Dialogic reading has potentially positive effects on communication and language competencies for children with disabilities¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r1 · q3
Currency · newest study 2010 · checked against its sources 2026-10-17 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

Reading the evidence codes

q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.

This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.

q3 i? Based on two RCTs, the WWC rated dialogic reading as having potentially positive effects on communication and language competencies for children with disabilities, with an average improvement index of +11 percentile points (range –2 to +45). → Dialogic Reading 2010

Evidence¶

Dialogic Reading 2010¶

Dialogic Reading. (2010). WWC Intervention Report, What Works Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/136

q3 · i? · quant-synthesis · r1

Systematic WWC review of 59 studies, of which two randomized controlled trials met evidence standards (52 children with language delays). The report states it "found potentially positive effects of dialogic reading" in this domain; the domain average improvement index is +11 percentile points, range –2 to +45.

"Based on the two stud- ies, the WWC found potentially positive effects of dialogic reading on communication and language competencies for children with disabilities."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

Reading and Language — outcome: instruction changes it

Outcomes of students with disabilities improve when they receive specially designed instruction responsive to assessment data — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
Dialogic Reading Improves Language Outcomes — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
Phonological awareness training has potentially positive effects on communication/language competencies for preschool children with learning disabilities, with a small extent of evidence — related
The Lovaas Model has no discernible effects on communication/language competencies for children with disabilities — related
The evidence base for dialogic reading with children with disabilities is small, with no qualifying studies in six other outcome domains — related
Dialogic Reading's average oral-language improvement index is +19 percentile points, ranging from –6 to +48 across findings — related

Page metadata

Field	Value
`type`	`claim`
`id`	`dialogic-reading-potentially-positive-communication-language-disabilities`
`title`	`Dialogic reading has potentially positive effects on communication and language competencies for children with disabilities`
`description`	`Dialogic reading has potentially positive effects on communication and language competencies for children with disabilities`
`status`	`review`
`evidence_strength`	`moderate`
`newest_evidence`	`2010`
`source_checked`	`2026-10-17`
`generated`	by `process:wiki-ingest` on `2026-10-07`
`trust`	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
`sources`	1 — `dialogic-reading-2010`

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