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Can technology help struggling readers comprehend grade level text?

I decided to research the effect technology can play with reading comprehension. Year after year, I have students who struggle to access grade level content. Come assessment time, when work is not modified they fail at the task at hand simply because the reading level is above their ability level. I wondered, since we are in the 21st century and computers are all around us can technology help these students?

Background and Need, Rationale, etc.     

Literature Review

The district where this study took place only 35% of students met or exceeded the reading standard on the CAASPP at the school where this study took place. They showed a 2% increase in score in just one year. As a district and school, students were not proficient in reading. The Ed Data shows that 72% of students received free or reduced lunch at the school of study, 47%  are ELLs, and due to the location of the school it is also the home school for students who are homeless (Ed Data, 2017). This is one reason why classroom dynamics are constantly changing. At the school where this study was conducted, 30 minutes of daily reading intervention was offered to all students in phonics or reading comprehension if they were not reading at grade level. Small group instruction was given to those students while students who could read grade level text were working with grade level text. Even with this support, there was not significant growth in reading as seen on the state and district test scores. With below-proficient reading scores at the national level, trailing down to the state level,  this data supports the idea that looking into new ways that could potentially change how struggling students can adapt and thrive in reading through the use of technology is crucial.


IRB

The literature reviews that I did for my capstone project supported how important foundation reading skills are for students. They was also controversial studies regarding the impact technology playing in student's reading comprehension. This is what led me to complete my own study to see how current technology plays a role in comprehension.  You can access full literature reviews and references on my research paper.

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Design Process

Support and Next Steps