Reading Recovery
Overview
Focus
Specific Skills
- Comprehension
- Fluency
- General reading ability
- Phonics
Program Length
30-minute lessons over 12-20 weeks
Program Description
"Reading Recovery serves the lowest-achieving first graders—the students who are not catching on to the complex set of concepts that make reading and writing possible. Individual students receive a half-hour lesson each school day for 12 to 20 weeks with a specially trained Reading Recovery teacher. As soon as students can meet grade-level expectations and demonstrate that they can continue to work independently in the classroom, their lessons are discontinued, and new students begin individual instruction."
Visit Program WebsiteCost
Costs include teacher training costs, professional materials, children's books, data and evaluation fees, etc. Some costs found were: Initial purchase of non-consumable children's books is $2,500/year Data and evaluation support fees: Annual $350 fee and $45 per teacher data entry fee
More Pricing DetailsDemographics & Delivery
Intended Population
- Intensified intervention
Grade
- Elementary School
Intended Group Size
- Individual
ELL/DLL
- Partial
Multisensory Applications
- Yes
Computer-Based Delivery
- Partial
Scripted
- Instructor Scripted
Program Specifics
Comprehensive or Skill Specific
- Comprehensive
Placement Tests
- No
Accelerated Learning
- No
Assessment to Monitor Skills Mastery
- No
Error Correction Built In
- Yes
Fidelity Measures Provided by Publisher
- Unspecified
Research & Evaluation
Research Summary
There is mixed evidence regarding the efficacy of Reading Recovery. Several peer-reviewed studies reported positive impacts of the intervention on students' reading achievement post-intervention. However, the results of one study examining the long-term effects of the program suggested potentially negative effects of the program. Specifically, May et al. (2023) found that first grade students who participated in the Reading Recovery program had worse reading achievement scores in the third grade compared to similar peers who did not participate in the program.
Study Citations
May, H., Blakeney, A., Shrestha, P., Mazal, M., & Kennedy, N. (2023). Long-term impacts of reading recovery through 3rd and 4th grade: A regression discontinuity study. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 1-26.
May, H., Sirinades, P., Gray, A., & Goldsworthy, H. (2016). Reading Recovery: An evaluation of the four-year i3 scale-up. University of Delaware Center for Research in Education & Social Policy.
Pinnell, G. S., DeFord, D. E., & Lyons, C. A. (1988). Educational Research Service. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED303790
Pinnell, G. S., Lyons, C. A., Deford, D. E., Bryk, A. S., & Seltzer, M. (1994). Comparing instructional models for the literacy education of high-risk first graders. Reading Research Quarterly, 29. doi: 10.2307/747736.
Schwartz, R. M. (2005). Literacy learning of at-risk first-grade students in the Reading Recovery early intervention. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97(2), 257-267. doi: 10.1037/0022-0663.97.2.257
What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Report
- Potentially positive effects
Evidence Base (ESSA)
- Strong
Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)
- Mixed evidence
Additional Reviews
- https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/read.rr.ltr.experts.htm
- https://omaha.com/news/local/education/omaha-public-schools-uses-a-reading-intervention-program-that-some-call-ineffective/article_9a4bd16a-d595-11ee-bca0-df43655bb103.html
- https://fordhaminstitute.org/national/commentary/its-time-dump-reading-recovery