The Wilson Reading System shows potentially positive effects on alphabetics for beginning readers, based on a single randomized controlled trial¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · causal r2 · q3 · i2 medium
Currency · newest study 2007 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i2 A randomized controlled trial of 71 third-grade students found statistically significant effects of the Wilson Reading System on WRMT-R word identification and word attack subtests, with a domain average effect size of 0.33. → What Works Clearinghouse 2007

Evidence¶

What Works Clearinghouse 2007¶

What Works Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Education. (2007). WWC Intervention Report: Wilson Reading System®. What Works Clearinghouse, Beginning Reading. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/546

q3 · i2 · causal · r2

WWC review of the Torgesen et al. (2006) randomized controlled trial of 71 third-grade students in eight Pennsylvania school units. Findings table shows TOWRE phonetic decoding efficiency effect size 0.38 (statistically significant), WRMT-R word attack 0.58 (statistically significant), and a "domain average" effect size of 0.33, with improvement index +13 (range +6 to +22).

"The authors reported statistically significant effects of the Wilson Reading System® on two of these outcomes (WRMT–R word identification and word attack sub- tests). The statistical significance of these findings was confirmed by the WWC."

What Works Clearinghouse 2007 (2)¶

What Works Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Education. (2007). WWC Intervention Report: Wilson Reading System®. What Works Clearinghouse, Beginning Reading. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/546

q3 · i2 · causal · r2

The alphabetics findings table reports the WRMT-R word attack subtest with Wilson group mean 103.10 versus comparison 94.30, mean difference 8.80, effect size 0.58, statistically significant, improvement index +22. The TOWRE-PDE subtest showed effect size 0.38, also statistically significant.

"WRMT–R: Word Attack subtest Grade 3 8/71 103.10 (15.00) 94.30 (15.00) 8.80 0.58 Statistically significant +22"

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• SFA® shows positive effects on alphabetics for beginning readers in grades K–4 — related
• The Wilson Reading System shows no discernible effects on reading comprehension — related
• Word attack gains from the Wilson Reading System were concentrated among students with high initial word attack or vocabulary scores and students not eligible for free/reduced lunch — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• REDI effects largely fade by end of kindergarten, with significant positive effects only on TOWRE Phonetic Decoding Efficiency — related