Evaluating the Efficacy of Reading Fluency Instruction
Students with weak reading skills are at risk for school difficulty. Among the indicators of
reading difficulty, reading fluency is a strong predictor of overall reading problems. A multiple
baseline across small groups of students design was used to evaluate the effects of explicit oral
reading fluency instruction. Based on universal screening data, 6 fourth grade students who
scored between the 25th and 50th percentile were provided with 30 minutes of explicit reading
fluency instruction four or five days per week, for a total of 40 sessions each. The explicit
instruction included multiple components of reading fluency, including repeated reading, phrase
drill error correction, explicit word analysis, and metacognitive reflection using reading-level
controlled text. To examine differential effects over time, three of the students received the
instruction after a short baseline, and the other students received it after an extended baseline
period. Maintenance of skills was evaluated at four and eight weeks post treatment. Dependent
variables included third and fourth grade oral reading fluency (ORF) measures as well as scores
on the Test of Word Reading Efficiency (TOWRE) and the Word Identification and Spelling Test
(WIST). One student left the study because he was referred for a special education evaluation. Of
the remaining five students, three showed reading improvements on weekly progress measures
and at four and eight weeks post-intervention. The other two students showed variable response
to the intervention. The limitations and implications for instruction and future research are
discussed.