Applying Research to Reading Instruction: What’s Next?

Applying Research to Reading Instruction: What’s Next? Timothy Shanahan University of Illinois at Chicago shanahan@uic.edu

Why research? • Lack of growth in reading achievement in more than 3 decades: need to do better • Deep divisions in the profession: must have way to solve disagreements • Higher accountability demands: greater need for certainty

Settling the Reading Wars • The National Reading Panel: a public review of research • Nature of acceptable evidence • Findings become the basis of public standards: Reading First

However, • NRP findings are not yet in place • RF Implementation Study: Not much change in comprehension instruction in RF • ETR Survey (ETR): many teachers still unaware of SBRR • NCTQ study on teacher education • Let’s do a quick review of NRP…

Phonemic Awareness • Studies show that young children need to learn to hear the separable sounds within words • PA is not phonics • Teachers need to know how to teach PA (and they need to be able to distinguish the sounds in words)

Phonics • Studies show that phonics gives young children (K-2) a clear benefit in learning to read • Phonics instruction needs to be systematic • Teachers need to know how to teach phonics and they need to provide a substantial amount of phonics in early grades and in remedial interventions

Oral reading fluency • Studies show that teaching students to read aloud fluently improves reading achievement • Fluency instruction requires oral reading practice with repetition and feedback • Teachers need to provide substantial fluency instruction • Cleveland study

Vocabulary (word meaning) • Studies show that explicit teaching of word meanings improves reading achievement • Teachers need to provide substantial vocabulary instruction • NELP panel findings • NLP panel findings

Reading comprehension • Studies show that teaching reading comprehension strategies improves reading achievement • Strategies instruction is more than comprehension practice • Teachers need to provide substantial amounts of comprehension instruction • Are strategies necessary?

Why do we need to get beyond those points? • Those five things are essential, but there are many other issues in the teaching of reading • There has not been a sufficient continuous federal effort to keep the research picture updated (new panel coming)

Importance of time • Amount of instruction is the number one determinant of school learning • Need to ensure that teachers spend sufficient amounts of time teaching reading and writing • Schools are finding ways for providing more time

Need for Greater Literacy Effort in Pre-K and K • Importance of alphabetic code including phonological sensitivity, letter names, print awareness, oral language and no difference pre-K and K (NELP) • More explicit idea of vocabulary knowledge (NELP, in process) • Oregon evaluation of all-day K • NELP: positive findings for phonological and print instruction, reading to kids, parent efforts, preschool, and oral language • ERF study due in fall

Greater focus on content area reading • What are we preparing kids for? • The ACT study • Greater attention to content reading instructionCarnegie projects

Need for greater ELL effort • ELL students are a growing population, and as a group they have lower comprehension • They often match first language students on basic skills • The elements work, but not as well as they do with first language students • Need for vocabulary and comprehension efforts (intensity)

Need for writing instruction • Writing is a key element of literacy • Research is clear that writing instruction (not just practice) can raise reading achievement • Many aspects of reading benefit from the greater intensity of writing instruction

Need for on-going professional development • Most neglected finding in NRP was that professional development for teachers led to higher reading achievement for students • NCTQ study (Philadelphia, etc.) • Successful districts do more than buy programs—they make sure teachers can use programs effectively

Conclusion • We’ll never make progress in reading achievement until we rigorously apply research findings • But that isn’t a static process • Research evidence needs to continue to accumulate for continued improvement

Thank you. Timothy Shanahan University of Illinois at Chicago shanahan@uic.edu

Applying Research to Reading Instruction: What’s Next?