If you have poor readers in your elementary classrooms, you may interested in new research out this month. Traditionally we've thought that it is best to improve reading by having students read text that was very easy for them. This new research shows that in 2nd – 4th grade, poor readers can improve reading rates by reading either at their independent reading level (92-100% accuracy) or even slightly difficult text (80 – 90% accuracy). However, be warned that practice reading alone, in elementary grades, did not make any
improvements in students' ability to decipher unknown words or on passage comprehension. Thus poor readers still need well-rounded reading interventions. O"Connor, R., et al (2010). Improvement in reading rate under independent and difficult text levels: Influences on word and comprehension skills. Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol 102(1), 1-19.
Source:
http://help4teachers.com/newsletter.htm
