About This Research
This peer-reviewed academic publication describes a study in which second-grade students in rural schools received tutoring services including the use of Raz-Plus resource packs to reinforce a variety of literacy skills. All participating students had either a cognitive or a learning disability or qualified for Title I services.
ESSA Evidence Level: Moderate
This study meets moderate evidence standards because it used a well-controlled quasi-experimental design and produced statistically significant positive effects with a large sample size across multiple sites.*
Main Findings
Students who received the tutoring programs† significantly outperformed the control group in DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency and in specific subtests of the Woodcock-Johnson III® Diagnostic Reading Battery.
Participants
Participants were 359 second-grade students from rural communities in Ohio. Students were either receiving Title I services, or exhibited cognitive or learning disabilities.
Study Design and Procedures
This study used a nonequivalent pre- and posttest control group design. Students in the treatment condition were assigned to either Help One Student to Succeed (HOSTS) or Reading Tutors (part of Reading A-Z and Raz-Plus). Students met with tutors for 30-minute sessions three to four times per week for six months. Two assessments were used to measure reading skills: the DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency subtest (DORF) and four subtests of the Woodcock-Johnson III® Diagnostic Reading Battery.
Citation
Osborn, J., Freeman, A., Burley, M., Wilson, R., Jones, E., & Rychener, S. (2007). Effect of tutoring on reading achievement for students with cognitive disabilities, specific learning disabilities, and students receiving Title I services. Education and Training in Developmental Disabilities, 42(4), 467-474.
†Reading Tutors, which is now part of Reading A-Z and Raz-Plus, was one of the tutoring programs used in this study.
