Reading is an essential skill for students with physical disabilities which opens up opportunities in many areas of an individual’s life including the acquisition of knowledge, the ability to read for enjoyment, and the chances of gaining employment. Students with physical disabilities often do not read fluently; however, there is a lack of research on instructional methods to address reading fluency with this population. Methodologies used with students who have physical disabilities are often borrowed from other populations (e.g., the use of repeated readings to increase fluency with students with learning disabilities). Additionally, advances in technology suggest the possible use of computers to model reading. This study employed a changing criterion design to examine the use of a treatment package consisting of repeated readings, computer modeling, error correction, and performance feedback on improving reading fluency with students with cerebral palsy. The areas of reading comprehension and accuracy were also examined. An analysis of the data demonstrated that all students were able to increase reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension from first to final readings within a session (positive nontransfer effects). Analysis of the percentage of nonoverlapping data revealed that three of the four students also showed slight increases in reading fluency on novel passages (positive transfer effects). Although the results of this study indicated that the treatment package was effective with students who have physical disabilities, more research is needed to examine individual components of the treatment package and to evaluate the use of such methods over a lengthier period of time.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2007), 27% of the nation’s 8th grade population scored below the basic reading level in 2006-2007. Reading fluency strategies are a viable practice for improving reading achievement yet seldom are they incorporated into the 8th grade curriculum. To be effective, passages used in reading fluency strategies should be at the students’ instructional reading level (Daly, Persampieri, et al., 2005; Welsch, 2007). However, if increased oral reading fluency gained at the instructional reading level fails to generalize to content-area text that a student is required to read, the gain is not clinically significant, as it does not allow the student access to required reading. Stahl and Heubach (2006) recommended providing instruction in more difficult material while providing a strong degree of support. In this study, four middle school students reading one to two years below grade level received strong support for increasing reading fluency while using their social studies textbook. The intervention package consisted of listening passage preview, repeated reading, phrase-drill error correction, and performance feedback with student charting. Two research questions guided this study: (a) What are the effects of a comprehensive treatment package consisting of commonly utilized strategies for improving oral reading fluency on middle school students’ oral reading fluency using their required grade-level social studies textbooks? and (b) to what extent does performance generalize to required literature textbook passages and passages from CRCT Coach in Science (2002) and CRCT Coach in Social Studies (2002)? A multiple probe across participants design was used to answer these questions. Visual analysis of graphically displayed single-case data revealed that the multicomponent reading intervention positively affected student performance on intervention and generalization passages. The results of this study are promising, and given that reading content-area text is the core of education in middle school, further research is necessary.

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

Thesis (Specialist in Ed.)--Miami University, Dept. of Educational Psychology, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF document. Document formatted into pages; contains [1], v, 62 p. : ill. Includes bibliographical references (p. 43-45).

Thesis (Ed. S.)--Miami University, Dept. of Educational Psychology, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 35-39).

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

xiii, 92 p. : ill. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / In recent years, state and national policy created the need for higher accountability standards for student academic performance. This increased accountability creates an imperative to have a formative assessment system reflecting validity in inferences about the effectiveness of instruction and performance on statewide large-scale assessments. Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) satisfies both functions. However, research shows the predictive power of oral passage reading fluency (PRF) diminishes in middle and high school. Because of the decreased predictive validity of PRF in the upper grade levels, additional reading CBMs should be explored. This study compares PRF and Vocabulary CBM data for all sixth grade students in a school district using two statistical procedures: correlation and regression. The correlation coefficients were moderately high among PRF, Vocabulary CBM, and the Reading test in Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (OAKS). A regression analysis indicated that the Vocabulary CBM explained more variance than PRF in predicting reading performance on OAKS. A second multiple regression analysis introduced three non-performance indicators (Gender, Attendance, and NCLB At-Risk), along with the two CBMs (Vocabulary and PRF). The second regression results revealed that Vocabulary again was more predictive than PRF, Gender, Attendance, or NCLB At-Risk. At-Risk status was the only non-performance indicator that was significant. All the findings have been discussed within the context of understanding reading skills using CBMs and their relation to performance on a large-scale test used for accountability. The findings have been framed as part of an information system that allows schools and districts to better tailor staffing, instruction, and schedules to student needs. Suggestions for future research also have been discussed, particularly in enhancing the predictions on large-scale test outcomes using a variety of CBMs. / Committee in charge: Gerald Tindal, Chairperson, Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership; Paul Yovanoff, Member, Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership; Keith Hollenbeck, Member, Educational Methodology, Policy, and Leadership; Jean Stockard, Outside Member, Planning Public Policy & Mgmt

xi, 111 p. / Matching reading deficits to appropriate intervention programs is a challenge given the number of treatment options available to educators. The Fast ForWord (FFW) computerized intervention series has been marketed as a way to treat underlying causes of poor reading skill; i.e., substandard levels of basic language skill, phonemic awareness, and/or phonics application. If the programs work as claimed, then completion of Fast ForWord should improve the next reading subskill developed after phonics, oral reading fluency. Part 1 of this study involves a treatment ( n = 72) versus comparison ( n = 84) group two by two ANOVA to evaluate that hypothesis. No effect for FFW is found ( p = .84). Application of decision rules from Response to Intervention (RTI) models classifies positive changes in risk category at a greater rate for the comparison group ( n = 31) than for the FFW group ( n = 20) ( X 2 = 3.81, (1), p = .05). Pre-intervention language scores for the FFW group are compared to assist with intervention placement decisions. Differences in mean language scores are not significant ( p = .85) between the two groups [positive response ( n = 19) versus low response ( n = 57)]. In a binary logistic regression of quartile membership for language scores, no score ranges predict membership ( X 2 = 4.75, (8), p > .05). Measuring treatment effect with ORF is not recommended. The use of pre-intervention language and ORF scores below the 25th percentile as indicators of a positive change in oral reading fluency following FFW treatment also is not recommended. However, future research that considers language scores along with other curriculum-based measures of prereading skill either as pre-intervention indicators or outcome measures is recommended. / Committee in charge: Dr. Paul Yovanoff, Chair; Dr. Keith Hollenbeck, Member; Dr. Joseph Stevens, Member; Dr. Jeffery Sprague, Outside Member

The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between oral reading fluency (ORF) and Maze, two common Curriculum-Based Measures (CBMs), and the statewide large-scale assessment of reading in Oregon, the Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills- Reading (OAKS-R). A sample of three cohorts of eighth-grade students in an Oregon school district was used to examine concurrent validity, predictive validity, and the relation between demographic characteristics, disability status, and socio-economic status and the ability to predict performance on the OAKS-R. Findings of the concurrent validity analysis revealed a moderately strong positive correlation between the OAKS-R and both ORF and Maze measures, with ORF demonstrating a slightly stronger correlation with the OAKS-R. Multiple regression analyses were used to analyze the predictive relationship between ORF and Maze and scores on the eighth-grade OAKS-R. Both ORF and Maze were statistically significant predictors of OAKS-R, demonstrating moderately positive relationships with scores on the state reading test. Although no interaction effect was found between disability classification or eligibility for free or reduced-price meals and the different CBMs, in relation to the OAKS-R, student disability status was negatively related to performance on the OAKS-R. The relationship between OAKS-R performance and low socio-economic status, as measured by eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch status, was not consistent across the cohorts. This finding is promising, as it indicates that there may be factors that schools can take advantage of to ameliorate the relationship between poverty and reading outcome measures for eighth-grade students. In light of study results, suggestions for future research, as well as implications for the field, are discussed. This study adds to the research literature documenting that ORF and Maze assessments provide schools with valuable information to predict student performance on statewide large-scale assessments of reading. With CBM data available early in the school year, schools can provide additional intervention as needed, potentially leading to improved end-of-year student performance on the OAKS-R.

The complexity of text has a number of implications for educators in the areas of instruction and assessment. Text complexity is particularly important in formative assessments, which utilize repeated, alternate, equivalent forms to capture student growth towards a general outcome. A key assumption of such tools is that alternate forms of the assessment are of equal complexity. Consequently, there is a need to better understand what variables contribute to text complexity and how they impact student performance. This study was designed to evaluate features of text that are not typically included in readability estimates but may contribute to the text complexity: text cohesion and genre. Currently, text complexity of oral reading fluency measures is often quantified using readability estimates. It is hypothesized that a factor generally excluded from readability estimates, text cohesion&mdashthe extent to which the text functions as a cohesive, meaningful whole&mdashcontributes to text variability and variability in student performance. This research evaluated the role of a type of text cohesion (referential cohesion) in text complexity by manipulating the cohesion of passages otherwise assumed to be of equal difficulty. Genre was also considered, as research suggests that genre may impact complexity ratings of texts. Passages were strategically selecting to capture four conditions&mdash1) informational text/low cohesion, 2) informational text/high cohesion, 3) narrative text/low cohesion, and 4) narrative text/high cohesion. Data were collected on reading rate, accuracy, and passage-specific reading comprehension Results were analyzed using two-way, univariate ANOVA with dependent observations. Results indicate effects for each of the dependent variables included in the design. For rate and accuracy, results indicate significant interactions between genre and referential cohesion; scores were significantly higher for high cohesion narrative text than low cohesion narrative text and high cohesion informational text. There was a significant main effect of genre on comprehension, with students performing significantly better on the comprehension measure for narrative texts than informational texts. Altogether, these results indicate direct effects of genre and referential cohesion on student reading performance and provide evidence that text cohesion may be a meaningful component of text complexity. / 2015-10-10