DESCUBRIENDO LA LECTURA
Sus cambios han sido drásticos ya que a ella hoy le gusta mas leer y estudiar y ser más responsable en la escuela. Ella en el pasado era muy nerviosa y siempre tenía mucho miedo y hoy en día se le quitaron esos temores – Parent of Fort Bend (Texas) Independent School District student

The goal of Descubriendo la Lectura (DLL) is to dramatically reduce the number of bilingual first-grade students who have extreme difficulty learning to read and write in bilingual classrooms and to reduce the cost of these learners to educational systems.

There are two positive outcomes for DLL students:

  1. Outcomes are comparable to outcomes for Reading Recovery students. Approximately 75% of students with a complete DLL intervention reach grade-level expectations.
  2. The few students who are still having difficulty after a complete DLL intervention are referred for further evaluation. They may be candidates for longer-term interventions.

Professional development is an essential part of Descubriendo la Lectura. Teachers and teacher leaders must be certified bilingual educators with experience in a primary bilingual education classroom. Although the theoretical principles that underlie Reading Recovery are the same for DLL, procedural and training issues differ because English and Spanish function differently as languages. Therefore, if candidates initially are trained in Reading Recovery in English, they must receive an additional year of training to serve Spanish-speaking students. If the teachers or teacher leaders are initially trained in Spanish, they must receive an additional year of training to serve English-speaking students.

Documented Results of Desubriendo la Lectura

What Works Clearinghouse Reviews AIR’s DLL Trial
First-year results from the American Institutes for Research’s national randomized controlled trial of Descubriendo La Lectura have been reviewed by WWC. Read the full details HERE.

Addressing Literacy Needs of Struggling Spanish-Speaking First Graders: First-Year Results From a National Randomized Controlled Trial of Descubriendo la Lectura

Descubriendo la Lectura and English Language Learners Research Studies


Borman, G. D., Borman, T. H., Park, S. J., & Houghton, S. (2020). A Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial of the Effectiveness of Descubriendo la Lectura. American Educational Research Journal57(5), 1995-2020.

Borman, T. H., Borman, G. D., Houghton, S., Park, S. J., Zhu, B., Martin, A., & Wilkinson-Flicker, S. (2019). Addressing literacy needs of struggling Spanish-speaking first graders: First-year results from a national randomized controlled trial of Descubriendo la Lectura. AERA Open5(3), 2332858419870488.

A Follow-Up Study
In 1997, a national study of former DLL students in Grades 2 and 3 conducted by Escamilla, Loera, Ruiz, and Rodríguez revealed that Descubriendo la Lectura had positive impact on Spanish-speaking students.

  • 92% of second graders and 93% of third graders who completed their series of lessons met or exceeded the average band on Spanish text reading.
  • 75% of second graders who completed their series of lessons, and 79% of third graders who completed their lessons, met or exceeded the average band on the standardized Spanish reading measure (SABE-2 and SABE-3).

Escamilla, K., Loera, M., Ruiz, O., & Rodríguez, Y. (1998). An examination of sustaining effects in Descubriendo La Lectura programs. Literacy Teaching and Learning: An International Journal of Early Reading and Writing, 3(2), 59–81.

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Fall 2023