Provide early, effective, targeted intensive intervention to disrupt persistent trajectories of reading difficulty¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 1 claim (1 for) · 1 study (1 associational), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 1 claim rests on one study

Description¶

The brief recommends that schools and the state prioritize efficiently screening students and providing comprehensive instruction and supports, because students identified as significantly below benchmark often remain at that level without intervention. It states the need for "early and effective interventions to disrupt trajectories of reading difficulty" and that stable risk identification rates over the past few years suggest current intervention practices are not yet fully addressing student needs, particularly for historically underserved groups.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Continued efficient screening plus comprehensive instruction and supports for identified students.

Constraints¶

• Current intervention practices, as reflected in stable risk rates, are not yet fully addressing student needs, particularly for historically underserved groups and the schools serving them.

Target Learners¶

• Kindergarten through grade 3 students identified as significantly below benchmark, particularly students from historically underserved groups

Target Learning Goals¶

• Preventing persistent reading difficulty and improving early reading outcomes

Claims¶

• Few students identified as significantly below benchmark in grades 1–3 met MCAS expectations 1 or 2 years later, with higher rates for earlier identification [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Provide more intensive literacy interventions and supports for at-risk students in later grades
• Provide school-level supports and resources to schools with many traditionally underserved students and broader challenges to learning opportunities
• Target tutoring equity by prioritizing underserved students and using culturally reflective curriculum and formative data
• Start behavioral and achievement support before school entry and monitor trajectories continuously

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Early Literacy Performance in Massachusetts: Key Findings From 2023/24 School Year Data. (2025). WestEd. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED677570