ReadWorks Article-A-Day[TM]: Using a Maze Assessment to Test the Impact of Building Background Knowledge on Reading Comprehension. Technical Report #1902

This study was premised on the importance of vocabulary in comprehending text. Critical findings from both the National Reading Plan (NRP) and the National Reading Technical Assistance Center (NRTAC) frame this study, both in the intervention that was implemented and in the manner in which outcomes were measured. Using expository passages developed by ReadWorks, teachers implemented an 'Article-A-Day' with students reading brief expository passages. In this particular study, the passages focused on endangered plants and their survival, though the full domain of passages available in ReadWorks is extensive and addresses many other topics. The primary question was whether this strategy was more effective in supporting reading comprehension than when students did not consistently read passages on a daily basis. For five days, students read successive passages and, within two days of reading the last passage, completed an assessment that was based on a similar (but unfamiliar) passage with key targeted words omitted (using a maze format). Significant differences were found in the performances of these two groups, with students in the Article-A-Day treatment group performing higher than students in the control group. The most important implications of this study include the systematic focus on building background knowledge, including vocabulary, in reading comprehension instruction in which the active ingredients reflect findings from previous research. [This report was written in collaboration with ReadWorks.]