The Impact of Online Learning Activities on Intervention Students Reading Comprehension Andrianna Gervais

Abstract
The purpose of this research study was to determine the impact of online learning
activities on intervention students reading comprehension. The study sought to explore the
relationship between web-based reading comprehension and vocabulary activities and
students scores on the EZCBM comprehension and Accelerated Reader STAR assessments
and the relationship between web-based reading comprehension and vocabulary activities
and students oral reading fluency scores. The participants were 20 reading intervention
students enrolled in a middle school class in Stockton, CA, overseen by the Lodi Unified
School District. The study was conducted using a time series design over the course of one
school year, with data points from Fall 2013, Winter 2013, and Spring 2014. The research
indicated a statistical correlation between the implemented intervention and the students
scores. 95% of the students involved did not comprehend grade level text in the Fall of
2013, scoring only a 50% average on the multiple choice reading comprehension
assessment given and by the Spring 2014 assessment, the median had risen to 70%, an
increase of 20%. Therefore, it suggests strongly that the intervention works for reading
remediation in reading comprehension for comparative groups of students. An implication
of this research is that more is needed to ensure that they students get the best education
possible.
Introduction
The research began by assessing students baseline reading skills and comparing these
baselines to national norms (Hasbrouck and Tindal, 2006). All students who participated in
the study are seventh grade students whom have been determined to have a reading deficit
of some kind. Because CST (California Standards Test) data was not available at the
beginning of the school year for the students 6
th
grade year, the school district placed them
into the class based on their 5
th
grade English Language Arts test data.
The baseline assessment was done by assessing all
students oral reading fluency rate and their reading comprehension with two different
measures, the STAR reading assessment produced by Renaissance Learning for
Accelerated Reader, and the EZCBM online reading comprehension assessment produced
by the University of Oregon in conjunction with Hasbrouck and Tindals research. Both
reading assessments were administered online. Students who scored below the 50
th
percentile were determined to have a reading deficit and were kept in the class, referred to
as Strategic Language Arts. Thus, all students in the class had oral reading fluency (ORF)
rates between 100 and 149 CWPM (Correct Words Per Minute).
Because these students all had a reading deficit, and
because students need more access to technology and they need to learn how to apply it
strategically to advance their literacy skills (Biancarosa and Griffiths, 2012), this study
focused on meeting the students in the middle- that is, using the technology with which
they chose to spend time, to teach a skill that they had historically avoided. Students were
leveled into groups in the eSolutions web-based software program created by Sopris West in
2012. In this program, they were given attentional cues to reading comprehension and
practiced vocabulary while online (OShea, OShea, and Sindelar, 1985).
Research Questions
1. What is the relationship between web-based reading comprehension and
vocabulary activities and students scores on the EZCBM MCRC comprehension
and Accelerated Reader STAR assessments?
2. What is the relationship between web-based reading comprehension and
vocabulary activities and students oral reading fluency scores?
Operational Definitions
CST-California Standards Test, given each Spring to California students in grades 2 through
11, between 1998 and 2013.
CCCSS-California Common Core State Standards, the new standards that replace the CSTs
as of 2014. Assessments will be given in 2014 in the Spring, but will be used for norming
and schools, teachers, and students will not get results.
CWPM-the number of words a student reads correctly in one minute from a grade level
reading passage.
EZCBMComprehension (MCRC)- Easy Curriculum Based Measure of Comprehension, the
online assessment part of the EZCBM fluency assessment.
Accelerated Reader STAR Assessment-a proprietary reading assessment that requires
students to answer questions about passages that they read, and uses the time taken to
answer and the answer itself to determine a students instructional reading level , reading
ability level, and ZPD.
ZPD-the zone of proximal development, a range of numbers associated with
developmental and instructional level. The lowest number in the range represents what
the student should be able to do without frustration and without support, and the highest
number represents what the student can only do when aided by an adult or more capable
peer.
Fluency- reasonably accurate reading at an appropriate rate with suitable prosody that
leads to accurate and deep comprehension and motivation to read (Hasbrouck and Glaser,
2012).
EZCBM-an enhanced district assessment system designed by researchers at the University
of Oregon as an integral part of an RTI model, that contains multiple curriculum-based,
standardized reading passages for assessing student fluency.
RTI- Response to Intervention
eSolution- combines fluency practice with vocabulary and comprehension strategies to
create powerful instruction in the foundational skills essential for successful reading
development. This supplemental resource is a blend of print materials and digital
components and updates and extends the Six-Minute Solution fluency paired reading to
include complete vocabulary expansion and comprehension lessons (Sopris Learning,
2014).
ORF/PRF- Oral Reading Fluency Rate, the number of words a student reads correctly in 60
seconds to an adult examiner. Also referred to as passage reading fluency.
Lexile-a reader measure and a text measure. A texts Lexile level measures the book on the
Lexile reading scale. A students Lexile level is the Lexile at which they can read without
frustration, analogous to a ZPD (Metametrics, 2013).
Methods
This quasi-experimental study was conducted in a seventh-grade double-blocked reading
and language arts intervention class in Stockton. The school is managed by the Lodi
Unified School District. The school district purchased licenses for students to be able to
use the online version of Sopris Learnings eSolution curriculum through the Student
Center, a web-based reading and vocabulary intervention. Students in this reading
intervention class were also responsible for the California Common Core Content
Standards and independent reading in addition to their reading intervention curriculum.

Participants
Socioeconomi
cally
Disadvantage
d
83%
Not
Socioeconomi
cally
Disadvantage
d
17%
Socioeconomic Status as Indicated by Free or
Reduced Lunch
Hispanic
30%
African
American
22%
Caucasian
22%
Filipino
13%
Two or
More
Races
13%
Ethnicity
Boys
75%
Girls
25%
Gender
Measures and Procedures
EZCBM Oral Reading Fluency Passages # 1-9.
EZCBM MCRC (Multiple Choice Reading Comprehension)
Both measures were administered at three different data
points throughout the year. The assessments were
performed in August, in December, and in March.
Results











0
50
100
150
200
250
8 5 4 1 4 4 3
2 0 2 8 0 3 8
8 5 5 3 1 0 4
8 5 4 4 5 2 6
8 5 3 9 5 7 5
8 5 4 3 0 5 7
8 5 3 6 6 9 7
8 5 4 2 0 7 3
8 5 5 9 2 8 3
2 0 1 7 6 4 3
8 5 4 1 1 4 3
8 5 4 0 6 3 5
8 5 4 1 1 7 6
8 5 4 2 9 6 0
8 5 4 4 1 6 7
2 0 2 8 0 9 7
2 0 1 7 0 2 1
8 5 5 2 9 6 7
8 5 4 6 3 7 3
2 0 3 4 5 8 7
C o r r e c t W
o r d s P e r M
i n u t e
Student Number
Passage Reading Fluency Progress
ORF Score # 1 ORF Score # 2 ORF Score # 3 Linear (ORF Score # 1 ) Linear (ORF Score # 2 ) Linear (ORF Score # 3)
8541443 2028038 8553104 8544526 8539575 8543057 8536697 8542073 8559283 2017643 8541143 8540635 8541176 8542960 8544167 2028097 2017021 8552967 8546373 2034587
7
11
13
10
11
9
8
9
6
13
15
8
5
10
12
11
0
12
9
11
10
12
14
15 15
14
15
13
8
10
12
13
12
13
14
9
11
15
8
17
11
16
17
14
18
14
15
17
6
12
10
19
10
11
16
10
13
11
10
17
Comprehension Scores Progress
EZCBMComp # 1 EZCBMComp # 2 EZCBMComp # 3
70% correct.
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Start of the Year
End of the Year
Start of the Year End of the Year
Proficient 1 9
Not Proficient 19 11
Proficient Students on EZCBM MCRC
5%
45%
55%
95%
ORF Score # 1 ORF Score # 2 ORF Score # 3
73 79 86 Anova: Single Factor
70 91 99
93 106 118 SUMMARY
100 106 122 Groups Count Sum Average Variance
111 111 130 ORF Score # 1 20 2552 127.60 1259.09
114 136 132 ORF Score # 2 20 2717 135.85 1069.50
87 90 133 ORF Score # 3 20 2983 149.15 1122.03
122 145 134
137 150 136
116 125 140 ANOVA
143 141 148 Source of Variation SS df MS F P-value F crit
120 135 149 Between Groups 4729.03 2 2364.52 2.06 0.14 3.16
129 117 151 Within Groups 65561.90 57 1150.21
131 145 154
138 166 179 Total 70290.93 59
166 161 181
154 173 189
151 155 189 t-Test: Paired Two Sample for Means ORF Score # 1 ORF Score # 2 ORF Score # 3
206 193 204
191 192 209 73 86 Mean 127.60 Mean 135.85 Mean 149.15
Mean 130.4736842 152.5 Standard Error 7.93 Standard Error 7.31 Standard Error 7.49
Variance 1154.707602 951.2 Median 125.50 Median 138.50 Median 144.00
Observations 19 19 Mode #N/A Mode 106.00 Mode 189.00
Pearson Correlation 0.923650803 Standard Deviation 35.48 Standard Deviation 32.70 Standard Deviation 33.50
Hypothesized Mean Difference 0 Sample Variance 1259.09 Sample Variance 1069.50 Sample Variance 1122.03
df 18 Kurtosis 0.19 Kurtosis -0.70 Kurtosis -0.51
t Stat -7.357275066 Skewness 0.44 Skewness 0.04 Skewness 0.18
P(T<=t) one-tail 3.95413E-07 Range 136.00 Range 114.00 Range 123.00
t Critical one-tail 1.734063607 Minimum 70.00 Minimum 79.00 Minimum 86.00
P(T<=t) two-tail 7.90826E-07 Maximum 206.00 Maximum 193.00 Maximum 209.00
t Critical two-tail 2.10092204 Sum 2552.00 Sum 2717.00 Sum 2983.00
Count 20.00 Count 20.00 Count 20.00
Oral Reading
Fluency Data
EZCBMComp # 1 EZCBMComp # 2 EZCBMComp # 3
5 12 10 Anova: Single Factor
8 15 15
15 12 10 SUMMARY
9 14 14 Groups Count Sum Average Variance
6 8 6 EZCBMComp # 1 20 190 9.5 11.10526316
9 8 10 EZCBMComp # 2 20 250 12.5 6.368421053
8 13 19 EZCBMComp # 3 20 267 13.35 12.02894737
13 14 17
10 13 11
11 15 18 ANOVA
7 10 11 Source of Variation SS df MS F P-value F crit
10 15 14 Between Groups 163.6333333 2 81.81666667 8.319596825 0.000675812 3.158842719
11 12 16 Within Groups 560.55 57 9.834210526
12 14 16
12 15 11 Total 724.1833333 59
0 11 13
13 10 12
11 17 17 t-Test: Paired Two Sample for Means
9 13 17
11 9 10 5 10 Mean 9.50 Mean 12.50 Mean 13.35
Mean 9.736842105 13.53 Standard Error 0.75 Standard Error 0.56 Standard Error 0.78
Variance 10.5380117 12.04 Median 10.00 Median 13.00 Median 13.50
Observations 19 19 Mode 11.00 Mode 15.00 Mode 10.00
Pearson Correlation 0.116549598 Standard Deviation 3.33 Standard Deviation 2.52 Standard Deviation 3.47
Hypothesized Mean Difference 0 Sample Variance 11.11 Sample Variance 6.37 Sample Variance 12.03
df 18 Kurtosis 2.36 Kurtosis -0.63 Kurtosis -0.72
t Stat -3.69784957 Skewness -1.13 Skewness -0.35 Skewness -0.17
P(T<=t) one-tail 0.000823263 Range 15.00 Range 9.00 Range 13.00
t Critical one-tail 1.734063607 Minimum 0.00 Minimum 8.00 Minimum 6.00
P(T<=t) two-tail 0.001646526 Maximum 15.00 Maximum 17.00 Maximum 19.00
t Critical two-tail 2.10092204 Sum 190.00 Sum 250.00 Sum 267.00
Count 20.00 Count 20.00 Count 20.00
EZCBMComp # 1 EZCBMComp # 2 EZCBMComp # 3
Multiple Choice Reading
Comprehension Data