Becoming a proficient reader is a gradual process. Interventions that address phonological awareness, decoding, fluency and comprehension can help students progress towards literacy skills.
Interventions that focus on foundational skill instruction have shown promise for students in upper elementary grades. However, results for comprehension outcomes are mixed. More research on these outcomes is needed.
Phonics
Phonics provides a systematic and structured approach to understanding the relationship between letters and sounds. It allows students to break unfamiliar words down into their component parts (sounds) and blend them together accurately in order to read (decode) them. This foundational reading skill helps to improve word recognition, spelling and writing.
A recent randomized controlled trial found that teaching phonics to children with ID who scored below the 20th percentile on a standardized word and non-word reading test was effective. This study added to the sparse research in this area by examining a program that was taught by teachers and implemented in small groups.
Using a structured, phonics-based program that provides explicit and intensive instruction is the best way to teach decoding skills for struggling readers. Ensure that the scope and sequence of lessons is aligned to the student needs by using your tier 1 universal literacy screening benchmark data to identify which skills each student has not yet passed.
Fluency
Fluency is a necessary skill for proficient reading because it allows students to decode words automatically and read with meaning. In addition, fluent readers have good phrasing and expression. Students who have difficulty reading fluently require explicit fluency intervention.
In a 10-minute reading session, a proficient reader may read 2,000 words. At-risk readers who are not reading fluently, on the other hand, may only read 50 words. This gap is a result of poor fluency and a lack of confidence in their ability to access text.
In this systematic review of fluency interventions, four inclusion criteria were applied: the participants had to be identified as having LD in grades K through 5. Additionally, the intervention had to involve repeated reading and include a performance criterion for the student. The most effective interventions included a model of fluent reading and performance feedback, easier level text, and a paired RR strategy. The paired RR strategy involved students taking turns reading a passage together until the student reached the performance criterion.
Comprehension
Good reading comprehension is essential if students are to learn from text, make inferences, and enjoy what they read. However, it can be difficult for some students to understand what they read, even if they have strong decoding and fluency skills. These students are often referred to as “weak comprehenders.”
Weak comprehenders often have difficulty in constructing mental models of what they read, which serve as frameworks for organizing and synthesizing information. They may have trouble processing pronoun relationships (anaphora) or may find it hard to identify and explain key details of a story.
Research shows that instruction designed to support the underlying processes of comprehension can improve student outcomes. Comprehension-focused interventions can be taught either alone or in addition to phonics and fluency instruction. Across studies, instruction that includes word identification strategies, syllable breakdown of multisyllabic words, and morphological awareness (prefixes, suffixes, and base words) has been shown to be effective for students with low comprehension skills. Additionally, interventions that are implemented in smaller groups predict greater impact on comprehension outcomes than those in larger group sizes.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary is a critical part of reading, as it provides the foundation for understanding new words. Indirect instruction helps students learn vocabulary, such as discussing unfamiliar words incidentally, but explicit instruction is also important.
Teachers can use a variety of strategies to teach new words, including introducing prefixes and suffixes, teaching synonyms, antonyms, and models of word structure. Providing opportunities for students to practice using the new words and to practice using their knowledge of the meanings of the words will help them retain the information.
Students with below grade level skills may need direct instruction on specific words. For example, a student might need instruction on the syllable types of multisyllable words with vowel teams as they are often encountered in content-focused academic texts. See Beck and McKeown, Bringing Words to Life (opens in new window) or Biemiller, Words Worth Teaching: Closing the Vocabulary Gap (opens in new window). Also, many students need previewing of academic vocabulary before they read texts in different subject areas.