Lexia Newsletters

In the October Issue:

Research-Based Reading Instruction: Paramount to Students’ Reading Success

By Patricia Mathes, Ph. D.

Multiple studies confirm that if a child leaves first-grade behind their peers in reading, the chance of ever catching up is only about 10% without significant intervention. If a child is still behind at the end of grade 3, the chance of catching up without very intensive intervention is 0%. With data like this indicating that the window of opportunity for reaching students is finite, it has become increasingly paramount to deliver high quality reading instruction to children as early as possible. Choosing scientific research-based reading materials, such as Lexia Reading, is critical to achieving the best results for all students.

We know the numbers of children who struggle to learn to read is directly related to the quality and intensity of the instruction they receive. While the majority of children require only high quality core instruction to thrive (Tier I students), many children require more intensive interventions in smaller groups in order to respond well (Tier 2 students). Additionally, a very small number of children will not respond adequately to supplemental instruction and need rigorous, sustained support in order to make reading gains (Tier 3 students). This research forms the basis of the Response to Intervention (RTI) model. Also, we know that all children respond if instruction is well designed and of adequate intensity and duration. In fact, research findings indicate that good intervention actually normalizes a child’s brain activity patterns.

What constitutes “well-designed” instruction? Good, scientifically-based, reading instruction should include the five major components of reading - phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension - and should be taught in an explicit and structured manner. The curriculum should have a logical scope and sequence and provide extensive cumulative practice for each skill. New content should be integrated with previously learned content to build on existing skills. Many curriculum providers claim to meet these criteria and to have research findings to confirm their effectiveness. However, it is best if there is true efficacy data from a reputable outside source, such as peer reviewed journals or reading research organizations in order to validate the effectiveness of the reading instruction. Quality instruction delivered with adequate intensity and duration is the key to reading success in all children. Recognizing this fact, educators need to make informed decisions based on the best available data in choosing their core reading programs, supplemental programs, and technology-based interventions. Anything less than a rigorous vetting process is likely to result in the selection of poor materials, leaving students facing some very long odds.

About the Author:

Patricia G. Mathes, Ph. D. is a national researcher on early intervention for struggling readers. A former classroom and reading teacher, she received her Ph.D. in Education and Human Development from Peabody College for Teachers of Vanderbilt University in 1992. She has served on the faculties of Developmental Pediatrics at the University of Texas – Houston Medical School, the College of Education at Florida State University, and Peabody College for Teachers at Vanderbilt University.

Currently, Dr. Mathes is the Texas Instruments Endowed Chair of Reading Research, Professor of Literacy and Language Learning, and Director, Institute of Reading Research for Southern Methodist University. Since 1991 she has conducted large-scale classroom-based reading intervention research with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the National Science Foundation, and state agencies. Dr. Mathes is the author of numerous articles, chapters, books, and curricular materials related to learning and reading disabilities which address issues of academic diversity and best practices for struggling readers.

Florida Center for Reading Research Gives Lexia Reading High Marks

From the Desk of Robert McCabe, Vice President and Chief Education Officer, Lexia Learning Systems, Inc.

The Florida Center for Reading Research (FCRR), one of the nation’s leading independent reading research organizations, recently published a report reviewing Lexia Reading™ software. Lexia Reading for grades Pre-K to adult is our most recent version of Lexia’s award-winning, research-based reading software. The FCRR gave Lexia Reading the highest possible ratings for phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency and very strong scores for vocabulary and comprehension. The FCRR portrayed Lexia Reading as one of the broadest and most comprehensive programs on the market. In the report, the FCRR categorized the program as a “Comprehensive Intervention Reading Program” able to address the needs of a wide range of grades and skill levels.

The FCRR found no weaknesses with the program and cited many strengths for Lexia Reading. They noted that Lexia Reading is web-enabled, which allows students to access the program from both home and school. The FCRR found the program provides intensive, structured, and systematic practice aligned with research and quick, immediate feedback following the student’s response. Also, it noted that for older students, phonological awareness is developed in conjunction with phonic word attack strategies.

According to the FCRR report summary, “the Lexia Reading program provides practice in the five components of reading, and the design of these materials is consistent with current research suggesting that students who struggle with reading benefit from systematic and explicit practice opportunities.”

“The report from the Florida Center for Reading Research supports our position as a comprehensive, broad reading program. We have more breadth in terms of grade and skill coverage than all of our competitors.” said Nick Gaehde, president of Lexia Learning Systems, Inc. “Lexia Reading was deemed appropriate in more categories than any other program.”

Lexia Reading, launched in September 2007, is a new web-enabled, Lexia-hosted version of Lexia Learning Systems reading software. The culmination of years of reading research and technical development, Lexia Reading includes three proven Lexia titles - Early Reading, Primary Reading, and Strategies for Older Students - and a newly enhanced management system with extensive reporting features.

Lexia Reading’s redesigned management system generates powerful, comprehensive reports. Superintendents, administrators, and teachers can instantly and easily monitor performance, progress, and usage on an individual, class, or school basis from on-site or remote locations. Teachers can use reports to monitor progress, to differentiate instruction, and to identify students in need of additional support.

Lexia Reading supports students in the 3-tier Response to Intervention (RTI) model of reading instruction. Now with Lexia Reading’s district access program, district-wide reporting and management features, as well as volume pricing, are available for an additional fee. Administrators can use the critical information derived from Lexia’s new reporting capabilities to drive decision-making, ensuring that their schools and district meet adequate yearly progress guidelines.

The Florida Center for Reading Research was established by Governor Jeb Bush in January, 2002. It is jointly administered at Florida State University by the Learning Systems Institute and the College of Arts and Sciences. FCRR Reports are prepared in response to requests from Florida school districts for review of specific reading programs. The reports are intended to be a source of information about programs that will help teachers, principals, and district personnel in their choice of materials that can be used by skilled teachers to provide effective instruction.

Reading Psychology Journal Publishes Findings Showing Lexia Reading Advances Kindergarteners’ Literacy Skills

The independent peer-reviewed journal, Reading Psychology: An International Quarterly v29, 2008, recently published the results of a study examining the benefits of Lexia Early Reading as a supplement to a phonics-based reading curriculum for kindergartners in a public elementary school in Revere, Massachusetts near Boston. Examiners compared students from Kindergarten classes using Lexia Early Reading to matched control classes not using Lexia but taught by the same teacher. Pre-testing indicated no significant differences in the abilities of students from either group. However, the researchers found significant differences between the groups on post-test as measured by the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test Level PR with the largest gains identified in the area of phonological awareness skills among the lowest performing pre-test students who used Lexia Early Reading.

Upstate New York Elementary School Students Improve their Reading Skills with Lexia

The Spencer-Van Etten Elementary School took advantage of the Lexia Learning Systems free evaluation offer and conducted a trial of Lexia Reading software from January to June 2008. By the end of this period, the school was seeing major gains in students’ reading achievement and will be expanding their implementation of the program for the 2008/2009 academic year.

Spencer-Van Etten Elementary School is located in a rural town in upstate New York. They enroll 393 students grades Pre-Kindergarten through 4th grade, with 43% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch rates. Initially, the Spencer-Van Etten staff chose to evaluate Lexia Reading because it provided explicit, systematic, structured reading skills practice for students of all ability levels. They were also interested in Lexia Reading’s built-in assessment and reporting features and real-time student progress monitoring.

Following the evaluation, Spencer-Van Etten found Lexia Reading program to be an enjoyable and effective reading skills mastery program for students and a valuable tool for teachers. The program helped students gain facility and fluency in phonemic and phonics skills. According to Leslie Stackhouse, the school’s computer lab coordinator; “student interest and enthusiasm for the program did not diminish over time, and the children who passed to new levels of the program expressed excitement and a sense of accomplishment about doing so.”

“Lexia’s built-in assessment and reporting allowed teachers to plan instruction and directly teach students the necessary skills,” Stackhouse said. “We have never been able to uncover before so easily areas where students are struggling. Now with Lexia, we can see immediately if a student or group of students is having trouble with a specific reading skill.”

The main benefit of Lexia Reading is to build skills with explicit practice in phonemic awareness and phonics while promoting gains in vocabulary, fluency and comprehension. However, the program’s powerful reporting features helped teachers accurately identify student strengths and weaknesses when used for instruction and as a post-instruction formative assessment program. Data from individual student reports isolated specific instructional needs, which led to direct intervention and continued practice using Lexia Reading for students in regular classes and those enrolled in Special Education services. The program proved to be particularly beneficial in helping struggling students and students the district had identified as at-risk to make adequate progress in literacy skills and to gain automaticity.

Also, the program’s reports revealed weaknesses in students’ skills which had previously not been identified. In one example, a third grade student was considered a “high readiness” student, however the students’ work in Lexia Reading revealed gaps in the crucial areas of rhyming and phonological awareness. These skill deficits were subsequently addressed with additional instruction. In fact, the use of the Lexia Reading program exposed instructional needs that had not been accurately identified by other assessment tools used at the school. The school describes Lexia Reading as a “valuable diagnostic, instructional, and post-instruction assessment tool for pre-literacy and literacy skills development. We are eager to expand the many benefits and opportunities Lexia affords all student and staff within our school."