Computer Based Supplemental Reading Instruction
and Student Reading Performance
Linda Challoo
Texas A&M University, Kingsville
Anna Charles-Jimenez
Texas A&M University, Kingsville
ABSTRACT: Less than one in three fourth-graders are deemed ‘Proficient’ in reading at grade level. By 12th grade, 40 percent of seniors are proficient in reading at grade level. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 ensures that all children are reading on or above grade level by grade 3, Reading First targets students in Kindergarten through third grade in districts and schools with a high percentage of students reading below grade level or a high number of students living in poverty (NCREL, 2002). Under Reading First, reading programs must have Five Components in their instruction, curriculum and assessment and are also required to include components that build student motivation to read and the opportunities to learn and read through integration of technology (NCREL, 2002). If computer based reading activities are used as a supplement during reading instruction, will Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) scores reflect an increase?
Introduction
In President Bush’s first term he made education his number one priority in which he asked the United States Congress to approve the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Under this act there are four areas of focus which include accountability for results, local control and flexibility, increased options for parents and proven teaching methods. This act would prove to change education across the United States and redefine the federal governments roll in public school education. One major result that came from this act was the enforcement of state wide assessments administered to children in grades three through eight every year to measure student progress in reading and math. Continued assessment and implementation of scientifically based reading instruction has helped decrease the number of special education referrals during the elementary years. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has defined five reading programs; each program under NCLB has diverse characteristics and stipulations for accountability.
Reading First is one of many programs of this act, in which schools are awarded grant money to implement or continue implementation of Scientifically Based Reading Research or SBRR. Reading First “targets students in Kindergarten through Third grade in districts and schools with a high percentage of students reading below grade level or a high number of students living in poverty” (NCREL, 2002).
To comply with Reading First under the No Child Left Behind Act teachers in Texas must administer the Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) or similar test in grades kindergarten through three. The TPRI is administered by the classroom teacher in a one-on-one setting and consists both of a screening section and an inventory section. TPRI is used to assess the development of students’ reading concepts and covers all five components of reading as required by NCLB (TPRI, 2004). “Reading First Schools and Districts are also required to include components that build student motivation to read and the opportunities to learn and read through integration of technology” (NCREL, 2002).