Reading Plus¶
Product or Programme · All products and programmes
Evidence · 2 claims (1 for, 1 mixed) · 1 study (1 causal),q2· 1 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study
Description¶
Reading Plus® is a web-based individualized reading intervention platform developed and operated by Reading Plus® to provide scaffolded silent-reading practice, assessment, and progress monitoring for students.
Components¶
- Reading Plus® web-based individualized scaffolded silent reading intervention: Reading Plus® is a web-based reading intervention providing "individualized scaffolded silent reading" practice for students in grade 3 and higher, aiming to develop silent reading fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary. The program adjusts content difficulty and reading duration so students proceed at a pace matching their skill level, and includes differentiated reading activities, computer-based assessments, progress-monitoring tools, implementation support, and supplemental offline activities. (What Works Clearinghouse (2010))
- Reading Plus technology access requirements: Reading Plus is designed for flexible access: it "can be accessed anytime and anywhere on desktop computers, laptops, or tablets with a high-speed Internet connection." This means schools implementing the program need devices and reliable high-speed internet for students, and the page notes that more detailed technical requirements are available from the program's published requirements documentation. (Reading Plus — Evidence Rating Summary (2024))
- Reading Plus professional development and support system: Reading Plus offers "a comprehensive system of training and support" for educators and administrators, including customized support packages for school or district needs, a resource website with on-demand video and webinar training, written resources, and additional online and offline teaching tools. Live support is available via chat, email, and phone. In the evaluation study, supervising teachers completed two hours of instructor-led training and used these resources as needed. (Reading Plus — Evidence Rating Summary (2024))
- Reading Plus web-based literacy program for grades 3-12+: Reading Plus is a web-based literacy program for grades 3-12+ designed to strengthen reading comprehension, vocabulary, efficiency, and motivation. It "combines personalized practice and adaptive instruction, and offers students choice and control over their program experience." The program includes a valid and reliable assessment and is designed to develop critical reading skills for deep, meaningful understanding of complex texts. It was evaluated in a randomized study that qualified it for a Strong evidence rating. (Reading Plus — Evidence Rating Summary (2024))
- Supervise Reading Plus use with qualified classroom teachers, reading teachers, literacy specialists, or well-prepared paraprofessionals: The page specifies that Reading Plus does not require specialized staffing beyond existing school roles: "Classroom teachers, reading teachers, literacy specialists, and well-prepared paraprofessionals are qualified to supervise the use of Reading Plus." This makes implementation feasible within ordinary school staffing structures, provided supervising adults are prepared through the program's training and support system. (Reading Plus — Evidence Rating Summary (2024))
- Three-part session structure combining perceptual warm-up, adaptive silent reading, and contextual analysis activities: Within a typical 45-minute session, students engage in visual perceptual warm-up activities, scaffolded silent reading activities that "dynamically adjust content-level difficulty, degree of repetition, duration of reading, rate, and style of presentation," and contextual analysis activities building word knowledge and inferential abilities. Program length varies from 9 weeks (3–4 times per week) to 30 weeks (5 times per week). (What Works Clearinghouse (2010))
Claims¶
- The extent of evidence for Reading Plus® on adolescent learners is small, resting on a single study that met WWC standards with reservations [~W]
- Reading Plus® produced a statistically significant positive effect on FCAT reading comprehension for low-achieving adolescent learners, with a small WWC-calculated effect of 0.06 [+W]
Related Products and Programmes¶
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Key Sources¶
- What Works Clearinghouse. (2010). WWC Intervention Report: Reading Plus®. U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/419
- Reading Plus — Evidence Rating Summary. (2024). https://evidenceforessa.org/program/reading-plus/
- Reading Plus — Evidence Rating Summary. (2024). https://www.readingplus.com
- What Works Clearinghouse. (2010). WWC Intervention Report: Reading Plus®. U.S. Department of Education. http://www.readingplus.com/
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
product |
id |
reading-plus |
title |
Reading Plus |
description |
Reading Plus® is a web-based individualized reading intervention platform developed and operated by Reading Plus® to provide scaffolded silent-reading practice, assessment, and progress monitoring for students. |
status |
review |
moved_from |
design/reading-plus-qualified-staff-supervision, design/reading-plus-three-part-session-structure, element/reading-plus-scaffolded-silent-reading-program, element/reading-plus-technology-access-requirements, element/reading-plus-training-support-system, element/reading-plus-web-based-literacy-program |
product_kind |
software |
generated |
by process:sweep-kinds on 2026-10-10 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
2 — what-works-clearinghouse-2010, reading-plus-evidence-rating-summary-2024 |
Frontmatter is the page's machine-readable record — see the Schema & Guide.