Research and Results

IMPROVE YOUR STUDENTS'...

Reading Comprehension
Audiobooks can bridge the gap for students attempting to read text above their independent reading level. Reading practice time is maximized with Recorded Books for students who have difficulty finding materials at their interest level that they can decode comfortably.

Boyle, Elizabeth, et al. 2002. Reading SLiCK with New Audio Texts and Strategies. Teaching Exceptional Children, pp. 50-55, Nov/Dec 2002.
Cipielewski, J., & Stanovich K. 1992. Predicting Growth in Reading Ability from Children's Exposure to Print. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 54, 74-89.
The Report of the Commission on Reading. Becoming a Nation of Readers, 1985.

Vocabulary Development
Listening to oral modeled readings is a proven way to acquire new vocabulary. Stimulate vocabulary development by allowing opportunities for students to hear and see words multiple times, to use them actively in their own speech, and to encounter them in compelling contexts, such as Recorded Books.

Hayes, Donald P. & Margaret G. Ahrens (1988). "Vocabulary simplification for children: a special case for 'motherese' ." Journal of Child Language, Vol. 15, 1988, pp. 395-410.
Robbins, C., & Ehri, L. (1994). Reading storybooks to kindergarteners helps them learn new vocabulary words. Journal of Educational Psychology, 86 (1), 54-64.
Stahl, S.A., Richeck, M.A., and Vandivier, R.J. 1991. Learning meaning vocabulary through listening: A sixth-grade replication. In J. Zutell, S. McCormick, with the editorial assistance of L.L.A. Caton, & O. O' Keefe (Eds.) Learner Factors/Teacher Factors: Issues in Literacy Research and Instruction (Fortieth yearbook of the National Reading Conference). Chicago: National Reading Conferece: 185-92.

Fluency
Research tells us that effective fluency instruction begins with modeled reading. Audio-assisted reading can provide unlimited practice for students, while silent independent reading alone has not been shown to increase fluency.

Hoskisson, K., & Krohm, B. 1974. Reading by immersion: Assisted reading. Elementary English, 51 (6), 832-36.
Kuhn, M. and Stahl, S. 2000. Fluency: A Review of Developmental and Remedial Practices. CIERA Report #R2-008. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor: Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement.
Pinnell, G.S., Pikulski, .J., Wixson, K.K., Campbell, J.R., Gough, P.B., and Beatty, A.S. 1995. Listening to children read aloud. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Washington DC.
Rasinski, T.V. 1990. Effects of repeated reding and listening-while-reading on reading fluency. Journal of Educational Research, 83 (3), 147-50.

Reading Readiness
Children who are read to often before beginning formal reading instruction exhibit much stronger emergent reading skills. By listening to Recorded Books with young students, teachers can share their enthusiasm for reading and get children excited about reading.

Bus, A.G., van Ijzendoorn, M.H., & Pellegrini, A.D. 1995. Joint book reading makes for success in learning to read: A meta-analysis on intergeneraltional transmission of literacy. Review of Educational Research, 65 (1), 1-21.
Denton, Kristen and Gerry West. 2002. Children' s Reading and Mathematics Acheivement in Kindergartedn and First Grade, U.S. Department of Education, NCES, Washington, DC.
Dickinson, D.K., & Smith, M.W. 1994. Long-term effects of pre-school teachers' books readings on low-income children' s vocabulary and story comprehension. Reading Research Quarterly, 29, 104-22.

Motivation
Audio support enables choice and variety in reading material for struggling readers and permits sharing, collaboration, and a feeling of social support--all identified as principal requisites for motivating young readers.

Alvermann, D.E. 2002. Effective literacy instruction for adolescents. Journal of Literacy Research, 34 (2), 189-208.
Board on Children, Youth, and Families. 2003. Engaging Schools: Fostering High School Students' Motivation to Learn.
Guthrie, J.T. and N.M. Humenick. 2004. Motivating students to read: Evidence for classroom practices that increase reading motivation and achievement. The Voice of Evidence in Reading Research, eds. P. McCardle and V. Chhabra, 329-54.

EFFECTIVE TEACHING STRATEGIES
WITH AUDIOBOOKS INCLUDE

Modeled Reading
Modeled reading helps build fluency, which improves reading comprehension, allowing students to read for both meaning and expression.

Dowhower , S.L. 1994. Repeated reading revisited: Research into practice. Reading and Writing Quarterly: Overcoming Learning Difficulties, 10, 343-58.
Homan, S.P., J.P. Klesius, & C. Hite. 1993 Effects of repeated readings and non-repetitive strategies on students' fluency and comprehension. Journal of Educational Research, 87 (2), 94-99.
Stanovich, K.E. 1980. Toward an interactive compensatory model of individual differences in the development of reading fluency. Reading Research Quarterly, 16, 32-71.

Assisted Reading
Using audio in reading instruction deepens the learning experience for students as well as varying the options available to the teacher. Assisted reading is consistently cited as more effective than unassisted independent reading.

Adams, M.J. 1990. Beginning to Read: Thinking and Learning about Print. Camridge, MA: MIT Press.
Brett, A., L. Rothlein, & M. Hurley. 1996. Vocabulary acquisition from listening to stories and explanations of target words. Elementary School Journal, 96 (4), 415-22.
Rasinski, T.V. 1990. Effects of repeated reading and listening-while-reading on reading fluency. Journal of Educational Research, 83, 176-84.

Gradual Release of Responsibility
The gradual release of responsibility involves scaffolded instruction for novice readers, moving from teacher modeling to shared reading, guided reading in small groups, and finally to sustained independent reading.

Mandler, J.M., & N.S. Johnson. 1977. Remembrance of things parsed: Story structure and recall. Cognitive Philosophy, 9, 111-51.
Mooney, Margaret. 1990. Reading To, With, and By Children. Katonah, NY: Richard C. Owen Publishers.
Tharp, R., & R. Gallimore. 1988. Rousing Minds to Life: Teaching Learning and Schooling in Social Context. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Differentiated Instruction
By recognizing students' varying background knowledge, readiness, language, learning preferences, and interests, teachers can maximize each student' s growth and interest in learning.

Langer, J. 2000. Beating the Odds: Teaching middle and high school students to read and write well. CELA Research Report, no. 12014. 2nd ed. Albany: National Research Center on English Learning and Achievement.
Simmons, J., & P.S. Carroll. 2003. Today' s middle grades: Different structures, students, and classrooms. Handbook of Research on Teaching the English Language Arts. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Taylor, L., & H. Alderman. 1999. Personalizing classroom instruction to account for motivational and developmental differences. Reading and Writing Quarterly, 15 (4) 255-76.

Shared Reading
Shared reading helps students become independent readers with the support of their peers. Students are then more confident when reading on their own.

Allen, J. 2002. On the Same Page: Shared Reading Beyond the Primary Grades. Portland, ME: Stenhouse, 257.
Holdaway, D. 1979. The Foundations of Literacy. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Sulzby, E. 1985. Children' s emerging reading of favorite storybooks: A developmental study. Reading Research Quarterly, 20 (4), 458-81.