The Effect of the READ 180 Reading Intervention Program on the ReadingProficiency of Sixth Grade Students in Three Suburban Missouri Middle Schools

Abstract

The setting for this study was a suburban school district (District A) locatedsoutheast of Kansas City, Missouri. The population was sixth grade students in DistrictA participating in the READ 180 Reading Intervention Program during the 2009 – 10school year. The primary purpose of the study was to analyze the reading improvementof sixth grade students as measured by the SRI and MAP Communication Arts Test afterparticipation in the READ 180 Reading Intervention Program for one or two semesters.The second purpose was to determine whether the number of semester enrolled in READ180 and selected demographics (i.e. gender, minority status, and socioeconomic status)significantly impacted the reading growth of students in the READ 180 ReadingIntervention Program. The dependent variables were growth, as measured by theScholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) and growth as measured by the Missouri AssessmentProgram’s (MAP) Sixth Grade Communication Arts Test. The independent variableswere the number of semesters enrolled in the READ 180 Reading Intervention Program,gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.The results of the study provided evidence that students enrolled in READ 180experienced significant growth as measured by the SRI. The growth of minority studentsparticipating in READ 180 was significantly lower than non-minority students. Therewas a marginally significant difference in growth between students enrolled for onesemester in READ 180 as compared to those who participated for two semesters. Theresults did not provide evidence that READ 180 had an effect on the yearly growth ofstudents participating in the program as measured by the 6th Grade MAP Communication Arts Test. The effect of READ 180 was also not moderated by gender or socioeconomic status.Recommendations for further research include using a longitudinal researchdesign to increase the length of the study beyond one school year. A secondrecommendation is to add a qualitative component to create a mixed methods researchdesign. A third recommendation is to include additional school districts to expand thegeneralizability of the study.