Ed 569: Reading Websites and Software

Lacee and I partnered to preview and select 5 websites and 5 software programs that support reading remediation. I relied on the expertise of the "What Works Clearinghouse" to assist in the search. The "What Works Clearinghouse" is a research arm of the U.S. Department of Education. It is often cited in works of the International Reading Association, and its results are considered valid and reliable.

On their website (http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/), they write:

We review the research on the different programs, products, practices, and policies in education.
Then, by focusing on the results from high-quality research, we try to answer the question “What works in education?”
Our goal is to provide educators with the information they need to make evidence-based decisions.

Based on their research, the following software programs demonstrate potentially positive effects for improving literacy. The evaluative comments are taken from the What Works Clearinghouse research summaries.

Read Naturally:

The Read Naturally^® program is a supplemental reading program that aims to improve the reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension of students in elementary, middle, or high school or adults using a combination of texts, audio CDs, and computer software. The common strategy includes: modeling of story reading, repeated reading of text for developing oral reading fluency, and systematic monitoring of student progress by teachers and the students themselves. Students work at their own reading level, progress through the program at their own rate, and work (for the most part) on an independent basis. The program can be delivered in three ways: (1) students use audio CDs with hard-copy reading materials(2) students use the computer-based version or (3) students use the web-based version. Read Naturally^® was found to have potentially positive effects on general literacy achievement for adolescent readers.

http://www.readnaturally.com/

LeapTrack:

The Grade-Level Classroom and Resource Room Kits include easily integrated assessment and interactive instruction for multiple learning levels in Reading, Math, and Language Arts. It delivers hundreds of learning activities specially designed to promote student desire to learn. LeapTrack promotes student learning through direct instruction and the following technology-empowered curriculum features: audio assistance, immediate feedback, and the option to repeat instruction as often as needed.

http://www.ncwiseowl.org/impact/back2school/vendor/leaptrack.pdf

LeapTrack for Grade 4 was evaluated along with 5 other software programs and was found to have the most positive effect with 4th grade students.

Failure Free Reading:

Failure Free Reading is a language development program designed to improve vocabulary, fluency, word recognition, and reading comprehension for kindergarten through grade 12 students who score in the bottom 15% on standardized tests and who have not responded to conventional beginning reading instruction. The three key dimensions of the program are repeated exposure to text, predictable sentence structures, and story concepts that require minimal prior knowledge. The program combines systematic, scripted teacher instruction, talking software, workbook exercises, and independent reading activities. The program is delivered through small group or individual instruction.

Failure Free Reading was found to have no discernible effects on alphabetics and fluency, and potentially positive effects on comprehension. It is recommended for Early Readers (P-3).

http://www.failurefreeonline.com/n/

Earobics:

Earobics^® is interactive software that provides students in pre-K through third grade with individual, systematic instruction in early literacy skills as students interact with animated characters. Earobics^® Foundations is the version for prekindergaten, kindergarten, and first grade. Earobics^® Connections is for second and third graders and older struggling readers. The program builds children’s skills in phonemic awareness, auditory processing, and phonics, as well as the cognitive and language skills required for comprehension. Each level of instruction addresses recognizing and blending sounds, rhyming, and discriminating phonemes within words, adjusting to each student’s ability level. The software is supported by music, CDs, and includes picture/word cards, letter-sound decks, big books, little books, and leveled readers for reading independently or in groups.

Earobics^® was found to have positive effects on alphabetics and potentially positive effects on reading fluency.

www.earobics.com

Words and Concepts:

Words and Concepts is a computer software program that focuses on building oral language skills related to vocabulary, comprehension, word relationships, and other concepts in six units—vocabulary, categorization, word identification by function, word association, concept of same, and concept of different. It can be used by adults and children with varying special needs, including language-learning disabilities, developmental disabilities, physical impairments, hearing and vision impairments, and autism. It is recommended for students in P/1. WWC found minimally discernible improvement with this software.

http://www.laureatelearning.com/products/descriptions/wcdesc.html

As Barb has mentioned, many of these programs are very expensive. All of them, on their websites, claim to be "the solution" for struggling readers. It is important that, if we are choosing websites or software to support reading, we choose those with research-based evidence of their effectiveness.

Reading Websites:

Into the Book www.reading.ecb.org FREE

Teaches: Using prior knowledge, making connections, questioning, visualizing, inferring, summarizing, evaluating & synthesizing.
Includes a student website, teacher website, 9 classroom videos and 9 PD videos.