Evaluating the Impact of an Evidence-Based Systemic Intervention Program on First-Grade Teachers’ Reading Instruction: A Direct Replication Study

The purpose of this study is to expand the research base about how to effectively support teachers to implement the science of teaching reading to benefit all students, including students with or at risk for learning disabilities in reading receiving Tier 1 (core) reading instruction, using data from a cluster-randomized controlled efficacy trial. Conducted in 28 schools in six school districts in two regions of the United States, this direct replication study examines the effects of a highly specified, systemic reading intervention on the instructional practices of 94 first-grade general education teachers. Teachers in the treatment condition provided higher quality explicit instruction in phonemic awareness, decoding, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension as compared to comparison condition teachers. In addition, treatment teachers provided students nearly twice the rate of deliberate practice as comparison teachers. Implications for the science of teaching reading and related research are discussed.