This article addresses the effects of 3-tiered comprehensive reading and behavior interventions on K-3 student outcomes in 7 urban elementary schools with a high prevalence of students considered difficult to teach. Specific features of each level of the implementation are described including screening and tier placement procedures, scheduling and personnel supports, procedures for ensuring strong implementation with fidelity, procedures for student progress monitoring, and guidelines for instructional decision making. Early literacy skill outcomes for students were the primary dependent measures in reading; schoolwide office discipline referral rate was the dependent measure in behavior. Significant improvement was evident in phoneme segmentation and nonsense word fluency in reading and significant decreases were documented in office discipline referrals across treatment and comparison schools. Significantly higher outcomes were also recorded on required statewide end-of-grade assessments in treatment schools. Implications and caveats concerning effective implementation of the model in other settings are provided. The article emphasizes that changing schoolwide reading and behavior risk requires effective intervention, instruction, and support in both areas.
Fluent oral reading is an essential literacy skill, and data suggest that it is a consistent and persistent problem for many elementary school children. Peer-mediated instruction in which students work together to support each other is an evidencebased practice for improving performance in a variety of academic areas. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of a peer-mediated fluency-building intervention for struggling readers in second grade. The intervention was provided to small groups of students referred to as difficult-to-remediate, treatment resisters, nonresponders, or lower responders in similar research. Oral reading fluency performance for students who received supplemental intervention (n = 17) was statistically significantly better than that for their peers who received only typical classroom instruction (n = 17). The effects of enhanced fluency instruction were evident across multiple benchmarks, and significant relationships were evident between oral reading fluency and comprehension. The authors discuss the findings in the context of similar peer-mediated interventions and the emerging development of targeted interventions to support response-to-intervention practices.
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