This document explains how educators in North Carolina should use Star Reading results for -- Forecasting student performance on the end-of-year NC EOG assessment; and --Making Read to Achieve decisions about student promotion to 4th grade.The full report is available online: <https://docs.renaissance.com/R58212>.

From the abstract: "The overall architecture and major components of a measurement system designed and evaluated to support Response to Intervention (RTI) in the areas of language and literacy in early childhood programs are described. Efficient and reliable measurement is essential for implementing any viable RTI system, and implementing such a system in early childhood programs presents several special challenges. This article describes (a) the general approach taken to developing and evaluating this measurement system, including its conceptual and methodological foundations, methods, and results for developing items and scales for second-generation Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs 2.0), and (b) use of these scales in a larger decision-making framework for differentiating language and literacy instruction to match the needs of preschool children at risk of academic difficulties. The authors conclude with a review of some challenges associated with developing measurement for differentiated instruction in early childhood settings."Citation: McConnell, S. R., Wackerle-Hollman, A. K., Roloff, T. A. B., & Rodriguez, M. (2015). Designing a measurement framework for Response to Intervention in early childhood programs. Journal of Early Intervention, 36(4), 263-280. The research study is available online: <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275243437_Designing_a_Measurement_Framework_for_Response_to_Intervention_in_Early_Childhood_Programs>.

From the abstract: "This study examined the predictive validity of Star Early Literacy (SEL), a computer-adaptive assessment for measuring kindergarten reading skills. Findings revealed that the results of SEL assessments administered during fall, winter, and spring of kindergarten were moderate and statistically significant predictors of year-end reading and reading-related skills, and explained 35% to 38 % of the variance in a latent variable of word reading skills. Similar results were observed with a subsample of 71 participants who received follow-up assessments in first grade. End-of-kindergarten analyses indicated that, when added as predictors with SEL, paper-based measures of letter naming, letter-sound fluency, and word reading fluency improved the amount of explained variance in kindergarten and first grade year-end word reading skills. Classification accuracy analyses found that the SEL literacy classifications aligned with word reading skills measured by paper-based assessments for students with higher SEL scores, but less alignment was found for students with lower SEL scores. Additionally, SEL cut scores demonstrated problematic accuracy, especially in predicting outcomes at the end of first grade. The addition of paper-based assessments tended to improve accuracy over using SEL in isolation. Overall, SEL shows promise as a universal screening tool for kindergarten reading skills, although it may not yet be able to completely replace paper-based assessments of early reading."Citation: Clemens, N. H., Hagan-Burke, S., Luo, W., Cerda, C., Blakely, A., Frosch, J., Gamez, B., & Jones, M. (2015). The predictive validity of a computer-adaptive assessment of kindergarten and first-grade reading skills. School Psychology Review, 44(1), 76-97.The full report is available online: <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275040844_The_Predictive_Validity_of_a_Computer-Adaptive_Assessment_of_Kindergarten_and_First-Grade_Reading_Skills>.

From the abstract: "Are the books preferred and most enjoyed by children harder than other books they read? Are non-fiction books read and understood at the same level of difficulty as fiction books? The Accelerated Reader software offers computerized comprehension quizzes of real books individually chosen by children, giving children (and teachers, librarians, and parents) feedback on performance. Children can also express preferences for books they enjoy. Quizzes taken by 150,220 children in 967 schools are reported. Considering highly preferred books, children were reading very difficult books with a high degree of success. Non-fiction books were not read or understood as carefully as fiction books. Implications for future research and practice are outlined." Citation: Topping, K. J. (2015). Fiction and non-fiction reading and comprehension in preferred books. Reading Psychology, 36(4), 350-387.

DETAILS: Location: Chicago, Illinois; Design: Independent, experimental; Sample: 344 students and 19 teachers in 3 elementary schools; Measure: Star Reading; Duration: 1 school year. RESULTS: Teachers in grades one through four at three urban elementary schools were randomly assigned to use Accelerated Reader in their classes or serve in the control group. Students were pre- and posttested with Star Reading. Students in classes using Accelerated Reader experienced significant gains in reading achievement with a large effect size of d = 0.99. When compared to the control group, the Accelerated Reader group outperformed non-Accelerated Reader students at each grade level. As a whole, the Accelerated Reader group experienced significantly higher gains with moderate effect size of d = 0.38. PLEASE NOTE: the full report: Magnolia Consulting. (2010). A final report for the evaluation of Renaissance's Accelerated Reader program. Charlottesville, VA: Author.(Email research@renaissance.com to request a copy of the full report from the Renaissance Research Department.) The citation for the journal article is Shannon, L. C., Styers, M. K., Wilkerson, S. B., & Peery, E. (2015). Computer-assisted learning in elementary reading: A randomized control trial. Computers in the Schools, 32(1), 20-34.

This technical report details the statistical method behind the process of linking Alberta Provincial Achievement Test (PAT) for English Language Arts and Star Reading scaled scores. The full report is available online: <https://docs.renaissance.com/R58174>.

From the abstract: "Early comprehension is an important, but not well-understood, contribution to early literacy and language development. Specifically, research regarding the nature of skills representative of early comprehension, including how they contribute to later reading success, is needed to support best practices to adequately prepare students. This article describes the process involved in the creation and refinement of the newly developed comprehension Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs 2.0). Two theoretical models of early comprehension are discussed to highlight the inherent complexity of this domain. Results of three studies are presented: Study 1 outlines the initial piloting process, Study 2 represents a larger-scale investigation, and Study 3 describes further field testing and reveals the final IGDI 2.0 comprehension candidate: Which One Doesn't Belong (WODB). Results indicated WODB out-performed the other candidate measures across psychometric and pragmatic criteria. The utility of the WODB task within a Response to Intervention (RTI) framework is also discussed."Citation: Wackerle-Hollman, A. K., Rodriguez, M. I., Bradfield, T. A., Rodriguez, M. C., & McConnell, S. R. (2015). Development of early measures of comprehension: Innovation in Individual Growth and Development Indicators. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 40(2), 81-95. The research study is available online: <https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED605882.pdf>.

This study compared a computer adaptive assessment (Star Math) and a curriculum based measurement (AIMSweb) for progress monitoring in math. Star Math was found to be a significant positive relation to the outcome measure Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) across all three grades (3rd, 4th, and 5th grade). Results suggest that Star Math is sensitive to students' mathematics growth and support the use of Star Math as a progress monitoring tool for mathematics.Citation: Shapiro, E. S., Dennis, M. S., & Fu, Q. (2015). Comparing computer adaptive and curriculum-based measures of math in progress monitoring. School Psychology Quarterly, 30(4), 470-487.

From the abstract: "Response to Intervention (RTI) or Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) is beginning to be implemented in preschool programs to improve outcomes and to reduce the need for special education services. The proportions of children in programs identified as struggling learners through universal screening have important implications for the feasibility of these approaches as well as for the way programs might allocate resources and staff implementing tiered models of intervention. The expected proportions of children who might be identified for higher tiers of instructional support in pre-kindergarten settings are relatively unknown. The proportions of children who would have been identified for higher tiers of instructional language/literacy support when using three different universal screening measures are described. Participants were 659 children participating in the Center for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood (CRTIEC) Tier 1 Study. Results indicated that the proportions of children at Tier 2 and Tier 3 performance levels were higher for children in low-income eligibility programs and varied by program-level characteristics including numbers of English language learners and children with special needs, as well as the universal screening measure used. Implications of these findings suggest the importance of increased focus on early literacy and language in Tier 1 instruction in programs serving high proportions of children at risk as a means of preventing reading failure in future years." Citation: Carta, J. J., Greenwood, C. R., Atwater, J., McConnell, S. R., Goldstein, H., & Kaminski, R. A. (2014). Identifying preschool children for higher tiers of language and early literacy instruction within a response to intervention framework. Journal of Early Intervention, 36(4), 281-291.The research study is available online: <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275243333_Identifying_Preschool_Children_for_Higher_Tiers_of_Language_and_Early_Literacy_Instruction_Within_a_Response_to_Intervention_Framework>.

This first of its kind report in the UK is unique for a number of reasons - some of which are listed below: - Quotes OFSTED giving a ringing endorsement to Accelerated Reader (AR) - Explains how AR needs to be part of a whole school strategy including checking Star Reading results - Puts pedagogy at the centre of making AR successful (ie should NOT be just a library initiative) and thus gives AR credibility - Links all this to published received practices (eg Husbands and Pearce) - Shows how schools who are existing users sometimes 'don't get it' and need invigoration and help re RSP for example (Ash Manor - at the beginning of the project, the school had decided to withdraw from this system) - Lists a number of strategies and techniques for success and motivation (Email research@renaissance.com to request a copy of this post from the Renaissance Research Department.)

DETAILS: Location: United Kingdom; Design: Survey; Sample: 29,422 eight to 16-year-olds.RESULTS: Findings from this large-scale survey suggests that students who use Accelerated Reader tend to enjoy reading more, read more often, read a greater variety of fiction texts, and think more positively about reading than those students who do not use Accelerated Reader.AUTHOR: Christina Clark, National Literacy Trust. Clark, C. (2013). Accelerated Reader and young people's reading: Findings from the National Literacy Trust's 2012 annual literacy survey on reading enjoyment, reading behaviour outside class and reading attitudes. London: National Literacy Trust. Is available online: <https://literacytrust.org.uk/research-services/research-reports/accelerated-reader-and-young-peoples-reading-2012-findings-national-literacy-trusts-2012-annual-literacy-survey-reading-enjoyment-reading-behaviour-outside-class-and-reading-attitudes/>.Clark, C. (2014). Accelerated Reader and young people's reading in 2013: Findings from the National Literacy Trust's 2013 annual literacy survey on reading enjoyment, reading behaviour outside class and reading attitudes. London: National Literacy Trust. Is available online: <https://nlt.cdn.ngo/media/documents/2014_11_13_free_research_-_ar_and_young_peoples_reading_2013_kjUmaIN.pdff>.

To develop Pathway to Proficiency reports for Minnesota Star Reading and Star Math schools, we linked our scaled scores with the scaled scores from Minnesota's achievement test. This technical report details the statistical method behind the process of linking Minnesota's state test (MCA-III for reading and math) and Star Reading and Star Math scaled scores. The full report is available online: <https://docs.renaissance.com/R53659>.

From the abstract: "Language skills developed during preschool contribute strongly to later reading and academic achievement. Effective preschool assessment and intervention should focus on core components of language development, specifically oral language skills. The Early Language and Literacy Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs) are a set of measures that have demonstrated utility in language and early literacy assessment, evaluation, and intervention studies. The purpose of this article is to describe two studies conducted to build on the existing oral language IGDI, Picture Naming, to increase utility for instructional decision making, particularly within an early childhood Response to Intervention framework. Study 1 outlines the initial development and piloting of potential measures and Study 2 describes the revision and continued analysis of the most promising measures. Results of Study 1 and Study 2 indicate that Picture Naming has continued utility as a measure of oral language skill development and that one newly developed oral language IGDI, Definitional Vocabulary, has potential utility."Citation: Bradfield, T. A., Besner, A. C., Wackerle-Hollman, A. K., Albano, A. D., Rodriguez, M. C., & McConnell, S. R. (2014). Redefining individual growth and development indicators: Oral language. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 39(4), 233-244. The research study is available online: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED605886.pdf>.