Reading Horizons
   
Success Stories
"Literacy is crucial. Kids struggle to stay in school if they don’t value it or see that their parents don’t value it. They get caught in a cycle that can go on for generations."
— Mariann Marchant, Reading Specialist, Utah

Huntington Elementary School

Huntington, Utah

Scope of Work

Twenty-one first grade students were administered a qualitative reading inventory (district sponsored test) to quantify what (if any) reading gains were made after having used the Discover Intensive Phonics program

Tool

State Core Reading Test (Utah) Qualitative Reading Inventory

Time Frame

Conducted between January and April 2000 (four months)

In the spring of 1998, a first grade instructor at Huntington Elementary School in Huntington, Utah, reported noticeable gains on the State Core Reading Test after having implemented the Discover Intensive Phonics program in the classroom. All 23 students scored above 90 percent (50 out of 60 points). It was reported that, among those 23 students, there existed a wide range of skill levels upon entering the first grade.

In the spring of 1999, again, first grade students were reported to have scored above 90% on the same state assessment tool.

Data

Student Pre-Test Post-Test Increase by Grade level
1 Pre-Primer Grade 3 4 Grade Levels
2 Pre-Primer Grade 2 3 Grade Levels
3 Grade 1 Grade 4 4 Grade Levels
4 Pre-Primer Grade 3 4 Grade Levels
5 Grade 2 Grade 4 2 Grade Levels
6 Grade 1 Grade 4 4 Grade Levels
7 Grade 2 Grade 4 2 Grade Levels
8 Primer Grade 3 3 Grade Levels
9 Primer Grade 4 4 Grade Levels
10 Grade 1 Grade 4 3 Grade Levels
11 Pre-Primer Grade 1 2 Grade Levels
12 Pre-Primer Grade 2 2 Grade Levels
13 Pre-Primer Grade 3 4 Grade Levels
14 Primer Grade 3 3 Grade Levels
15 Pre-Primer Grade 1 2 Grade Levels
16 Pre-Primer Grade 3 4 Grade Levels
17 Grade 1 Grade 4 2 Grade Levels
18 Pre-Primer Grade 3 4 Grade Levels
19 Primer Grade 3 2 Grade Levels
20 Primer Grade 4 4 Grade Levels
21 Primer Grade 3 3 Grade Levels
Average 3.19 Grade Levels

Evaluator's Observations

In the third year of program use, the above-mentioned first-grade instructor reported giving each of the 21 students a Qualitative Reading Inventory used by the local district. Scores were reported as ranging from the first- to the fourth-grade reading level. "I am so appreciative of Discover Intensive Phonics," commented the instructor. "I plan to continue using it for the remaining years of my teaching career.”

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