Effective Tier 1 Reading Instruction for Elementary Schools: A Systematic Review

Abstract

A broad literature exists reviewing approaches for students struggling to learn to read (Inns, Lake, Pellegrini, & Slavin, 2018; Scammacca, Roberts, Vaughn, & Stuebing, 2015; Slavin, Lake, Davis, & Madden, 2011; Wanzek & Vaughn, 2007; Wanzek et al., 2016, 2013; Wanzek, Wexler, Vaughn, & Ciullo, 2010). These reviews focus on Tiers 2 and 3 of a multi-tiered model, on students who need additional support. Tier 1 is crucial for elementary reading, because it touches all students, and because successful Tier 1 instruction can reduce the need for far more expensive Tier 2 and 3 intervention.Fewer reviews have focused on Tier 1 literacy instruction in the elementary grades (Dietrichson, Bøg, Filges, & Klint Jørgensen, 2017; Graham & Hebert, 2011; Graham et al., 2017; Same et al., 2018; Slavin, Lake, Chambers, Cheung, & Davis, 2009; Swanson et al., 2017). The current review provides this, building upon these prior reviews in several ways.