A RETURN TO EYE-MOVEMENT TRAINING? AN EVALUATION OF THE READING PLUS PROGRAM

The improvement of reading achievement is a major goal for schools in our society. Many schools are exploring the potential of computer-based reading programs to help improve reading achievement. However, many of these programs lack research-based evidence for their effectiveness. The Taylor Associates, Inc. Reading Plus program has been hypothesized to increase visual reading efficiency and, as a result, to also increase reading skill and achievement. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the Taylor Associates, Inc. Reading Plus and Guided Reading program, pre- and post-test measures of curriculum-based measurement (CBM) of oral reading fluency and reading comprehension collected from a sample of middle school students were analyzed. A total of 87 students participated in the semester long intervention. Gains in scores on CBM oral reading fluency and reading comprehension were compared to normative gains derived from a district-wide norm sample. Significant differences in discrepancy ratios from pre- to post-test were obtained for both CBM measures, although results varied according to grade level.