The Interim Results of a Randomized Control Trial of the SPARK Early Literacy Program : Milwaukee Community Literacy Project / Curtis J. Jones, Rachel Lander and Rachel Westrum.
The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the i3-funded SPARK program on the literacy development of students in kindergarten through third grade. The SPARK program represents a collaboration between Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Public Schools. In the st...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
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2015.
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| Summary: | The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the i3-funded SPARK program on the literacy development of students in kindergarten through third grade. The SPARK program represents a collaboration between Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Public Schools. In the study, two cohorts of students were randomly selected in seven Milwaukee Elementary Schools to participate in SPARK. SPARK students receive one-on-one tutoring three times per week for two years. SPARK also engages parents through monthly family nights, phone calls home, emails, and home visits. The first cohort, selected in 2011, included 245 SPARK and 251 control students. The second cohort, selected in 2013, included 286 SPARK and 290 control students. After two years of attrition, primarily due to student mobility between schools, the first cohort shrunk to 135 SPARK and 139 control students. After one year, the second cohort shrunk to 266 SPARK and 263 control students. The MAP for Primary Grades (MPG) Reading assessment was used to test the impact of SPARK in the first cohort while the MPG and the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) were used in the second. Results indicate SPARK had a small but statistically significant impact on MAP reading scores in both cohorts (0.12 standardized effect in both cohorts). After just one year, SPARK was also found to have a large impact on PALS scores in the second cohort (0.40 standardized effect). These results suggest that SPARK is a promising program for helping to address the challenge facing the Milwaukee Public Schools of teaching students to read. The full results for the second cohort will be included in subsequent reports. |
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| Item Description: | Sponsoring Agency: Department of Education (ED). Abstractor: As Provided. Educational level discussed: Elementary Education. Educational level discussed: Kindergarten. Educational level discussed: Primary Education. Educational level discussed: Early Childhood Education. Educational level discussed: Grade 1. Educational level discussed: Grade 2. Educational level discussed: Grade 3. |
| Physical Description: | 1 online resource (13 pages) |