An Assessment of Early Steps: A Program for Early Intervention of Reading Problems

In this study the authors examine issues related to selecting and evaluating early intervention programs for first graders at serious risk for failing in reading acquisition. The program evaluated is Early Steps, an intervention with one-to-one tutoring and with particular emphasis on story reading, writing, and phonological skills. Four neighborhood schools were selected to participate in the study--two experimental and two control schools. The 49 children came from lower- to middle-class Caucasian families with similar socioeconomic backgrounds. The design of the study includes pre-, post-, and retention assessments of an experimental and a control group. Various tests were used to assess spelling performance, word recognition, nonword reading, and reading comprehension. The results at the end of Grade 1 and at the beginning of Grade 2 indicate that the experimental group performed statistically significantly better than the control group on all variables assessed. In particular, the children with the lowest pretest levels, the very high-risk children, benefit most from the intervention. Their improvement approaches the average performance level after an intervention period of 8 months. We presume that the substantial progress among high-risk children reflects the importance of a balanced approach to beginning reading and the power of the Early Steps program to increase the phonological and word study skills among those children most at risk in this domain. /// [Spanish] En este estudio los autores examinan cuestiones relacionadas con la selección y evaluación de programas de intervención temprana para niños de primer grado que corren riesgo de fracasar en la adquisición de la lectura. El programa evaluado es Primeros Pasos, una intervención que consiste en tutorías uno a uno, con énfasis particular en lectura de cuentos, escritura y habilidades fonológicas. Cuatro escuelas barriales fueron seleccionadas para participar en el estudio--dos escuelas experimentales y dos escuelas de control. Los 49 niños provenían de familias caucásicas de clase media a baja, con entornos socio-económicos similares. El diseño del estudio incluye evaluaciones pre, post y de retención de un grupo experimental y un grupo de control. Se utilizaron varias pruebas para evaluar el desempeño en escritura, reconocimiento de palabras, lectura de no-palabras y comprensión lectora. Los resultados al final de primer grado y al comienzo de segundo grado indican que el grupo experimental