Kim JS, Samson JF, Fitzgerald R, Hartry A.
A randomized experiment of a mixed-methods literacy intervention for struggling readers in grades 4 to 6: Effects on word reading efficiency, reading comprehension and vocabulary, and oral reading fluency. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal. 2010;23 (1) :1109-1129.
Publisher's VersionAbstractThe purpose of this study was (1) to examine the causal effects of READ 180, a mixed- methods literacy intervention, on measures of word reading efficiency, reading comprehension and vocabulary, and oral reading fluency and (2) to examine whether print exposure among children in the experimental condition explained variance in posttest reading scores. A total of 294 children in Grades 4 to 6 were randomly assigned to READ 180 or a district after-school program. Both programs were implemented four days per week over 23 weeks. Children in the READ 180 intervention participated in three 20-minute literacy activities, including (1) individualized computer-assisted reading instruction with videos, leveled text, and word study activities, (2) independent and modeled reading practice with leveled books, and (3) teacher- directed reading lessons tailored to the reading level of children in small groups. Children in the district after-school program participated in a 60-minute program in which teachers were able to select from 16 different enrichment activities that were designed to improve student attendance. There was no significant difference between children in READ 180 and the district after-school program on norm-referenced measures of word reading efficiency, reading comprehension, and vocabulary. Although READ 180 had a positive impact on oral reading fluency and attendance, these effects were restricted to children in Grade 4. Print exposure, as measured by the number of words children read on the READ 180 computer lessons, explained 4% of the variance in vocabulary and 2% of the variance in word reading efficiency after all pretest reading scores were partialed out.
2010-rwij-kim-samson-r180_y1_rct_website.pdf White TG, Kim JS.
Can silent reading in the summer reduce socioeconomic differences in reading achievement?. In:
Hiebert EH, Reutzel DR Revisiting Silent Reading: New Directions for Teachers and Researchers . Newark, DE: International Reading Association ; 2010. pp. 67-94.
Publisher's VersionAbstractThis chapter addresses an important issue for education policymakers and practitioners in the United States. The question we ask is whether socioeconomic differences in reading achievement can be reduced by programs that encourage silent reading in the summer months.1 In the years following school entry, children of low socioeconomic status (SES) lose ground in reading relative to their high-SES counterparts. This widening achievement gap may be largely the result of different rates of learning during the summer months (e.g., Alexander, Entwisle, & Olson, 2001; Cooper, Nye, Charlton, Lindsay, & Greathouse, 1996; Heyns, 1978). Even small differences in summer learning can accumulate across years resulting in a substantially greater achievement gap at the end of elementary school than was present at the beginning (Alexander, Entwisle, & Olson, 2004; see also Borman & Dowling, 2006; Lai, McNaughton, Amituanai- Toloa, Turner, & Hsiao, 2009).
book_chp-2010-ira-white-kim-can_silent_reading_in_the_summer_months_reducesocioeconomicdifferences_in_reading_achievement.doc Kim JS, Guryan J.
The efficacy of a voluntary summer book reading intervention for low-income Latino children from language minority families. Journal of Educational Psychology. 2010;102 (1) :20-31.
Publisher's VersionAbstractThe effects of a voluntary summer reading intervention with and without a parent training component were evaluated with a sample of low-income Latino children from language minority families. During the last month of fourth-grade, 370 children were pretested on a measure of reading comprehension and vocabulary and randomly assigned to (1) a treatment group in which children received 10 self-selected books during summer vacation, (2) a family literacy group in which children received 10 self-selected books and were invited with their parents to attend 3 2- hour summer literacy events, and (3) a control group. Although children in the treatment group and family literacy group reported reading more books than the control group, there was no significant effect on reading comprehension and vocabulary. Recommendations for improving the efficacy of the intervention are discussed, including efforts to improve the match between reader ability and the readability of texts and the instructional goals of the family literacy events.
2010-jep-kim-guryan-summer_reading-ca_study_website.pdf Kim JS.
Summer reading summer not: How Project READS can advance equity. Arlington, VA: The Mid-Atlantic Equity Center, The George Washington University Center for Equity and Excellence in Education; 2010.
Publisher's VersionAbstractThis paper has three goals. First, it describes the broader research on summer reading loss. Second, it discusses how research and development efforts informed the key components of Project READS (Reading Enhances Achievement During Summer), a scaffolded voluntary summer reading intervention for children in grades 3 to 5. The second part of the paper also describes results from four randomized experiments, which provide rigorous evidence on the efficacy of the READS logic model. Third, it concludes with a checklist to guide districts and schools interested in implementing and evaluating a scaffolded voluntary summer reading program like Project READS.
prof_pub-maec-kim-reads.pdf Gersten R, Dimino J, Jayanthi M, Kim JS, Santoro LE.
Teacher Study Group: Impact of the professional development model on reading instruction and student outcomes in first grade classrooms. American Educational Research Journal. 2010;47 (3) :694-739.
Publisher's VersionAbstractRandomized field trials were used to examine the impact of the Teacher Study Group (TSG), a professional development model, on first grade teachers’ reading comprehension and vocabulary instruction, their knowledge of these areas, and on the comprehension and vocabulary achievement of their students. The multi-site study was conducted in three large urban school districts from three states. A total of 81 first grade teachers and their 468 students from 19 Reading First schools formed the analytic sample in the study. Classrooms observations of teaching practice showed significant improvements in TSG schools. TSG teachers also significantly outperformed control teachers on the teacher knowledge measure of vocabulary instruction. Confirmatory analysis of student outcomes indicated marginally significant effects in oral vocabulary.
2010-gersten-aerj-teacher_study_group_rct_website.pdf