Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 21-22).

abstract: The current study analyzed existing data, collected under a previous U.S. Department of Education Reading First grant, to investigate the strength of the relationship between scores on the first- through third-grade Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills - Oral Reading Fluency (DIBELS-ORF) test and scores on a reading comprehension test (TerraNova-Reading) administered at the conclusion of second- and third-grade. Participants were sixty-five English Language Learners (ELLs) learning to read in a school district adjacent to the U.S.-Mexico border. DIBELS-ORF and TerraNova-Reading scores were provided by the school district, which administers the assessments in accordance with state and federal mandates to monitor early literacy skill development. Bivariate correlation results indicate moderate-to-strong positive correlations between DIBELS-ORF scores and TerraNova-Reading performance that strengthened between grades one and three. Results suggest that the concurrent relationship between oral reading fluency scores and performance on standardized and high-stakes measures of reading comprehension may be different among ELLs as compared to non-ELLs during first- and second-grade. However, by third-grade the correlations approximate those reported in previous non-ELL studies. This study also examined whether the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), a receptive vocabulary measure, could explain any additional variance on second- and third-grade TerraNova-Reading performance beyond that explained by the DIBELS-ORF. The PPVT was individually administered by researchers collecting data under a Reading First research grant prior to the current study. Receptive vocabulary was found to be a strong predictor of reading comprehension among ELLs, and largely overshadowed the predictive ability of the DIBELS-ORF during first-grade. Results suggest that receptive vocabulary scores, used in conjunction with the DIBELS-ORF, may be useful for identifying beginning ELL readers who are at risk for third-grade reading failure as early as first-grade. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Educational Psychology 2011

The purpose of this study was to determine if a difference in Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) scores exists between students who attended Tennessee's Voluntary Preschool for All program, Head Start, private preschool, or daycare and those who did not attend any type of preschool program for students in grades kindergarten through fifth. The sample consisted of students who attended kindergarten through fifth grade during the 2009-2010 school year in one east Tennessee school system. Data gathered were from Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) scores obtained during the 2009-2010 school year and a survey. A two-way analysis of variance was used to identify any relationship between variables. The investigation of the comparison between the type of preschool attended or no preschool and DIBELS scores will provide information to parents considering enrolling a child in one of the many state funded preschools, daycare, or preparing their child at home. The data will also assist with the implementation of new preschool programs and the improvement of existing programs within the public school setting. Results of this study will be of immediate interest to preschool programs in the surveyed school system. Other school systems interested in the efficacy of preschool education for increasing student achievement will benefit from the information as well. Statistical analyses were conducted for DIBELS scores in Letter Naming Fluency (LNF), Phoneme Segmentation Fluency (PSF), and Nonsense Word Fluency for kindergarten students. Statistical analyses were conducted for DIBELS scores in Phoneme Segmentation Fluency (PSF), Nonsense Word Fluency, Oral Reading Fluency (ORF), and Retell Fluency (RF) for first grade students. Statistical analyses were conducted for DIBELS scores Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) and Retelling Fluency (RF) for grades 3, 4, and 5. The results of this study did not support a significant difference among DIBELS scores and the type of preschool experience and gender for students enrolled in Hamblen County schools. The results did support a significant main effect for type of preschool for students enrolled in Hamblen County schools. Students who attended private preschool scored better than students who attended the state program, Head Start, daycare, or did not attend a preschool.

No description available.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to assess the Parents as Teachers program and its relationship to literacy and school readiness among kindergarten students enrolled in three elementary schools in southwestern New Mexico, using the Dynamic Indicators of Literacy Skills assessment system. Data were collected by trained teachers and parent volunteers and used by the Parents as Teachers program as part of their program evaluation. Analysis of these data showed that the PAT program is having positive results for participating students in this school district in comparison to non-PAT kindergartners. The overall results from this study support continuing implementation of the PAT program in this area because it appears that PAT children are entering school with sufficient literacy readiness skills based on the Fall 2005 and Spring 2006 outcome of the DIBELS assessment outcome.

The dissertation is a study to determine which program, Reading First or Bay State Reading Initiative, will demonstrate the greatest gains in reading for students in grades K-3 using a 3-Tier Reading Model. The findings from this study are intended to provide pertinent information on which best practices work in increasing student achievement for reading. Education reform continues to be a hot topic at all levels within the United States. With the spending of billions of federals, state and local dollars, the persistent talk of accountability is ongoing. Since NCLB inception, the year 2014 when all students need to reach proficiency in statewide standardized tests in mathematics and reading, continues to be a threatening time period. With each state setting its own definition and determination of what proficiency is, it is measured by the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). This AYP measurement will determine each school’s progress incrementally until it reaches 100% in 2014. 48% of all schools in Massachusetts failed to make their AYP in 2004. It is predicted that by 2014, 90% of schools in Massachusetts will not reach its APY obligation (MassPartners for Public Schools, 2005). With the pursuit of reaching AYP, the search is still on for what best practices work in increasing student achievement. This study utilizes a mixed method research design; including quantitative analysis of the reading scores, a qualitative analysis of teacher and administrator perspective on the effectiveness vii of each program and a financial cost-effectiveness comparison of the two programs. The quantitative research design includes comparing DIBELS and GRADE results of two elementary schools for students in grades K – 3 each of which uses a different reading program. School A uses the Houghton Mifflin Reading Series for their core reading curriculum while School B uses Scott Foresman Reading Street. In addition to comparing the aggregate scores of each school to each other, a number of sub-groups will also be compared. These groups will include low income students (students who receive free and reduced lunch), students with limited English proficiency (LEP), and special education students. Mean comparisons will be utilized to identify which program produces the best results. In order to identify strengthens and weaknesses of each approach a questionnaire will be utilize to obtain this information from teachers and the administrators who took part in implementing both programs. In these times of tight budgets and difficult decisions on how to meet the needs of all students it is imperative that cost effectiveness is examined between the two programs. Which of these two programs will provide the greatest gain? How much will that gain cost? Which program will reap the best results for the least amount of money?

No description available.

No description available.

The current study was completed through a retrospective analysis of school records of elementary school students in the Northeast Region of the Philadelphia School District (PSD) who have participated in the Fast ForWord (FFW) Language program. The data requested from student records included: demographic information (e.g., gender, grade,age, ethnicity, disability, and special education status), DIBELS scores, and FFW completion and participation variables. The current study set out to determine if DIBELS scores can predict student performance or mastery level on the FFW program. A total of seven individual FFW variables (percent of completion for each activity) and five overall FFW variables (percent complete, participation level, attendance level, total days to complete, and successful performance) served as the outcome variables. Frequency distributions, Pearson correlations, an ANOVA, and a standard multiple regression were used to determine the relationships of demographic variables among predictor and outcome variables as well as the predictive power of the DIBELS test scores. Results of the standard multiple regression analysis failed to yield significant results in the ability for either DIBELS raw or benchmark scores to predict performance on the FFW reading program. The current study highlighted that in the real-life conditions of a large, urban public school system, DIBELS seems to have very little, if any, predictive abilities specific to designating students appropriately to an intensive, costly, and time-consuming intervention program. It is hoped that the information presented in this study will stimulate some positive discussion and changes in the assessment and referral processes currently being widely employed across American schools in order to better serve and educate American children that demonstrate symptoms of early reading deficits. / School Psychology