DETAILS: School Profile: 304 students in grades K-6; Demographics: Inner City, Urban, Title I, Free/reduced lunch: 72.7%, English Language Learners: 38%; Race/Ethnicity: American Indian/Alaska Native: 2%, Asian/Pacific Islander: 25%, Black/African American: 28%, Hispanic/Latino: 13%, White: 32%; Measure: Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA); Duration: 1999-2003. RESULTS: Sheridan Elementary began implementing Accelerated Reader in spring 2000. In fall 2002, funding from a comprehensive school reform grant enabled them to also adopt Accelerated Math and Accelerated Writer. Since spring 1999, the percentage of students in grades 3 and 5 scoring proficient in reading and math on the MCA increased an average of 43.5 points. Between August 2003 and March 2004, Sheridan students read more than 22,000 books. In addition, the school received the St. Paul Schools Superintendents Academic Award for continuous school improvement 5 years in a row on standardized tests. In Spring 2004, 10 educators achieved Renaissance Model Certification and the school attained Model School status in spring 2004. REPORTING EDUCATOR: Nancy Mambi, librarian/Title I reading teacher. The full report is available online: <https://docs.renaissance.com/R33473>.

DETAILS: Location: Large city in upper Midwest; Design: Independent, experimental; Sample: 2 third-grade classrooms and 2 fifth-grade classrooms; Measure: Star Reading; Duration: 6 months. RESULTS: Although there is correlational evidence showing that students who read more have higher achievement, the National Reading Panel has stated there was insufficient evidence to determine the direction of causality. This study was conducted to address this shortcoming in the literature and the question: Does more time spent reading produce higher achievement? Students were randomly assigned to spend either 40 minutes (experimental condition) or 15 minutes (control condition) per day independently reading. All students read books matched to their reading abilities, and took an Accelerated Reader quiz after reading each book. Pretest and posttest data were collected from all students in this study. The researchers concluded that more time spent reading had a greater effect on achievement compared to the control condition. In addition, the results showed that poor readers tended to have greater gains in vocabulary with 15 minutes of reading but had better gains on reading comprehension with 40 minutes of reading. AUTHORS: S. Jay Samuels, EdD and Yi-Chen Wu, PhD. Report available online: <https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=ce1f459adbbae5978d07378bd5611e045efd4f04>

DETAILS: Location: St. Paul, Minnesota; Design: Independent, quasi-experimental; Sample: 67 students in grades 3 and 5; Measures: Star Reading, Group Reading Assessment and Diagnostic Evaluation (GRADE), Curriculum Based Measurement (CBM); Duration: 6 months. RESULTS: This study took place at a school where 64% of the students were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. It compared students that completed book reports, which resulted in delayed feedback, and students that completed Accelerated Reader quizzes, which provided immediate feedback. The GRADE was used to measure vocabulary, sentence, and passage comprehension; a CBM of oral reading fluency was used to determine the students' reading speed. The results revealed that students who used Accelerated Reader showed significantly higher gains on 3 measures of reading achievement compared to students who completed book reports and received only delayed feedback. In particular, students receiving immediate feedback through Accelerated Reader demonstrated twice the gain in reading comprehension of students not using Accelerated Reader. AUTHORS: S. Jay Samuels, EdD and Yi-Chen Wu, PhD. Report available online: <http://testmaker.if-at.com/home/articles/file/research/immediate_feedback.pdf>.

DETAILS: School Profile: 1,100 students in years 9-12; Demographics: State school, Maori and Pacific Island Students: 39%, ESL: 3%, Decile: 5. RESULTS: Records data indicated that remedial students gained between 1-and-5 years growth in reading using Accelerated Reader with best practices over the course of the school year. REPORTING EDUCATOR: Denny Newburn, teacher. The full report is available online: <https://docs.renaissance.com/R11782>.