What Research Tells Us about Reading Instruction Georgia’s Reading First February 2005

1. What Research Tells Us about Reading Instruction Georgia’s Reading First February 2005

2. What is SBRR (and how can I get some?) Dr. Michael C. McKenna Georgia Southern University

3. prevents the use of unreliable and untested methods that can actually impede academic progress makes teaching more effective, productive, and efficient can be better generalized and replicated across many sites Scientifically-Based Research

4. Scientifically-Based Research • applies rigorous, systematic, and objective procedures to obtain valid knowledge relevant to reading development, reading instruction, and reading difficulties

5. Scientifically-Based Research • employs systematic empirical methods that draw on observation or experiment;

6. Scientifically-Based Research • involves rigorous data analyses that are adequate to test the stated hypotheses and justify the general conclusions drawn;

7. Scientifically-Based Research • relies on measurements or observational methods that provide valid data across evaluators and observers and across multiple measurements and observations; and . . .

8. Scientifically-Based Research • has been accepted by a peer-reviewed journal or approved by a panel of independent experts through a comparably rigorous, objective and scientific review

9. SBRR in a Nutshell • Scientific method • Begins with hypothesis • Controls are used • Outcome proves or disproves the hypothesis • Replicated – Repeat studies find the same results

10. SBRR in a Nutshell • Generalized – Study findings represent truth for the general population. • Meets Rigorous Standards – Methods and conclusions must be confirmed by peer review. • Convergent findings – Conclusions are in line with findings from other studies.

11. Horse Race Studies

12. Important Documents

13. Let’s look at the 5 Areas • Phonemic Awareness • Phonics • Fluency • Vocabulary • Comprehension

14. NRP Findings on PA • PA training improves phonemic awareness • PA training improves decoding • PA training improves spelling • PA training improves comprehension

15. NRP Findings on PA • PA training works for preK, K, 1 and older disabled readers • PA training works with high- and low-SES children • PA training does not improve spelling for reading-disabled students

16. NRP Findings on PA • PA training works in English and in other languages. • Many different activities can be used in the trainings; a focus on one or two skills appears more effective than more. • Blending and segmenting are most powerful.

17. NRP Findings on PA • Overlearning letter names, shapes, and sounds should be emphasized along with PA training. • Between 5 and 18 hours yielded the strongest effects. Longer programs were less effective. (But the panel cautioned against making “rules” about time.)

18. NRP Findings on PA • Regular classroom teachers can effectively implement the training • Small groups were more effective than whole class or tutoring

19. Some Effective Techniques • Oddity Tasks • Adding Sounds • Deletion Tasks • Sound Blending • Stretch Sounding

20. Elkonin Boxes

21. Elkonin Boxes

22. Elkonin Boxes

23. Elkonin Boxes

24. Elkonin Boxes m a n

25. Sound Sorting

26. Sound Sorting

27. Sound Sorting

28. Sound Sorting

29. Picture Blending

30. Picture Blending

31. Picture Blending

32. Picture Blending

33. Task #1

34. NRP Findings on Phonics • Systematic phonics instruction had a significant effect on children’s reading achievement compared to controls • Synthetic, larger-unit (onset-rime), and other phonics programs all were more effective than controls, but no one type of instruction or instructional program was significantly more effective than any other

35. Synthetic Phonics • Teach individual letter-sound correspondences in isolation. • Have children sound out unfamiliar words by blending phonemes.

36. cat = /k/ + /a/ + /t/

37. Analogy-Based Decoding • Teach children to recognize patterns (chunks) (e.g., -at, -ake). • Teach key sight words containing these chunks (e.g., cat, make). • Teach them to decode unfamilar words by recognizing chunks, recalling the key word, and substituting the onset they’ve just encountered.

38. vatT: Let’s start with the vowel. Do you see a part you know? S: Yes, at.T: Can you think of a word that has at? S: Yes, cat. T: So take off the c and put a v there. S: /v/ - /at/, /vat/!

39. Stages of Decoding • Prephonemic (just guessing, using the first letter at most)

40. birdmight be read as ball

41. Stages of Decoding • Prephonemic (just guessing, using the first letter at most) • Partial Alphabetic (some letter-sound knowledge is used.

42. gem is read as gum

43. Stages of Decoding • Prephonemic (just guessing, using the first letter at most) • Partial Alphabetic (some letter-sound knowledge is used) • Full Alphabetic (left-to-right sequential decoding)

44. cat = /k/ + /a/ + /t/

45. Stages of Decoding • Prephonemic (just guessing, using the first letter at most) • Partial Alphabetic (some letter-sound knowledge is used) • Full Alphabetic (left-to-right sequential decoding) • Consolidated Alphabetic (orthographic) (onset and rime approach)

46. band bandiferous different

47. band bandiferous different

48. band bandiferous different

49. NRP Findings on Phonics • Tutoring, small groups, and whole classes are all effective delivery systems for phonics instruction • Phonics instruction is more effective when it occurs in kindergarten and first grade than later

50. NRP Findings on Phonics • Phonics instruction is effective for at-risk kindergarteners, at-risk first graders, and disabled students. The findings for older weak readers are confusing. • Phonics instruction improves students’ ability to read real words, pseudowords, and (to a lesser extent) irregular words.