Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum
Study: Fien et al. (2011)
Summary
The Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum is an instructional program designed to provide additional opportunities to preview, review, and enhance vocabulary and comprehension through the use of teacher read alouds with expository text. There are 9 instructional Units in the program. Each weekly Unit includes 4, 20 minute lessons. A consistent set of instructional routines is used across lessons before, during, and after each read aloud. Before a read aloud, instruction focuses on background knowledge building and explicit vocabulary instruction. During reading, teachers introduce question-asking strategies focused on identifying the main idea and details. A guided note-taking process is also used to help students record information about the main idea. After a read aloud, students engage in cumulative review activities. Vocabulary is discussed through the use of game formats, and comprehension is reviewed through the use of a main idea categorization activity. Throughout the Small-Group Curriculum, text-based discourse is used as a context for student language use and as an opportunity to prompt student vocabulary use and language-based elaborations. The program is aligned with the Common Core State Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and National Science Education Standards.
- Target Grades:
- K, 1, 2
- Target Populations:
-
- Students with learning disabilities
- English language learners
- Any student at risk for academic failure
- Area(s) of Focus:
-
- Comprehension
- Vocabulary
- Where to Obtain:
- Scott K. Baker, Lana Edwards Santoro, Hank Fien, David J. Chard, Susanna Williams
- support@dibels.uoregon.edu
- 1-888-497-4290
- https://dibels.uoregon.edu/market/
- Initial Cost:
- Contact vendor for pricing details.
- Replacement Cost:
- Contact vendor for pricing details.
-
Information on cost and printing can be obtained from the developer at readingctl@uoregon.edu
- Staff Qualified to Administer Include:
-
- Special Education Teacher
- General Education Teacher
- Reading Specialist
- Math Specialist
- EL Specialist
- Interventionist
- Student Support Services Personnel (e.g., counselor, social worker, school psychologist, etc.)
- Paraprofessional
- Other:
- Training Requirements:
- 4-8 hours of training
-
The Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum was evaluated in a study with first-grade students identified with low language and vocabulary skills. Overall, 102 first-grade students scoring below the 50th percentile on relational vocabulary were blocked by classroom, matched according to vocabulary score, and randomly assigned within 18 participating classrooms to one of two conditions. All students in the study participated in a whole-class Read Aloud Curriculum and students in the intervention group received instruction from the Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum for 20 min, 2 x per week, for 8 weeks in addition to the whole group instruction in addition to the whole-group instruction. Because students were nested under instructional conditions within classrooms or blocks, three-level hierarchical linear modeling provided an appropriate analytic framework to test the effect of the Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum.
- Access to Technical Support:
- readingctl@uoregon.edu
- Recommended Administration Formats Include:
-
- Small group of students
- Minimum Number of Minutes Per Session:
- 20
- Minimum Number of Sessions Per Week:
- 4
- Minimum Number of Weeks:
- 9
- Detailed Implementation Manual or Instructions Available:
- Yes
- Is Technology Required?
- No technology is required.
Program Information
Descriptive Information
Please provide a description of program, including intended use:
The Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum is an instructional program designed to provide additional opportunities to preview, review, and enhance vocabulary and comprehension through the use of teacher read alouds with expository text. There are 9 instructional Units in the program. Each weekly Unit includes 4, 20 minute lessons. A consistent set of instructional routines is used across lessons before, during, and after each read aloud. Before a read aloud, instruction focuses on background knowledge building and explicit vocabulary instruction. During reading, teachers introduce question-asking strategies focused on identifying the main idea and details. A guided note-taking process is also used to help students record information about the main idea. After a read aloud, students engage in cumulative review activities. Vocabulary is discussed through the use of game formats, and comprehension is reviewed through the use of a main idea categorization activity. Throughout the Small-Group Curriculum, text-based discourse is used as a context for student language use and as an opportunity to prompt student vocabulary use and language-based elaborations. The program is aligned with the Common Core State Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and National Science Education Standards.
The program is intended for use in the following age(s) and/or grade(s).
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The program is intended for use with the following groups.
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ACADEMIC INTERVENTION: Please indicate the academic area of focus.
Early Literacy
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Language
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If other, please describe:
Reading
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Mathematics
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If other, please describe:
Writing
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If other, please describe:
BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION: Please indicate the behavior area of focus.
Externalizing Behavior
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Internalizing Behavior
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Acquisition and cost information
Where to obtain:
- Address
- support@dibels.uoregon.edu
- Phone Number
- 1-888-497-4290
- Website
- https://dibels.uoregon.edu/market/
Initial cost for implementing program:
- Cost
- Unit of cost
Replacement cost per unit for subsequent use:
- Cost
- Unit of cost
- Duration of license
Additional cost information:
Describe basic pricing plan and structure of the program. Also, provide information on what is included in the published program, as well as what is not included but required for implementation (e.g., computer and/or internet access)
Information on cost and printing can be obtained from the developer at readingctl@uoregon.eduProgram Specifications
Setting for which the program is designed.
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If group-delivered, how many students compose a small group?
2-5Program administration time
- Minimum number of minutes per session
- 20
- Minimum number of sessions per week
- 4
- Minimum number of weeks
- 9
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- If intervention program is intended to occur over less frequently than 60 minutes a week for approximately 8 weeks, justify the level of intensity:
Does the program include highly specified teacher manuals or step by step instructions for implementation?- Yes
BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION: Is the program affiliated with a broad school- or class-wide management program?-
If yes, please identify and describe the broader school- or class-wide management program: -
Does the program require technology? - No
-
If yes, what technology is required to implement your program? -
Computer or tablet
Internet connection
Other technology (please specify)
If your program requires additional technology not listed above, please describe the required technology and the extent to which it is combined with teacher small-group instruction/intervention:
Training
- How many people are needed to implement the program ?
Is training for the instructor or interventionist required?- Yes
- If yes, is the necessary training free or at-cost?
Describe the time required for instructor or interventionist training:- 4-8 hours of training
Describe the format and content of the instructor or interventionist training:
What types or professionals are qualified to administer your program?
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If other, please describe:
- Does the program assume that the instructor or interventionist has expertise in a given area?
-
Yes
If yes, please describe:
Some experience with reading instruction
Are training manuals and materials available?-
Describe how the training manuals or materials were field-tested with the target population of instructors or interventionist and students: - The Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum was evaluated in a study with first-grade students identified with low language and vocabulary skills. Overall, 102 first-grade students scoring below the 50th percentile on relational vocabulary were blocked by classroom, matched according to vocabulary score, and randomly assigned within 18 participating classrooms to one of two conditions. All students in the study participated in a whole-class Read Aloud Curriculum and students in the intervention group received instruction from the Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum for 20 min, 2 x per week, for 8 weeks in addition to the whole group instruction in addition to the whole-group instruction. Because students were nested under instructional conditions within classrooms or blocks, three-level hierarchical linear modeling provided an appropriate analytic framework to test the effect of the Read Aloud Small-Group Curriculum.
Do you provide fidelity of implementation guidance such as a checklist for implementation in your manual?-
Can practitioners obtain ongoing professional and technical support? -
Yes
If yes, please specify where/how practitioners can obtain support:
readingctl@uoregon.edu
Summary of Evidence Base
- Please identify, to the best of your knowledge, all the research studies that have been conducted to date supporting the efficacy of your program, including studies currently or previously submitted to NCII for review. Please provide citations only (in APA format); do not include any descriptive information on these studies. NCII staff will also conduct a search to confirm that the list you provide is accurate.
-
Fien, H., Santoro, L., Baker, S. K., Park, Y., Chard, D. J., Williams, S., Haria, P. (2011). Enhancing teacher read alouds with small-group vocabulary instruction for students with low vocabulary in first-grade classrooms. School psychology review, 40 (2), 307-318.
Study Information
Study Citations
Fien, H., Santoro, L., Baker, S. K., Park, Y., Chard , D. J., Williams, S. & Haria, P. (2011). Enhancing Teacher Read Alouds with Small-Group Vocabulary Instruction for Students with Low Vocabulary in First-Grade Classrooms. School psychology review, 40(2) 307-318.
Participants
- Describe how students were selected to participate in the study:
- Students selected for the study were participating in classrooms implementing the whole-class Read Aloud Curriculum.
- Describe how students were identified as being at risk for academic failure (AI) or as having emotional or behavioral difficulties (BI):
- Students were identified as being at risk for academic failure if they scored below the 50th percentile on relational vocabulary skills.
-
ACADEMIC INTERVENTION: What percentage of participants were at risk, as measured by one or more of the following criteria:
- below the 30th percentile on local or national norm, or
- identified disability related to the focus of the intervention?
- %
-
BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION: What percentage of participants were at risk, as measured by one or more of the following criteria:
- emotional disability label,
- placed in an alternative school/classroom,
- non-responsive to Tiers 1 and 2, or
- designation of severe problem behaviors on a validated scale or through observation?
- %
- Specify which condition is the submitted intervention:
- The intervention treatment (small-group Read Aloud) is the submitted program.
- Specify which condition is the control condition:
- The study design employed the use of a no-treatment control. However, because the schools were not typically providing interventions to this sample of students, the control condition can also be conceptualized as business-as-usual.
- If you have a third, competing condition, in addition to your control and intervention condition, identify what the competing condition is (data from this competing condition will not be used):
Using the tables that follow, provide data demonstrating comparability of the program group and control group in terms of demographics.
Grade Level
Demographic | Program Number |
Control Number |
Effect Size: Cox Index for Binary Differences |
---|---|---|---|
Age less than 1 | |||
Age 1 | |||
Age 2 | |||
Age 3 | |||
Age 4 | |||
Age 5 | |||
Kindergarten | |||
Grade 1 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 0.00 |
Grade 2 | |||
Grade 3 | |||
Grade 4 | |||
Grade 5 | |||
Grade 6 | |||
Grade 7 | |||
Grade 8 | |||
Grade 9 | |||
Grade 10 | |||
Grade 11 | |||
Grade 12 |
Race–Ethnicity
Demographic | Program Number |
Control Number |
Effect Size: Cox Index for Binary Differences |
---|---|---|---|
African American | 1.9% | 3.8% | 0.43 |
American Indian | 1.9% | 3.8% | 0.43 |
Asian/Pacific Islander | 1.9% | ||
Hispanic | 18.5% | 19.2% | 0.00 |
White | 74.1% | 69.2% | 0.15 |
Other |
Socioeconomic Status
Demographic | Program Number |
Control Number |
Effect Size: Cox Index for Binary Differences |
---|---|---|---|
Subsidized Lunch | |||
No Subsidized Lunch |
Disability Status
Demographic | Program Number |
Control Number |
Effect Size: Cox Index for Binary Differences |
---|---|---|---|
Speech-Language Impairments | |||
Learning Disabilities | |||
Behavior Disorders | |||
Emotional Disturbance | |||
Intellectual Disabilities | |||
Other | |||
Not Identified With a Disability |
ELL Status
Demographic | Program Number |
Control Number |
Effect Size: Cox Index for Binary Differences |
---|---|---|---|
English Language Learner | 7.4% | 5.8% | 0.10 |
Not English Language Learner |
Gender
Demographic | Program Number |
Control Number |
Effect Size: Cox Index for Binary Differences |
---|---|---|---|
Female | 55.6% | 40.4% | 0.39 |
Male | 44.4% | 59.6% | 0.39 |
Mean Effect Size
For any substantively (e.g., effect size ≥ 0.25 for pretest or demographic differences) or statistically significant (e.g., p < 0.05) pretest differences between groups in the descriptions below, please describe the extent to which these differences are related to the impact of the treatment. For example, if analyses were conducted to determine that outcomes from this study are due to the intervention and not demographic characteristics, please describe the results of those analyses here.
Design
- What method was used to determine students' placement in treatment/control groups?
- Random
- Please describe the assignment method or the process for defining treatment/comparison groups.
- A randomized block design was employed (i.e., blocking on classroom) to help determine if additional small-group instruction would enhance the vocabulary and comprehension of students identified with low language and vocabulary skills. All students in each classroom were screened at the start of the study to determine early language and vocabulary risk levels. The 10 students in each classroom who scored below the 50th percentile on the Relational Vocabulary subtest of the Test of Oral Language Development—Primary (3rd edition; TOLD-P-3; Newcomer & Hammill, 1997) were matched on the basis of their Relational Vocabulary subtest scores.
-
What was the unit of assignment? - Students
- If other, please specify:
-
Please describe the unit of assignment: -
What unit(s) were used for primary data analysis? -
Schools
Teachers
Students
Classes
Other
If other, please specify:
-
Please describe the unit(s) used for primary data analysis:
Fidelity of Implementation
- How was the program delivered?
-
Individually
Small Group
Classroom
If small group, answer the following:
- Average group size
- 4
- Minimum group size
- 2
- Maximum group size
- 5
What was the duration of the intervention (If duration differed across participants, settings, or behaviors, describe for each.)?
- Weeks
- 8.00
- Sessions per week
- 2.00
- Duration of sessions in minutes
- 20.00
- What were the background, experience, training, and ongoing support of the instructors or interventionists?
- Instructors received a full-day training and regular ongoing support to implement the small-group intervention.
- Describe when and how fidelity of treatment information was obtained.
- A research team member observed and documented the implementation of the small-group lessons and evaluated the integrity of intervention implementation. Fidelity was evaluated according to the presence or absence of critical components, and a percentage of total components demonstrated. Fidelity was assessed four times for each instructor.
- What were the results on the fidelity-of-treatment implementation measure?
- Average fidelity of implementation was 87% (range of 79% to 97%) and represented the number of items observed divided by the total number of items.
- Was the fidelity measure also used in control classrooms?
- A no-treatment comparison was used so fidelity was not measured on control classrooms.
Measures and Results
![Full Bobble](/img/fullBubble.png)
Measures Broader :
![Full Bobble](/img/fullBubble.png)
Targeted Measure | Reverse Coded? | Reliability | Relevance | Exposure |
---|
Broader Measure | Reverse Coded? | Reliability | Relevance | Exposure |
---|
Administrative Data Measure | Reverse Coded? | Relevance |
---|
Targeted Measures (Full Sample)
Measure | Sample Type | Effect Size |
---|---|---|
Average across all targeted measures | Full Sample | † |
* = p ≤ 0.05; † = Vendor did not provide necessary data for NCII to calculate effect sizes. |
Broader Measures (Full Sample)
Measure | Sample Type | Effect Size |
---|---|---|
Average across all broader measures | Full Sample | † |
* = p ≤ 0.05; † = Vendor did not provide necessary data for NCII to calculate effect sizes. |
Administrative Measures (Full Sample)
Measure | Sample Type | Effect Size |
---|---|---|
Average across all admin measures | Full Sample | -- |
* = p ≤ 0.05; † = Vendor did not provide necessary data for NCII to calculate effect sizes. |
Targeted Measures (Subgroups)
Measure | Sample Type | Effect Size |
---|---|---|
* = p ≤ 0.05; † = Vendor did not provide necessary data for NCII to calculate effect sizes. |
Broader Measures (Subgroups)
Measure | Sample Type | Effect Size |
---|---|---|
* = p ≤ 0.05; † = Vendor did not provide necessary data for NCII to calculate effect sizes. |
Administrative Measures (Subgroups)
Measure | Sample Type | Effect Size |
---|---|---|
* = p ≤ 0.05; † = Vendor did not provide necessary data for NCII to calculate effect sizes. |
- For any substantively (e.g., effect size ≥ 0.25 for pretest or demographic differences) or statistically significant (e.g., p < 0.05) pretest differences, please describe the extent to which these differences are related to the impact of the treatment. For example, if analyses were conducted to determine that outcomes from this study are due to the intervention and not pretest characteristics, please describe the results of those analyses here.
- Please explain any missing data or instances of measures with incomplete pre- or post-test data.
- If you have excluded a variable or data that are reported in the study being submitted, explain the rationale for exclusion:
- Describe the analyses used to determine whether the intervention produced changes in student outcomes:
Additional Research
- Is the program reviewed by WWC or E-ESSA?
- No
- Summary of WWC / E-ESSA Findings :
What Works Clearinghouse Review
This program was not reviewed by What Works Clearinghouse.
Evidence for ESSA
This program was not reviewed by Evidence for ESSA.
- How many additional research studies are potentially eligible for NCII review?
- 1
- Citations for Additional Research Studies :
- Baker, S., Santoro, L., Chard, D., Fien, H., Park, Y., & Otterstedt, J. (2013). An evaluation of an explicit read aloud intervention taught in whole-classroom formats in first grade. The Elementary School Journal, 113(3), 331-358.
Data Collection Practices
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