Round Three

Round Three

A second Read-a-Difference grant was awarded to a new team of fourth grade teachers, and the Read-a-Difference team embarked on their third round of training. This third time around the RaD team decided to train the teachers over a year period and then have them implement their individual reading motivational plan the second year. In the past two studies, training had taken place over a half day period, with ongoing follow ups. End of the year interviews with the past participants revealed that few of them remembered the principles, only the instructional strategies that promote the principles. For this third study, there was a desire of the RaD team for the teachers to become well acquainted with the seven motivational principles themselves, not just the strategies. We reasoned that this would increase more use of the reading motivational principles as the teachers were designing their plans. We hoped that it would also deepen how the teachers would implement them in their classrooms. We were pleased with the results of the first two years, but felt that teachers could be using more of the principles than they had been. This new batch of teachers were encouraged to experiment with the reading motivational principles the first year as they were learning about them. We are currently ending the first year of training. Here is a quote from one of this year’s teachers, sent by text to one of the RaD team members

I have been excited about [my students’] reading scores! My lowest reader increased three grade levels in reading comprehension. It was a good day for me.”  January 31st 2018