部分学生在体育活动中,忽视了德育的存在,只关注运动的结果,缺乏运动所需要的身心素养。为了改变学生的这种现状,小学体育教师在教学中进行德育渗透,借助生活,提出问题,促进合作,丰富实践,组织竞赛,以推动学生素养的发展。     

Exploring the Relative Effectiveness of Reading Interventions for High School Students

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to explore the relative effectiveness of intensive reading interventions for struggling high school readers. A yearlong randomized control study was conducted to estimate causal effects, as measured by the criterion-referenced state assessment test, for 1,265 ninth-grade students in 89 classes across 7 high schools in a large school district. Students in the high risk group and the moderate risk group were randomly assigned to one of four intensive reading interventions (three new interventions and a “business as usual” control condition.) Results indicated that for all four interventions, gains made by students in the high risk group exceeded the benchmark for expected annual growth. For the moderate risk group, random effects mixed modeling showed that reliable differences were observed in the state outcome gain scores between two of the intensive interventions and the “business as usual” control condition (Glass's adjusted Δ = .27, .30).     

小学低年级学生的道德学习

道德学习的本质是人满足道德需要的自主建构,核心是追求自我价值,即满足自尊的需要。个体道德学习的主体意识分为三个层级,道德学习的结构主要包括道德需要、价值分析、自我选择和道德实践等四个要素。这四个要素反映在小学低年级学生的道德学习中,就表现为独特的道德学习内容和方式。     

Evaluating Paraeducator-led Reading Interventions in Elementary School: A Multi-Cutoff Regression-Discontinuity Analysis

Abstract

A two-cutoff regression discontinuity design (RDD) was used to assign 321 students in grades 1 through 6 at a Title I elementary school to two types of Tier 2 reading interventions administered by paraeducators: (a) direct instruction (DI) and (b) computer-assisted instruction (CAI). Students scoring at or below a lower cutoff pretest score were assigned to the DI reading intervention. Students scoring between the lower cutoff score and an upper cutoff score on the pretest were assigned to a CAI reading intervention. Student reading ability was reassessed in January and May. Results indicated that the DI intervention was significantly more effective than the CAI interventions at the lower cutoff (p < .01). No significant treatment effect was detected at the upper cutoff, but the estimation power of the design at this cutoff was limited to medium-to-large effect size. Findings suggest that the DI intervention was superior to the CAI interventions for at-risk readers. Implications for practice, including fidelity of paraeducator implementation, are discussed.     

Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Reading Interventions for Students in the Primary Grades

Abstract

This meta-analysis systematically reviewed the most up-to-date literature to determine the effectiveness of reading interventions on measures of word and pseudoword reading, reading comprehension, and passage fluency, and to determine the role intervention and study variables play in moderating the impacts for students at risk for reading difficulties in Grades 1–3. We used random-effects meta-regression models with robust variance estimates to summarize overall effects and to explore potential moderator effects. Results from a total of 33 rigorous experimental and quasi-experimental studies conducted between 2002 and 2017 that met WWC evidence standards revealed a significant positive effect for reading interventions on reading outcomes, with a mean effect size of 0.39 (SE = .04, p < .001, 95% CI [0.32, 0.46]). Moderator analyses demonstrated that mean effects varied across outcome domains and areas of instruction.