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What Works Clearinghouse again confirms positive outcomes for Reading Recovery
COLUMBUS, OH, JUNE 28, 2023 – The What Works Clearinghouse, an investment of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) within the U.S. Department of Education, again confirmed the effectiveness of Reading Recovery during a 10-year review of research studies.
The research arm of the U.S. Department of Education doubled down on the findings of its 2013 review, finding additional positive effects for students of the early literacy intervention. Among the data in the 2023 report, an IES release cited, “…moderate evidence that Reading Recovery® positively impacted student achievement in literacy immediately after the intervention. There is also promising evidence that the program positively impacted writing productivity and receptive communication immediately after the intervention and writing conventions 3 years after the intervention.”
IMPROVEMENT INDEX
Notably, the 2023 What Works Clearinghouse report negates recent legislation in many states restricting Reading Recovery from use in school districts due to lack of research-based evidence. Those states must now reevaluate their menus of allowed interventions to include this recent scientific confirmation of the evidence-based effectiveness of Reading Recovery.
ABOUT READING RECOVERY
Nearly 2.5 million struggling first graders in the United States have benefitted from the one-to-one teaching expertise of Reading Recovery professionals. The intervention, introduced to North America in 1984 by educators at The Ohio State University, has more research proving its effectiveness than any other beginning reading program. Learn more at www.readingrecovery.org.
ABOUT THE READING RECOVERY COUNCIL OF NORTH AMERICA
The Reading Recovery Council of North America (RRCNA) is a not-for-profit association of Reading Recovery professionals and education partners. RRCNA provides a network of professional development opportunities, including LitCon: National K-8 Literacy & Reading Recovery Conference, where literacy leaders share their expertise with nearly 2,000 educators annually. For details, visit literacyconference.org.
THE JOURNAL OF READING RECOVERY
Spring 2025
OPEN ACCESS: Centering Children and Working Towards Equity: Teaching All Children to Read by Catherine Compton-Lilly
Literacy Leadership in Support of Equity: Whatever It Takes by Allison Briceño
Exploring the Purposes, Power, and Potential of Familiar Reading by Jamie Lipp
Full Circle: From Student to Psychologist by Joyce Romano