District- or School-Level Analysis

University of Maine Reading Recovery Data Services

The University of Maine Reading Recovery training site maintains all Maine Reading Recovery data since the inception of the program in Maine in 1991-1992. Customized analyses of these data are available for a fee from the University of Maine. Cost for data output is not for profit, but to cover the actual costs incurred. If you are interested, please complete a Data Request form, available on this website.

District- or School-Level Data Reports

Reading Recovery data for a district or school is examined in a different way than data at the state level; therefore some of the data output will vary from the standard Reading Recovery State Report and Evaluation. You can use your data to answer the nationally defined research questions, and you can use both quantitative and qualitative data to assess the school’s operation of the Reading Recovery program.

Creating the Report or Presentation

NDEC’s school data summaries are now available on the NDEC website. In addition, a district or school team can also analyze the operations of the Reading Recovery program at various levels. It is up to the school teams involved to decide the best format for their purpose. Keep in mind that these supplemental reports should be used as an effective tool for building common understandings and for facilitating change.

To analyze school operations, the University Training Center recommends that teams refer to the Rubric for Assessing A School’s Operation of Reading Recovery by Paula Moore (university trainer and Center for Literacy director) and Laura Cook (former teacher leader) to evaluate Reading Recovery programs for reports. The rubric will help teams answer questions such as “What did we do well? What areas need work?” The rubric is available on this website.

Brainstorming

School teams should include their teacher leader in evaluating their program. Start by brainstorming with your team. Compare your end-of-program status pie chart with that of the state by looking at the state data. Note the percentage of children discontinued. Is your percentage much lower than that of the state or higher? Is your school under implemented? Not implemented efficiently? Are children getting through the program in a timely manner?

Look at your percentage of children still in the program at the end of the year with an incomplete program. Who were these children? Is it possible to work towards getting second-round children through the program in subsequent years? Are some students remaining in Reading Recovery much longer than 20 weeks? Are teachers getting in five lessons per week? These are some of the questions that your school team needs to address.

Outcomes

School’s Reading Recovery History

• In what year did the school implement Reading Recovery?
• How many Reading Recovery teachers have there been?
• How many children have been served each year?
• Has coverage (serving all children who need services) increased?

Child Outcomes and Progress for Current Year

You can use the following national research questions as a guideline:

1. How many children were served and who was served in Reading Recovery?
2. What was the end of program status of children served by Reading Recovery? What percentage were successfully discontinued?
3. What was the progress of the Reading Recovery children on literacy measures?
4. What percentage of Reading Recovery and random sample comparison children scored within and above the average band and the typical performance of Maine first graders (stanines 5 or higher) at year-end?
5. What were the gains from exit to year-end of first round Reading Recovery children who were successfully discontinued?
6. Was there a change in the reading group placement of Reading Recovery children from beginning to end of the school year?
7. What percentage of Reading Recovery children were referred and placed in special education?
8. What percentage of Reading Recovery children were considered for retention and retained in first grade?
9. How did teachers, administrators, and parents respond to the Reading Recovery program?

You can also consider school and teacher data, time and teacher factors, and other literacy and compensatory services received during the year.

Longitudinal Information

• How did Reading Recovery children do in subsequent grades?
• How did they do on school district or state tests?

Program Implementation

A sample template is available on this website. Also, see Moore and Cook’s Rubric for Assessing A School’s Operation of Reading Recovery.

Summary

• How are we doing overall?
• What areas require improvement?

Conclusion

• What needs to be changed next year to improve our program next year?