Technology Based Reading Interventions 2009

The Effects of Computer and Web-Based Reading Intervention on the K-8 Student

Linda Lavinder Tavares

EDTC 615 Using Technology for Instructional Improvement: Research, Data, and Best Practices Professor T. Green December 4, 2009

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ABSTRACT The modern school system is placed under increasing scrutiny and examinations to prove students are making the adequate amount of progress on a yearly basis. This government mandate for accountability has left our schools scrambling to implement intervention programs which will help struggling students increase their achievement levels in the content areas of Language Arts and Mathematics. This research paper attempts to demonstrate how useful technology can be in support of these intervention programs, which schools all over the country are incorporating into their curriculum. This paper outlines many examples of studies which have proven computer-based instruction (along with other forms of technology-based learning) improves student achievement. These studies share success stories of many investigations which verify the effectiveness of computer based learning and how these methodologies are used to promote student achievement.

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The United States Department of Education has mandated in the No Child Left Behind Legislation (NCLB) that each school system in America be held accountable for the learning progress of their students by making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). In order for schools to make AYP, they must prove students are progressing satisfactorily and AYP requires the same high standard of academic achievement for all students; including those who are economically disadvantaged, regardless of racial or ethnic backgrounds, those with limited English proficiency and students with disabilities. For schools not making AYP for two consecutive years, there are corrective actions which can be taken and range from replacing the entire school staff to instituting and implementing an entirely new curriculum, or extending the school day or year (http://www.ed.gov). All of these actions are costly and undesirable. As a result of this legislation, school systems are increasingly focused on identifying those students who are struggling with any aspect of their learning and providing them with different forms of interventions to help meet their instructional needs. This research paper will examine ways technology can be used to help school systems meet these instructional needs; by comparing traditional forms of reading intervention with those which are technology-based. The five questions addressed in the paper are: 1. What are the effects of technology based reading interventions on the K-8 student? 2. What is the methodology employed to assess student reading gains? 3. Which computer and web-based programs and methodologies are proven to have positive effects on the reading skills and motivation of elementary aged struggling readers. 4. How can computer-aided instruction help meet the educational needs of disadvantaged students with reading disabilities and dyslexia. 5. What are the values of computer-based video games as an instructional tool?
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Learning to read is crucial and provides a critical foundation for students and their academic success. Many studies have been conducted using computer programs as a form of reading intervention. The benefits of computer programs designed to supplement traditional reading curriculums have been examined and compared with traditional methods (teacher led instruction with textbooks). Some of these studies have shown computer based interventions can be especially helpful for students who are low-performers. Authors P. Macaruso, P. Hook and R. McCabe (2006) explain when analyses were restricted to low-performing children eligible for Title 1 services, significantly higher post-test scores were obtained by the treatment group compared to the control group-those without computer based interventions (Macaruso, Hook, and McCabe, page 162). Recent studies by Professor Mark Neill and Dr. Jerry Mathews (2008) of Idaho State University and Mississippi State University respectively, examined computer assisted instructional programs and how technology interventions improved student achievement scores on a Western States Achievement Test (WSAT). Their study showed the achievement gap between at-risk and low-risk readers can be closed with the use of computer based interventions. The focus of their study was for math and language arts, but for the benefit of this paper only the reading outcomes will be discussed. They chose students to take part in the technology based interventions identified as at-risk of not meeting the minimum reading proficiency for their grade level (Neill et al. 2008). They also chose students which were on grade level (having little or no risk for reading failure). These students were asked to take part in traditional reading interventions using teacher directed activities and textbooks. For the technology intervention groups they implemented two language arts programs, one called Fast ForWord (http://scilearning.com) and the other called Bridges (http://www.bridges.com). They used the
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WSAT mean score results to make a comparison between the groups. Authors Neill and Mathews defined their key question as Does the use of technological interventions improve student achievement in mathematics and languages arts for an identified group of at-risk students? (p. 58). Their research project analyzed Rausch Units (RIT) subscale score data using correlation measures (Neill et al. 2008). In order to determine correlations using RIT mean scale scores of the WSAT, they employed a multiple linear regression analysis (MLR) to calculate independent t-tests and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compare the mean scores of the 7th and 8th grade students. (p. 58). The scores of the one hundred students who used the Fast ForWord and Bridges computer programs as instructional interventions were compared with a second group of 400 students who took part in a traditional program delivered through regular class and coursework. The WSAT was administered in the Fall of 2004, the Winter of 2005 and in the Spring of 2005. The statistics of RIT scores were examined by type of intervention for each of the three tests and showed remarkable improvement for the at-risk groups who used the computer based technology as interventions. According to Professors Neill and Mathews (2008), the mean scores on the WSAT test for the groups using Bridges were 212.10, 212.46, and 215.62 for the fall, winter and spring tests respectively and for FastForWord 213.17, 202.90, and 205.67. For the low-risk students with traditional intervention the scores were 220.21, 211.99, and 225.80 (p. 62). The results of the research showed the at-risk reading students scores were close to those of the low-risk readers, even surpassing their mean scores on the winter WSAT. Even though the traditional instruction groups predominantly maintained higher mean scores than the at-risk Bridges and FastForWord groups, the achievement gap between the at-risk and low-risk groups was small (Neill, p. 64). This data indicates that technology based intervention can be a powerful tool for increasing students achievement on standardized tests.
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Most educators agree that with students who are at-risk for reading failure, interventions should be put into place as early as possible. Recent studies (Roderick L. Nicholson, Angela Fawcett and Margaret Nicolson, 2000) have evaluated the effectiveness of early computer-based interventions with six and eight year-old children at risk of reading failure (Nicholson et al, 2000). Students were chosen to take part in computer-based interventions because they were shown to not benefit from traditional reading intervention methods. These children used computer programs in small groups of four, twice weekly over a ten-week duration. The study as described by Nicholson et al (2000), uses the three separate aspects of literacy: meaning, phonics and fluency (p. 196). Three groups were described as the traditional intervention group receiving teacher/textbook instructions, the RITA intervention group receiving computer-based interventions, and the control group receiving only regular coursework with no interventions. The RITA intervention group worked with a program called Readers Interactive Teaching Assistant which allowed students to work with teacher interaction and with the teacher maintaining the central role as opposed to working independently, as with some computer programs (Nicholson, p.197). With the RITA system, traditional interventions were adapted for computer use with the teacher choosing material resources and continually adapting the program to address the instructional needs of the students. A pre-test was administered to students as well as a post test. As explained by Nicholson, the tests were called the Wechsler Objective Reading Dimension (WORD) reading and spelling tests (p. 199). They administered the WORD test after interventions and the resulting scores were analyzed and compared in order to determine the effectiveness of the interventions. Nicolson explains, results for the WORD reading and spelling tests have been converted into

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age related standard scores (population mean 100, standard deviation 15) for ease of comparison (p. 199). The results indicate both intervention groups had greater improvements than the control group, but for the purposes of this paper, this author will discuss the changes in the data between the traditional intervention group and the computer-based RITA intervention group, for the six year old and eight year old students. Reading standard scores of the six year-old students in the traditional group, the pre-test mean score was 89.03 and post-test was 92.76 giving the six-year old traditional group a mean gain of 3.73. The post test scores were not as high as the traditional group but the gains made between the pre- and post-test were greater. For the RITA groups the pre-test mean score was 89.60 and the post-test was 90.81 giving them and mean score gain of 1.21 (Nicolson et al. p. 200). While gains were made for the six year-old group, the scores were not as high as those in the traditional intervention group. For the students in the eight year-old category, the gains for the reading standard score were more impressive. The traditional group of eight year-old students scored 79.94 on the pre-test and 83.31 on the post-test giving them a mean score gain of 3.37. For the RITA intervention group of eight-year olds, the mean score on the pre-test was 79.69 and the post-test was 87.13 giving them a gain of 7.44 (Nicolson et al. p. 200). In this older group of students, the RITA intervention system helped them to surpass the mean score of the traditional intervention group and make larger gains. Similar results were attained for the age eight year olds group in the category of Literacy Standard Scores. The pretest mean score for the traditional group was 81.29 and the post-test score was 85.79 giving them a gain of 4.5. The pre-test mean score for the RITA intervention group was 79.03 and the posttest was 85.78 giving them a greater mean score gain of 6.74 (Nicolson et al, page 200). The results of this study show while interventions help student achievement, using computer based
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technology as an intervention can support student learning have a positive educational effect on state mandated test scores. A recent study conducted by Juanita Cole (2006) of the University of California and Veleshia Hilliard (2006) of San Diego State University investigated the benefits of using a Webbased reading curriculum program and published the results in an article titled, The Effects of Web-Based Reading Curriculum on Childrens Reading Performance and Motivation. In their study they explain how using computer-based educational tools within the schools offers computer speech, animation, music and games which prove to be motivational for struggling readers as well as educationally sound (Cole, p. 355). When students are placed in a classroom where whole group language arts instruction takes place, the students who seem to benefit most are the more advanced readers. Students are at-risk for reading failure may not adequately progress in this environment. These at-risk students may greatly benefit from computer-based reading interventions. In their study, Cole and Hilliard used the Web-based reading tool called Reading Upgrade (http://www.readingupgrade.com) and examined whether it would improve struggling readers performance. Reading Upgrade is a Web-based curriculum which is designed to improve phonemic awareness, word decoding, reading fluency, and comprehension; which is culturally sensitive, interactive, and exploratory while at the same time being engaging to young children (Cole, 2006). They chose 36 third grade students who were performing two or more grade levels behind in reading to take part in the study (Cole p. 357). The two groups in the study were the experimental group (36 third graders) and the control group. Both groups were given a pre-test. The experimental group received 90 minutes of Web-based intervention twice per week. The control group was comprised of students who were identified as being one grade-level below in reading and they took part in daily direct
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reading instruction in the schools extended day sessions, which last for 60 minutes each for three days per week. Both groups received a total of 180 minutes of intervention each week. Structured interviews or questionnaires were administered to students after they took part in the study to measure reading motivation. According to Cole (2006), quantitative and qualitative measures were administered to assess students reading motivation and engagement during instruction and to gauge how well the students could relate to the characters. Students answered each item of a 1 to 4 scale, with 1 = very different from me, 2 = a little different from me, 3= a little like me, and 4= a lot like me (p. 364). Students were observed during instruction for signs of motivation and the qualitative measure in the study used observation field notes (2006, p. 364). At the end of an eight-week period, a post-test was administered and used to gauge student achievement and motivation. The two groups were compared using a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The type of instruction (computer-based Reading Upgrade) was compared with traditional (teacher directed) instruction. Two pre- and post-tests were administered and the mean score results of the two compared. The two tests measure for reading and for gains that are made. The first test, Development Reading Assessment (DRA) cited by Cole as DRA; Beaver, 1998, tests for reading accuracy, fluency and comprehension and the second test, the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT-3) measure students reading level and gains achieved after the curriculum (Cole, p. 363). A description of the data shows that for the DRA test, the Reading Upgrade group had a mean gain of 11.3 while the direct instruction group had a gain of only 4.28. For the WRAT-3 test, the Reading Upgrade group had a mean gain of 13.3 and the direct instruction, 2.66. The motivation factors were determined by assigning a point value system by the observers who were
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taking field notes and the motivation for students using Reading Upgrade were given a highly positive motivational value by analyzing this subjective data. As Cole stated, for the observable reading motivation factors, researchers noted repeatedly high levels of involvement and enthusiasm exhibited by the student toward the Reading Upgrade program (p. 368). The results of the study conducted by Cole show a marked improvement in reading skills among the group of students who took part in the Reading Upgrade computer-based intervention program as compared to traditional directed instruction. The effects in this study show using computer based reading intervention can be positive with overwhelming improvements. How can computer-based instruction help meet the educational needs of disadvantaged students with reading disabilities such as dyslexia? Children with special needs are at a disadvantage in todays information driven society. Early intervention can be effective for all students with reading disabilities and especially for those with dyslexia who have great difficulties with reading. According to authors Jean Ecalle, Annie Magnan, Houria Bouchafa, and Jean Gombert in the publication, Computer-based Training with Ortho-Phonological Units in Dyslexic Children: New Investigations, dyslexia is defined as a consequence of a problem in phonological processing. Dyslexic students have a deficit in the representation, storage and activation of speech sounds (Ecalle et al. 2008). In their publication, these authors describe an investigation performed to determine whether students with dyslexia show improvement in literacy skills after taking part in computer-based interventions. The main findings of the study indicate an improvement in reading scores. According to the authors, Ecalle et al, using the learning program Fast ForWord (http://www.scilearn.com) can change the way the brain processes speech and other auditory signals (p. 335). An experiment was performed using twenty-six sixth and seventh grade students, diagnosed as being dyslexic and reading at a level
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twenty-four months behind their chronological age but had no other disabilities. Thirteen students were chosen to be in the experimental group. They were given a pre-test and then a post- test after using computer based interventions. They received two short fifteen minutes sessions each day, four day per week, for five weeks, totaling ten hours, using an audio-visual training program which focused on the discrimination of the phonetic features of voicing. (Ecalle et al. 2008). The thirteen students in the control group used a computerized talking book program which allowed students to read stories on the computer screen. When the words are presented on the screen, they are read out loud by the computer (2008, p. 226). Four categories were tested with pre- and post-tests for each. They were the categories Word, Pseudo-words, Regular Words, and Irregular Words (Ecalle, p. 228). The results of the study showed significant gains in the mean scores of the experimental group when compared to the mean scores of the control group. For the Words category, the gains made for the experimental group was 4.0 compared to .6 for the control group. For the Pseudo-words category, the gains made for the experimental group was 4.4 compared with that of the control group which was 2.2. For the category Regular Words the experimental group made mean gains of 2.0 and the control group, 0.4. For the Irregular Words, the experimental group gained 2.5 and the control 1.6 (Ecalle et al, p.228). This study indicates that dyslexic students who train using computer game programs which incorporate audio-visual phoneme discrimination tasks with ortho-phonological units can make a significant improvement in the literacy skills of special needs students (Ecalle et al. p. 232). Since this study was relatively short, it also suggests that long-term intervention programs are not necessary to show academic achievement.

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Another recent study concerning early reading skills focused on the unique contribution computer based instruction can make concerning students who have reading disabilities or who are at risk readers. In the article, The Learning Value of Computer-Based Instruction of Early Reading Skills, the authors I. Leitner, D. Mioduser, H. and Tur-Kaspa, discuss the features that could support the specific needs of the reading disabled (RD) student. They explain computers offer digitized speech, touch-screens, drill generation and adaptation algorithms, individualization of instructional sequence and feedback (Leitner et al 2000). In their study, Leitner and colleagues chose forty-six children age 5 - 6 who were attending a special education school in Israel, none of which had received formal instruction in reading nor could they read (Leitner, p. 56). The students were divided into three groups and are explained as: Group 1 (n=16) received instruction in reading with a special reading program which included both printed and computer-based materials. Group 2 (n=15) learned only with the printed materials of special reading program. Group 3 (n=16) served as a control group and was given only the regular special education program without specific reading training (Leitner p. 56). The pre-test administered to the students prior to instruction showed no group differences on the three tests phonological awareness, word recognition, and letter naming. The results compared the pre- and post-tests using the mean, standard deviation and percentage of gains after instruction for the three tests. For the phonological awareness test, the percentage of mean gains for the printed plus computer (group 1) was 23.2% compared with 14.0% for printed without computer (group 2) and 4.8% for the control group (group 3). For the Word recognition test, Group 1 had a mean score gain of 32.8%, versus 22.8% for group 2 and 3.0 for group 3. For the Letter naming test, group 1 had a mean score gain of 26.1%, versus 13.3 for group 2 and 2.3% for group 3 (Leitner et al, p. 58).
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The results of this study show significant improvement in the reading skills of students who had no reading skills prior to the instruction. But it also shows that implementing instruction which uses both printed text in combination with computer-based materials yields the highest results when compared with instruction which uses printed materials only as a form of intervention, and a regular special education program. Subsequent pre- and post tests showed a high level of replicability. The results of this study seem to correlate with the results of another study done in Africa in 2008. This study was done through the University of Johannesburg in South Africa and published by the authors Gerda van Wyk and Arno Louw. The title of the study is, TechnologyAssisted Reading for Improving Reading Skills for Young South African Learners. In this study, authors Wyk and Louw describe the situation in Johannesburg one where students are graduating high school and looking for employment but are basically illiterate. They explain that businesses in South Africa first have to teach young recruits to read and write before the company can commence with their training programs; indicating that basic skills are fundamental for efficiency in any working environment (Wyk and Louw, page 246). The study investigates reading skill improvements made by the students made after taking part in technology-assisted reading programs. Thirty-one students chosen for the interventions ranged in grade levels from grades two to seven. The students were given a standardized scholastic reading test to assess reading speed, comprehension, vocabulary, and typical reading mistakes used for the pre- and post-test (Wyk and Louw, page 247). The students took part in sixteen sessions of 45 minutes each for a period of seven months (Wyk and Louw, p. 248). The results of the study showed the reading speed of all readers increased without exception the comprehension was maintained or improved despite an increase in reading speed
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and comprehension improved best in grades two and four (Louw, p. 251). According to the data presented in this study, all but two of the 31 learners showed improvement in all three categories of reading speed, comprehension and spelling. The authors made the following statement as a conclusion for this study: Computer-based reading programs are effective and fairly quick in addressing the reading problems of young learners (Louw, p. 253). What are the effects of computer-based video games when they are used as an instructional tool? Children of today are growing up spending a great deal of time in front of computer screens playing video games. There have been many studies examining the psychological effects of violent video games and its relationship to childrens misbehaviors. One study by authors Tsung-Yen Chuang and Wei-Fan Chen examine the effectiveness of video games when they are used to accelerate student achievement in their publication titled Effect of Computer-based Video Games on Children: An Experimental Study. This experiment compares traditional Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) with computer-based video games. They chose a video game about the instructional topic of fire-fighting and the content covered basic knowledge of fires and fire-fighting techniques (Chen 2009). This content was chosen because it covers many objectives, but also because the subject is not related to any of the courses the students were already taking, thus avoiding potential threats to internal validity of the study (Chen p. 2). The experimental study included 115 third-graders and compared two different forms of instruction but utilized the same basic content. The difference was the presentation of the material. The control group interacted with computers individually and used a program that was text based with no hyperlinks (Chen 2009). The control group used an animated video game called Fire captain which used similar instructional content but also used real-time strategy in
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an interactive way. Both groups took part in two instructional sessions lasting 80 minutes each (Chen, p. 5). The results of the study were compared a pre-test score result with a post-test result and used the mean scores of all four parts of the test. The scores showed the students who played the educational video game out performed those using traditional computer assisted instruction. According to the data, group means showed significant differences between the web CAI group (M=70.05) and the video game group (M=76.18) (Chen, p. 5). These results demonstrate the effects of video games when used as an instructional tool can facilitate student learning and can make a powerful impact when compared to computer assisted instruction. The results in the aforementioned study are further supported by a study performed in 2006 by Michael Barbour of Wayne State University and Dennis Mulcahy of Memorial University of Newfoundland. In their study, How Are They Doing? Examining Student Achievement in Virtual Schooling, students who lived in a rural area in Newfoundland did not have access to teachers for courses they needed to take. It was decided to implement virtual classrooms where students could learn from teachers in remote locations using the internet. The purpose of this study was to determine if there were performance differences based on the method of delivery and location of the student (Barbour and Mulcahy, p. 67). After the instruction, students standardized test scores were compared with the scores of previous students who took the class with direct instruction. The results of the data for the years 2001-02 showed the web-based delivered rural course average was 71.3 versus the classroom delivered rural course average of 68.2. This was a longitudinal study which spanned four years. The continuing data showed similar results with the web-based instruction scores being as high, or higher, than

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its classroom counterpart. The program was so successful it has grown from offering ten classes in 2001-02 to offering 30 web-based classes in 2004-05 (Barbour and Mulcahy, 2009). In conclusion, the research performed and published by scholarly authors indicates technology-based reading interventions will not only improve student achievement but it will do so in a relatively short amount of time. When computer-assisted instruction is implemented to improve the reading skills of at-risk readers, the field based research indicates it helps close the achievement gap between them and those with low-risk of reading failure. Eight year-old students who took part in the RITA computer based reading interventions over a ten-week period showed a mean value gain of more than twice that of traditional intervention groups (3.37 for traditional and 7.44 for RITA). Children not only improved their reading skills using computerbased programs such as Reading Upgrade, they significantly increased their motivation to read. The students were noted as showing enthusiasm and high levels of involvement while taking part in interventions. When examining student achievement using computer-assisted instruction, it is found to be beneficial for students with reading disabilities such as dyslexia. After a five week period of time using computer programs, students with disabilities made impressive reading gains as were shown on post-tests. The results of the technology-based interventions overall improved the percentile rank when the at-risk students was compared with their previous standing in the class. The quality of the learning value of computer-based instruction is very high and the progress can be charted to show student acceleration after only a short time span of interventions.

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References Barbour, M.K., & Mulcahy, D. (2006). How are they Doing?: examining student achievement in virtual schooling. Education in Rural Australia, 18(2). Retrieved November 26, 2009 from Education Research Complete database. Bauchafa, H., Ecalle, J., Gombert, J.E., & Magnan, A. (2008). Computer-based training with ortho-phonological units in dyslexic children: new investigations. Dyslexia, 15(3). Retrieved December 1, 2009, from ERIC database. Bridges transitions company (2004). Learning Styles Inventory. Retrieved November 20, 2009 from http://www.bridges.com Cole, J.M., & Hilliard, V.R. (2006). The Effects of web-based reading curriculum on children's reading performance and motivation. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 34(4). Retrieved November 26, 2009, from E-Journals Database. Chen, W.F., & Chuang, T.Y. (2009). Effect of computer-based video games on children: an experimental study. Educational technology & Society, 12(2). Retrieved December 1, 2009, from Education Research Complete Database. Fawcett, A.J., Lynch, L., & Nicolson, R. (2000). Computer-assisted reading intervention in a secondary school: an evaluation study. British Journal of Educational Technology, 31(4). Retrieved November 25, 2009, from Education Research Complete Database. Fawcett, A.J., Nicolson, M.K., & Nicolson, R.I. (2000). Evaluation of a computer-based reading intervention in infant and junior schools. Journal of Research in Reading, 23(2). Retrieved November 24, 2009, from Education Research Complete Database. Leitner, I., Mioduser, D., & Tur-Kaspa, H. (2000). The Learning value of computer-based instruction of early reading skills. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 16(1). Retrieved December 1, 2009, from Education Research Complete Database. Louw, A., & van Wyk, G. (2008). Technology-assisted reading for improving reading skills for young south african learners. The Electronic Journal of e-Learning, 6(3). Retrieved November 19, 2009, from Education Research Complete database. Neill, M., & Mathews, J. (2009). Does the use of technological interventions improve student academic achievement in mathematics and language arts for an identified group of at-risk middle school students? Southeastern Teacher Education Journal, 2(1). Retrieved November 19, 2009, from Education Research Complete Database. Scientific learning corporation (2004). Fast ForWord Literacy Program. Retrieved November 18, 2009, from http://www.scilearning.com

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United states department of education. No Child Left Behind, Accountability and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) National Title I directors conference 2003. Retrieved November 20, 2009, from http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/ayp203/edlite-index.html

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