0

Western Governors University Teachers College

Master of Science, Curriculum and Instruction

WGU Capstone Research Template

The following pages provide a template for planning and writing the capstone written

paper. You are encouraged to copy this document and type directly in the template to ensure

alignment with capstone requirements. If you do so, remember to remove this cover page from

the paper and replace it with your own before submitting your work.
 1

Reading Fluency Remedies Past Elementary School

Helen WIlson

A Capstone Presented to the Teachers College Faculty

of Western Governors University

in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of Science, Curriculum and Instruction

Cindy Norton

January 21, 2023

 2

Abstract

I utilized an action research project with instructional instruction. My

research topic was remeding fluency deficiencies post elementary school age

students. The questions that guided the research was, if students, who are

taught using quantitative data based intervention would see a significant

growth in overall reading ability after a short interval of intensive instruction.

We found that during the Covid Lockdowns students missed out on some

vital parts of the language development that is integral in the growth of their

reading abilities. Because of this, students were not showing grade level

reading fluency abilities. The cause seems to be a lack of direct instruction

on phonological awareness and basic reading strategies. This problem lead

to us to ask the question, “How does intense direct instruction impact 7 th

grade students reading fluency?” The instruments and methods we used for

this research was using the Basic Reading Inventory (BRI) as our quantative

data collection method. We used the BRI for the pre and post assessment.

Our stakeholders were 113 7th grade students with varying demographics.

We concluded and agreed with Bigozzi when he stated, “Though it may be

difficult to determine the cause of the lack of fluency, we know that if it is not

properly and systematically addressed that students will continue to struggle

with fluency, reading motivation, the ability to comprehend high-leveled text

and could be set up for low achievement through their academic career.”

(Bigozzi, 2022) The relevance of the source to my proposed capstone

research purpose is that it discusses not only identifying fluency deficits but
 3

also how to address the needs and teach it. It also gives supporting data

such as, “75 to 90 percent of students with comprehension difficulties have

reading fluency problems that are a significant cause of their comprehension

difficulties.” (Liebfreund, 2021)

 4

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Topic and Problem.....................................................................................................5

Research Question(s).................................................................................................................5
Justification.................................................................................................................................5
Chapter 2: Review of the Literature............................................................................................6

Introduction to the Literature Review.....................................................................................6

Thematic Subheading................................................................................................................6
Thematic Subheading................................................................................................................6
Thematic Subheading................................................................................................................6
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................6
Chapter 3: Research Methodology...............................................................................................7

Research Question(s).................................................................................................................7
Participants or Stakeholders.....................................................................................................7
Data Collection Instrument(s) and Alignment to Research Question(s)..............................7

Method.......................................................................................................................................7

Data Analysis Techniques.........................................................................................................7

Timeline of Data Collection Activities......................................................................................7

Resources....................................................................................................................................7
Data Security and Confidentiality............................................................................................7
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................7
Chapter 4: Results.........................................................................................................................8

Summary of Research................................................................................................................8
Summary of Results or Findings..............................................................................................8
Implementation..........................................................................................................................8
Answer(s) to the Research Question(s)....................................................................................8
Product........................................................................................................................................8
Chapter 5: Conclusions.................................................................................................................9
 5

Overview of Conclusion(s).........................................................................................................9
Strengths and Weaknesses of Methodology.............................................................................9
Influential Factors......................................................................................................................9
Recommendations for Further Investigation..........................................................................9
Barriers or Limitations to Drawing Conclusions....................................................................9
Implications of Research on Educational Practice.................................................................9
References.....................................................................................................................................10

Appendix A...................................................................................................................................11

Appendix B...................................................................................................................................12

Appendix C...................................................................................................................................13

Appendix D...................................................................................................................................14
 6

Chapter 1: Topic and Problem

Research Type

I will be doing action research with instructional instruction. The

instructional intervention that I will be using is twofold. The first is that I will
do five intensive meetings with small groups for four weeks at a time to
focus on filling the gaps in their specific areas such as phonological
awareness and increasing their reading fluency. Two days a week we will
focus on writing and three days a week we will focus on literacy and
grammar. The students will be pre-assessed and then benchmarked weekly
until the final assessment which will include fluency, speed, and
comprehension. The pre-assessment we will use is the Basic Reading
inventory, the program I will use is MAP for the intervention and the post-
assessments I will use Basic Reading Inventory.
This topic aligns with the field of curriculum and instruction because
students are constantly working on increasing reading fluency,
comprehension, and application. It is vital that these students fill the gaps
and master the concepts missed so they will be able to move along with their
peers into higher order thinking topics and writing when they go to high
school.

Research Topic

The topic I have chosen is fluency in literacy in the middle grades,

specifically by 7th grade. This aligns with the curriculum because the current
Tennessee mandated curriculum is lacking for students who have not
mastered reading fluency by 6th grade. In Fluency Interventions for
Struggling Readers in Grades 6 to 12: A Research Synthesis it states that
“literacy instruction in the secondary grades increasingly focuses on reading
comprehension and content acquisition. Starting in sixth grade, reading
fluency is no longer a curriculum standard for typical readers, who are
expected to read and comprehend grade-level texts with proficiency”
(NGACBP& CCSSO, 2010). This is true in practice in the classroom and
students are suffering academically because of the lack of curriculum or
instruction in fluency past elementary schools. This is especially problematic
in our post-Covid educational world where most students are lagging at least
a year behind academically with the fundamentals. It is also stated that “a
large number of students enter the secondary school grades with deficits in
reading performance, showing difficulties in comprehension, automatic word
 7

recognition, decoding, and fluency” (Manset-Williamson& Nelson, 2005). This

is precisely why I have chosen fluency in literacy as the topic for my
capstone research. The research question that evolves from my topic is,
“How does intense direct instruction impact 7 th grade students reading
fluency?” The questions guiding the research question is if students, who are
taught using quantitative data intervention will see a significant growth in
overall reading ability and thus their writing ability, as well.

Problem Statement

Students who do not master phonological awareness and basic reading strategies struggle to
become fluent readers beyond elementary school. The impact is that students who do not
have the proper fluency background in elementray school, without
interventions, will struggle to be successful in reading comprehension which
is required for success in the post elementary level school years.

Problem Impact and Root Cause(s)

During the Covid Lockdowns students missed out on some vital parts of the
language development that is integral in the growth of their reading abilities.
Because of this, students are not showing grade level reading fluency
abilities. The cause seems to be a lack of direct instruction on phonological
awareness and basic reading strategies.
It is important that these students master fluency early on so they will be
able to comprehend the complex text they will have in high school. Dr.
Timothy Rasinski defines fluency as the ability to “read words accurately,
effortlessly, or automatically so that readers can preserve their limited
cognitive resources for the more important task in
reading―comprehension―and with appropriate prosody or expression so as
to give meaning to the words that is implied through emphasis, phrasing,
and intonation, and relatedly, comprehension.” (Rasinski, 2006). If students
are not fluent readers, they have trouble comprehending the text (Breznitz,
2006). This topic is important because students must be fluent readers to
have not only academic success but overall success in life. “The children who
are truly at risk in this country are those who cannot read. Academic,
emotional, and social issues abound for children who are poor readers.
Children who are behind their peers in reading struggle with low self-esteem
 8

and feelings of inadequacy. Low achievement in reading is also the common

denominator in school discipline, attendance and dropout problems, and
juvenile crime” (Reading Foundation, 2022).
In addition, Vaughn indicates that only 35% of fifth-grade students in the
United States are performing at a proficient level in reading (Vaughn, 2014).
If we are aware that Country wide direct instruction on introductory fluency
skills such as decoding, and phonics are not taught past elementary school
and it is a common issue that students come into middle school without the
fluency skills needed to meet the expectations of middle or high school
reading fluency. The National Governors Association Center for Best
Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers (NGACBP) explains that
there is a significant relationship between fluency and comprehension
(NGACBP, 2010). Dr. Don Deshler goes into further detailing that in middle
and high school, students and their academics are more focused on being
“college and career” standards. These standards focus on reading grade
level texts of all genres with a “greater focus on higher-order skills” like
theme, analyzing text and author’s purpose. He also states that because
students are coming into these higher grade levels with low reading
proficiency these students are ill prepared to meet these more challenging
expectations ( Deshler , 2022).
Research Question(s)

How does intense direct instruction impact 7th grade students reading
fluency? The questions guiding the research question is if students, who are
taught using qualitive data intervention will see a significant growth in
overall reading ability and thus their writing ability, as well.

Justification

The justifcation for this project is that it can help me and students identify
what needs to be done to fill in the gaps for students who come to middle
school without the prerequisite knowledge needed to be successful in their
higher education years. Students who struggle to read have a much more
bleak outlook for their future educational careers. MY hopes are that, by
doing this research, it can help other educators and students to have greater
success in teaching fundamentals of reading fluency in a short amount of
time to prepare their students to have more academic success and to be
more prepared in their future educational careers. Reading flunecy is an
undeniable vital part of the student's education. It is also a fact that a
students' phonological knowledge is a strong indicator of how much reading
success they may have in the future and thus how much academic success..
If this skill set is not mastered in elementary school, without intensive
 9

interventions, they could struggle with the reminader of their academic

career and possibly further in their lives. Thus, there is a clear need for this
project because it can help my students master grade level reading fluency
expectations and be more successful in their educational careers
 10

Chapter 2: Review of the Literature

Introduction to the Literature Review

Intensive reading fluency intervention is an invention program aimed at

providing support
for students who enter middle school with below grade level fluency skills.
The programs
discussed in my research includes using a valid universal screening for
fluency and then
explicitly teaching the three main elements of fluency remediation,
comprehension acquisition
skills and ultimately application in writing. The common themes within the
literature is that
there is a correlation between reading and post elementary academic
success, that fluency is not
explicitly taught in post elementary education and thus is a critical problem
for middle and high
school educators and that students who come to post elementary schools
without the
prerequisite grade level fluency have significantly lower comprehension and
writing skills.
Mason states that even though we know that teaching phonics in
elementary schools in a
“balanced” literacy environment helps to develop strong reading and de-
coding skills in
elementary aged students, there is still many students that enter post
elementary education
without these skills. Because of this, these students have reading deficits
that are difficult to
remediate by the time they reach middle school age (Mason, 2005). Samuel
reiterates this
sentiment when he states that an increasingly large number of post
elementary schools aged
students are reading between a 2nd and 5th grade level and this is primarily
due to their lack of
fluent reading (Samuel, 2003). Dr. Timothy Rasinski explains that when
students are fluent in
reading, they can then focus more easily on the more important task of
reading comprehension
but that without proper fluency skills reading comprehension is a near
impossible task to
accomplish for certain students. (Rasinski, 2006).
 11

Grade level fluency as it pertains to post elementary success

If we know that students who cannot read fluently are more likely to shy
away from reading or asking questions about the text which will just further
the gap in their comprehension levels. Students who struggle to read the
words are not able to move beyond the words to higher level thinking
questions. We also are all too aware that Tennessee’s Education
Commissionaire, Penny Schwinn, has stated that over 20 percent of students
who scored “below-basic” reading skills beyond the third grade had not
graduated high school by age 19 (Schwinn, 2019). Álvarez-Cañizo says that
the ability to read an article or piece of literature with accuracy is one of the
most “decisive” factors in a student’s ability to comprehend the theme,
meaning and subtilties of the text. If a student is not fluent, they are
focusing on the strenuous task of reading the words and unable to focus on
the deeper meaning associated with comprehension (Álvarez-Cañizo, 2015).
Paige echoes this sentiment stating that because of comprehensions
importance to later academic success, ensuring that students have the
proper fluency to read the increasingly lengthier and complex texts is vital in
preparing students for “college- and career-ready reading
achievement”( Paige, 2020). It is clear that coming into post elementary
educational settings with grade level fluency skills is key to later academic
success. Reading fluency is the beginning of reading competency that
extends beyond reading comprehension. Yildirim looked at the effects of
reading fluency on motivation and comprehension in a student’s overall
school success. His research confirmed what many others’ also state, that
proper fluency leads to a high level of reading motivation, and
comprehension and that those that are successful in fluency did better than
63% of their classmates (Yildirim, 2013).

Fluency Skills are not Explicitly Taught Past Elementary School Level

Vaughn indicates that only 35% of fifth-grade students in the United States
are performing at a proficient level in reading (Vaughn, 2014). If we are
aware that Country wide direct instruction on introductory fluency skills such
as decoding, and phonics are not taught past elementary school and it is a
common issue that students come into middle school without the fluency
skills needed to meet the expectations of middle or high school reading
fluency. Genevieve Manset-Williamson explains that there is a significant
relationship between fluency and comprehension (Manset-Williamson ,
2022). Dr. Don Deshler goes into further detailing that in middle and high
school, students and their academics are more focused on being “college
and career” standards. These standards focus on reading grade level texts of
 12

all genres with a “greater focus on higher-order skills” like theme, analyzing
text and author’s purpose. He also states that because students are coming
into these higher grade levels with low reading proficiency these students
are ill prepared to meet these more challenging expectations
( Deshler ,2022).

Low Overall Long Term Academic Success

We know that a disturbingly high number of elementary age students are

entering middle school with lacking grade-level fluency skills. What is
becoming more and more clear is that, according to Park, students who have
lower fluency skills have lower comprehension and writing skills (Mangrum,
2014). Yildirim goes even further explaining that less than 20 percent of
students who are reading below grade level in the third grade ever apply or
attend college compared to 60 percent of students who are reading at grade
level in the third grade who do attend college (Yildirim ,2014). Burg with the
NAEP 2018 Oral Reading Study says that there is subpar development of
foundational skills, such as phonics, explicitly taught to build fluent oral
readers. This directly effects comprehension, writing and overall academic
success. This is concerning. Reading comprehension is “critical for learning
across the disciplines”, and only becomes more difficult, widening the gap,
as students progress through the grade levels (Burg , 2021).

Conclusion

Bigozzi expertly explains that there is a vital relationship between reading

fluency and
comprehension. This is a complex problem that spans many grade levels and
must be
addressed from the bottom up (Bigozzi , 2022). This topic aligns with the
field of curriculum and instruction because students are constantly working
on increasing reading fluency, comprehension, and application. It is vital that
these students fill the gaps and master the concepts missed so they will be
able to move along with their peers into higher order thinking topics and
writing when they go to high school. It is important that these students
master fluency early on so they will be able to comprehend the complex text
they will have in high school. Dr. Timothy Rasinski defines fluency as the
ability to “read words accurately, effortlessly, or automatically so that
readers can preserve their limited cognitive resources for the more
important task in reading―comprehension―and with appropriate prosody or
expression so as to give meaning to the words that is implied through
emphasis, phrasing, and intonation, and relatedly, comprehension” (Rasinski,
2006). If students are not fluent readers, they have trouble comprehending
 13

the text (Breznitz, 2006). This topic is important because students must be
fluent readers to have not only academic success but overall success in life.
“The children who are truly at risk in this country are those who cannot read.
Academic, emotional, and social issues abound for children who are poor
readers. Children who are behind their peers in reading struggle with low
self-esteem and feelings of inadequacy. Low achievement in reading is also
the common denominator in school discipline, attendance and dropout
problems, and juvenile crime” (Reading Foundation, 2022).

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

Research Question

How does intense direct instruction impact 7th grade students reading
fluency?
 14

Participants or Stakeholders

The demographic profile of the target population I have access to is 104 7th
grade students,
46.78 % are female and 53.22% are male, 23.39% are Economically
Disadvantaged, 3% are
English Language Learners, 22.51% are Students with Disabilities and there
are 5 langauges
spoken in whole at my school. The student investigator has a dual
relationship with all of the study participants as their primary English,
Language Arts teacher.

The role of the student participants is to complete the intensive instruction

with fidelity and be willing to have data shared with other stakeholders to
assess the value of the instruction. The relationship between the student
participants and the researcher is that I am their current ELA teacher for the
academic school year.

The teachers who will assist in implementation of the research consist of one
ELA student-teacher and one Exceptional Education Teacher. Both educators
are male. The role of the teacher is to teach, and assess with fidelity using
the provided tools and be willing to assess the data collected at the closing
of the research to assess the success of the instruction. The relationship
between the researcher and the teachers is that the researcher is a peer, a
co- teacher and a team and ELA lead instructor for the building.

Data Collection Instrument(s) and Alignment to Research Question(s)

I will use Basic Reading Inventory (BRI) to identify clues that a student is or
is not reading fluently with questions such as: Is the student chunking the
text? Is the student skipping a word? Is the student self-correcting missed
word? Is student sounding out new word? The BRI will be given pre and post
interventions to show growth.

We will use quantative data using the Basic Reading Inventory (BRI) which is
a one-on-one test with the teacher in which the student reads three
passages in a set time and answers comprehension questions. The BRI will
be given at the beginning as a pre-test, and at the end as a post-assessment
during this research. Teacher made assessments will be given in between
the before mentioned as an informal or formative check in on growth. These
are aligned with the research method as the quantitative formats used will
provide an overall picture of the students’ academic growth.
 15

Method

The methods and instruments that will be used and their alignment to the
research question is that these methods and instruments are proper to assist
the educator in getting the most accurate data to answer the research
question: How does intense direct instruction impact 7th grade students
reading fluency? We will use Basic Reading Inventory assessments for Pre-
testing, and post-testing data collection. It aligns because it provides
accurate grammar and phonetical grade levels with clear indications as to
where the gaps in learning may be. It also aligns as they are district provided
and approved tools that align to the state standards that the students will
ultimately be tested on. It is integral in providing the students intensive
instruction based on where they are at the start of the instruction.

Data Analysis Technique(s)

The data analysis technique I will use for quantitative data is descriptive
statistics. We will look for an average of all participants baseline, and final
summative assessments to assess success. My research question is how
does intense direct instruction impact 7th grade students reading fluency?
The questions guiding the research question is if students, who are taught
using quantitative data collected intervention will see a significant growth in
overall reading ability and thus their writing ability, as well.

Timeline of Data Collection Activities

The timeline of data collection will be four weeks. In the first week, my first
step is to identify a baseline academic reading fluency score on the
participants by giving them BRI pre-assessment.

Once the students are identified I would them group them into three groups
5th-6th grade reading levels, 3rd and 4th grade reading levels and 2nd grade and
below reading levels. Students would then be given the direct instruction at
their level using the Measure Academic Progress (MAP) program. This
program will be used for 30 minutes a day 5 days a week during their
Personalized Learning Time (PLT). They will begin at the grade level they
were assessed at.
Once the students have completed a week of instruction, I would assess if
they have moved up a level in their MAP program daily.

The fourth thing I would do in the second week is give a teacher made
assessment to check for reading growth as a benchmark. These tests will be
based on the material read that week and have both a fluency component
 16

where the student reads aloud to the teacher and a comprehension

component which is taken independently.

At the start of week three, the students will continue to utilize their online
MAP program and teacher will check for growth of levels within the program.
At the end of the week the teacher will again give a benchmark checking for
fluency improvements based on baseline data from two weeks before and
give the teacher lead BRI which will check for fluency and comprehension.
These will be used as quantitative data.

Week 4 will be the final week where the students will continue to utilize
their online MAP program and teacher will check for growth of levels within
the program. At the end of the week the teacher will again give a fast bridge
test checking for fluency improvements based on baseline data from the
weeks before and give the teacher lead BRI which will check for fluency and
comprehension. These will be used as quantitative data.

At the end of week four , the students will complete a BRI post assessment
and I will assess the success of the research.

Resources

The resources that will be needed for the participants are a Consent Form
for the participants disclosing that I am doing a graduate level research
project on reading fluency designed to assist increasing their reading fluency
and comprehension. They will also require a Chromebook or laptop, internet
access or hotspots for each computer, earphones for each student, and
online access to the MAP program.

The teacher will require paper versions of the BRI reading passages,
inventory and questions for grade kindergarten through 8 th grade, a
classroom setting big enough to isolate students into three groups, and
online access to MAP program. The teacher will also need a computer,
projector and all typical classroom materials such as paper, pencils, and so
forth.

For the data collection the researcher will require access to BRI reading
inventory sheets and access to online MAP program.

Data Security and Confidentiality

All identifying data will be changed, all information kept on computer will be
encrypted and
password protected. All data will be kept on a separate harddrive which will
not be connected
 17

to the internet unless in use and sotred in a passcoded filing cabinet. I will
use to remove all
personal identifiers is to assign each person a psuedenom and anassociated
data number which
will also be kept on the encrypted documents on the harddrive in a locked
cabinet.

The data will be stored on a separate encrypted hardrive in a safety vaut

cabiney located at West
End Middle School during the research and then transported to my private
residence. The safety
vault has a combination code that only the instructor is privy to. Once the
three year period has
expired a local shredding company will shred the documents in their secure
location.

Conclusion

The key elements of this research project to to give students intensive

reading fluency instruction over a short amount of time. Each student will
complete a Pre-test using the Basic Reading Inventory (BRI) to assess their
reading level and gaps in their fluency. Students will then complete an
specialized online intervention program which they will work through. At the
end of the research, all students will complete a BRI post test to assess their
hopefully elevated reading fluency score according to the BRI. In order to
mitigate any conflict of interest, all students will be given the Pre-
assessment, instruction and post assessment.
 18

Chapter 4: Results

Summary of Research

My research question was “How does intense direct instruction impact 7th
grade students reading fluency?” The research answered the question with
resounding positivity. I used the Basic Reading Inventory(BRI) to pre-test all
of my students’ reading fluency. Once they were tested they were put into
small groups with specific fluency topics to review that they had previously
not mastered. They did this on an online format that had a gradual release of
topics and a gradual increase of mastery. I also met with each student group
once a day to focus on whatever their specific standard of fluency goal they
were working on to give direct remedial instruction. At the end of the
research I then gave the students a BRI Post-Test to assess any growth in
their reading fluency and comprehension and then compiled the data into
pre-test and post-test scores to show growth using a bar graph chart to show
students and their scores, pre and post-test and then took an average of the
pre and post-test scores and created a graph showing that, as well..

Summary of Results or Findings

In just a few short weeks of intensive instruction using an online review of

basic flucney skills based on the specific needs of each individual student,
the students showed growth.
The Basic Reading Inventory ranges students at an “Instructional” grade
level. The data from the BRI showed that grade levels range from 4th grade
to 12th grade levels. This is a very wide variety of fluency levels. The pre-
test data showed that the students grade level equivalents from the BRI
ranged from 4th grade to 12th grade in fluency. Most were just below or just
above 7th grade level. There was one student scored at the 4 th grade level,
two at the 5th grade level, five at the sixth grade level, 15 at the 7 th grade
level, 15 at the eight grade level, 21 at the ninth grade level, 14 at the tenth
grade level, 12 at the eleventh grade level and 19 at the twelfth grade level.
 19

Pre-test Fluency
99
92
85
78
71
64
Student Num-

57
50
43
ber

36
29
22
15
8
1
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140

Student score

The post-fluency assessment ranges from 6th grade to 12th. Zero Students
scored in the fourth or fifth grade level. Three students scored at the sixth
grade level. Six students scored at the seventh grade level. Nineteen
students scored at the eight grade level. Twenty-one students scored at the
ninth grade level. Fourteen scored at the tenth grade level. Thirteen scored
at the eleventh grade level. Twenty- eight students scored at the twelveth
grade level, or as high as they could score on the BRI. They had an average
score of 98.16 grade level- almost a tenth grade level.

Post-test Fluency
99
92
85
78
71
64
Student Number

57
50
43
36
29
22
15
8
1
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140

Student score
 20

To make the data easier to decipher I graphed the pre and post fluency test
data of 25 students at a time.

Pre and Post Test Fluency 1-25 students

140

120

100
Student score

80

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Student Number
 21

Pre and Post Test Fluency 26-50 student

140

120

100

80
Student score

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Students

Pre and Post Data Fluency 51-75 student

140

120

100
Student score

80

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Students
 22

Pre and Post Test Fluency Students 76-104

140

120

100 Student score

80

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Students

The averages of all of the students pre and post test scores divided by the
number of students gave me an average for the pre test of a 92.25 and a
post test average of a 98.16.

Pre and Post Test Average Data Chart

89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99

Post-test Fluency Average Pre-test Fluency Average

Simararly, the pre-test portion that covers comprehension showed a wide

variety of grade levels from 4th grade to 10th grade levels. There was one
student who scored at the fourth grade level, one student who scored at the
5th grade level, eight at sixth grade level, 28 at seventh grade level, 31 at
eight grade level, 24 at ninth grade level, 10 at tenth grade level and zero at
 23

both elevth and twelfth grade level. The addition of all of the scores divided
by the number of students gave us a Comprehension Pre-Test Average of
79.4 or almost an eight grade level.

Pre-test Comp

97
89
81
73
Student score

65
57
49
41
33
25
17
9
1
0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Student Number

Post test Comprehension followed a similar parth as the post test for fluency.
The Post Test Comprehension ranges from sixth grade to twelfth grade level.
Five students scored at the sixth grade level. Thirty-six scored at the
seventh grade level. Twenty- three scored at the eighth grade level. Twenty-
nine scored at the ninth grade level. Ten scored at the tenth grade level.
Adding all of the students post test comprehension scores and dividing them
by the number of students gave me the post-test comprehension average of
80.96
 24

Post test comprehension all students

99
92
85
78
71
Student Number

64
57
50
43
36
29
22
15
8
1
0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Student score

Pre and Post test Comprehension Data 1-25

students
120

100

80
Student score

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Student
 25

Pre and Post Comprehension Data 26-50

120 students
100

80
Student score

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Student

Pre and Post Comprehension Data 51-75

120 students
100

80
Student score

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Student
 26

Pre and Post Comprehension Data 75-104

student
120

100

80
Student score

60

40

20

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1011121314 151617181920212223242526272829

Student

Pre and Post-test Comprehension Averages

79.1 79.2 79.3 79.4 79.5 79.6 79.7 79.8 79.9 80 80.1 80.2

Post-test Comp Pre-test Comp

Desegregating the data further based on scores, it became more apparent

that the lower the fluency scores were the more likely that the intensive
instruction had a bigger impact. Thirty- seven students showed no growth in
fluency or comprehension however with these students they were at or
above grade-level in fluency to begin with.
 27

No Growth Fluency
140
120
100 Student score
80
60
40
20
0
1 8 11 14 16 18 20 26 34 56 60 62 67 72 75 82 95 00 03
1 1

Student Number

Some students who showed no change in fluency but did show an increase in
comprehension which means there was a increase in fluency but possibly
not big enough to show a years growth with on the post-test. Again, all of
these students started out above grade level and showed no real fluency
deficiencies and thus the intensive instruction was possibly less effective for
these students for fluency but effective in that there was an increase in
comprehension, though not the original goal, was a positive effect of the
instruction.

No change Fluency- Increase Comprehension

140
120
100
80
60
Student score

40
20
0
8 14 15 18 26 28 60 66 69 74 75 76 0 1 r
10 10 mbe
u
ntN
e
ud
St
Student Number
Series1 Series2 Series3 Series4
 28

Overall, the students who were at or below grade level showed the most
success which showed that given the instruction based on the pre-
assessment had a positive effect on students fluency and thus
comprehension.

At or below grade level data growth fluency and

comp
140
120
100
80
Student score

60
40
20
0
3 17 19 35 37 49 53 63 64 65 79 81 84 87 92 97 98 04 ID
1 nt
e
ud
St
Student Number

Implementation

Firstly, I was granted permission to complete the study through the

“Student IRB Application for Exempt Research”( see appendix) and “Site
Authoriation Form” (see appendix) All students were given a “ Child Consent
Form” (see appendix) and a “Parent/Guardian Consent Form” (see appendix)
to which children and parents were explained the details of the research
study and then they signed and returned to the teacher. All students will be
given the Basic Reading Inventory Pre-Test. Once scores have been compiled
group all students into groups grade -level and above, 5 th-6th grade reading
levels, 3rd and 4th grade reading levels and 2nd grade and below reading
levels. Students would then be given the direct instruction at their level
using the Measure Academic Progress (MAP) program. This program will be
used for 30 minutes a day 5 days a week during their Personalized Learning
Time (PLT). They will begin at the grade level they were originally assessed
at.
 29

Each week teacher will check the growth on the online MAP program.

In the second week the teacher will give an informal verbal assessment to
check for reading growth as a benchmark. These tests will be based on the
material read that week and have both a fluency component where the
student reads aloud to the teacher and answers comprehension questions.

At the start of week three, the students will continue to utilize their online
MAP program and teacher will check for growth of levels within the program.
At the end of the week the teacher will give an informal verbal assessment
to check for reading growth as a benchmark.

Week four, the final week, will be a continuation of the online MAP program
used for 30 minutes five days a week with the teacher checking for online
level growth within the program.
At the end of week four, the students will complete a BRI post assessment
and teacher will assess the success of the intervention.

As stated in detail above, at the start of the implementation the students

were given a pre-test and at the closing of the implementation process the
students were given a post-test. The data was dissegregated looking for
patterns of growth in fluency and/or comprehension between the pre and
post-tests. The scores were added together and then divided by the number
of participants to get an average score for the pre-test and the post-test to
further evaluate the success of the implementation of the intervention. The
data shows that the intervention was overall a success but especially for the
the students whose fluency was below grade level in the pre-test.

Answer(s) to the Research Question(s)

The research questions that lead my research were, “how does intense direct
instruction impact 7th grade students reading fluency?” The questions
guiding the research question is “if students, who are taught using
quantative data intervention will see a significant growth in overall reading
ability and thus their writing ability, as well.” My research has successfully
proven that utilizing intensive data driven instruction focused on filling the
gaps of fluency instruction for those reading at or below grade level helped
students to gain at least one grade-level of fluency based on the BRI data.
However, it did show that students who were reading at grade level or above
showed less or no improvement and thus this particular program when used
as it was designed to close the gap for struggling readers is a successful one.
 30

Product

The approved product was an intensive intervention program based on

student’s pre-test scores on the Basic Reading Inventory ( BRI). The students
were grouped into grade level small groups and received online instruction
based on their fluency deficits. The students met five days a week for 45- 50
minutes during their Personalized Learning Time (PLT). At the end of the four
week program the students then took a post-test using the same BRI as the
pre-test which assessed their grade level equivilancy with regards to fluency
and comprehension.
 31

Chapter 5: Conclusions

Overview of Conclusion(s)

The goal of the study was to see if students who were grouped appropriately,
based on a pre-assessment, and given online instruction based on their
fluency deficits, would show fluency improvement and thus comprehension
improvement. The Pre and Post Assessment were through the Basic Reading
Inventory which indicates to the teacher if students are havingdificulty
souding out words and/or using context clues to decipher the word and if the
word is not pronounced correctly if it was significant enough to create
comprehension issues. The average pre-test fluency score was 92.25 which
indicated to me that overall the students had adopted some coping skills to
help them to adjust to the gradulally increasing difficulty of reading,
however, the comprehension was almost two grade levels below at 79.24,
which indicated to me that though they could possibly read the word they
had gaps in their fluency with regards to morphemes for example and these
gaps had a negative effect on their comprehension. This lead me to focus
their online instruction on the later grade levels of fluency meaning they did
not learn how to sound out words but started with prefixes and suffixes and
gradulally increased from there.
Four weeks was not enough time to really fill the gaps, however, within the
four weeks time there is proven growth especially with the students who
started below grade level in their pre-test.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Methodology

One of the strengths of the study was the depth of information the pre and post test provided and
how the testing allowed the teacher to sit individually with each student. Another strength is the
online program (MAP) that was used was an ever evolving program, moving with the student as
they progressed through the fluency checks. The research data that was collected can be utilized
further this academic year to assess how and when this program should be used in the next
academic school year with new students.

One of the weaknesses is that the time projected to see growth was too short and should be
enlongated to at least six weeks. Another weakness is that it does not take into account student
absences and how to remedy the lost time for those students. These are factors that will need to
be reevlauted in order to use this study seamlessly next school year.
 32

Influential Factors

One of the influential factors is the comfort level of the students with the instructor. Because I
have had these students for almost half a school year, they are comfortable with me which may
have had a positive effect on their scores. Had another, less known, educator given the pre or
post-test the scores may have been lower.
Another influential factor is the BRI reading passages in and of themselves. They are generally
high interest level passages so the students were excited to be reading them. There was not an
informational text in the BRI passages I used for the BRI which could also have had a positive
effect on the scores.

Recommendations for Further Investigation

Recomendations for further investigation would be to extend the time to at least six weeks and
add a BRI benchmark midway through to provide further data. Another recommendation is to
find the BRI passages that incorporate fiction, non- fiction and informational passages to see if
students scores change with the type of reading provided.

Barriers or Limitations to Drawing Conclusions

The barriers to drawing conclusions was primarily the time it took to pre and post-test the
students. It takes roughly five minutes to assess the reading fluency portion per student and in
order to get this done in one class period I had to get a substitiue teacher in for my class to teach
while I pulled one student at a time out into the hallway to test. Another barrier is if a student is
absent they miss the instruction time and it is difficult to pre or post-test them on separate testing
days.
Implications of Research on Educational Practice

The implications of the research on my educational practice is that I learned that this is
something that I need to implement earlier in the school year for students who are reading at or
below grade level only and I will do it in longer intervals of time. It clearly showed me that
students have learned some highly honed adaptive skills to hide their fluency deficiencies so as
an educator I need to be more aware of this and pre-test each student to identify what may have
otherwise gone unnoticed for far too long. It also showed me that students who do not have grade
level fluency has some serious struggles with comprehension especially if the material is above
the fifth grade level. Knowing this has made me reconsider the timing of the pre-test and the
timing of the implementation of the study. It has proven to be very beneficial for middle
schoolers with gaps in their basic fluency skills.
 33

References

Álvarez-Cañizo, M., Suárez-Coalla, P., & Cuetos, F. (2015). The role of reading fluency in
children’s text comprehension. Frontiers in Psychology, 6.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01810

Amendum, S. J., Conradi Smith, K., & Liebfreund, M. D. (2021). Explaining

reading variance by student subgroup: Should we move beyond oral
reading fluency? Journal of Research in Reading, 44(4), 757–786.
https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9817.12371

Bigozzi, L., Tarchi, C., Vagnoli, L., Valente, E., & Pinto, G. (1AD, January 1).
Reading fluency as a predictor of school outcomes across grades 4–9.
Frontiers. Retrieved November 13, 2022, from
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00200/full

Burg, S. (n.d.). Methodology studies - oral reading fluency: NAEP. Methodology Studies -
Oral Reading Fluency | NAEP. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from
https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/studies/orf/

Don Deshler , Why do so many adolescents struggle with content-area reading? IRIS Center.
(n.d.). Retrieved November 20, 2022, from
https://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/sec-rdng2/cresource/q1/p01/

LaBerge D, & Samuels SJ (1974). Toward a theory of automatic

information processing in reading. Cognitive Psychology, 6(2), 293–323.
10.1016/0010-0285(74)90015-2

Mangrum, M. (2022, June 15). Tennessee student reading scores 'largely back to pre-
pandemic levels,' state data shows. The Tennessean. Retrieved November 18, 2022, from
https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/education/2022/06/14/state-data-tennessee-
student-reading-scores-improving-after-covid/7621835001/

Manset-Williamson G, & Nelson JM (2005). Balanced, strategic reading

instruction for upper-elementary and middle school students with
reading disabilities: A comparative study of two approaches. Learning
Disability Quarterly, 28(1), 59–74. 10.2307/4126973

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of

Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards for
English language arts and literacy in history/social studies, science, and
technical subjects.
http://www.corestandards.org/wp-content/uploads/ELA_Standards1.pdf
 34

Paige, D. D. Reading Fluency: A Brief History, the Importance of

Supporting ... - ed. (2020).
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED607625.pdf. Retrieved November 13,
2022, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED607625.pdf

Reading Fluency: A Brief History, the Importance of Supporting ... - ed. Paige, D. D. (2020).
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED607625.pdf. Retrieved November 13, 2022, from
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED607625.pdf

Reading Fluency in the Middle and Secondary Grades - ed. International Electronic Journal
of Elementary Education. (2014). Retrieved November 13, 2022, from
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1053599.pdf

Schwin, Penny 2019 Tennessee Public Schools - National Center for Education ... (n.d.).
Retrieved November 18, 2022, from
https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/subject/publications/stt2019/pdf/2020014TN4.pdf

Steinle, P. K., Stevens, E., & Vaughn, S. (2021). Fluency interventions for struggling readers
in grades 6 to 12: A research synthesis. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 55(1), 3–21.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219421991249

Yildirim, K., & Rasinski, T. (2014, September 30). Reading fluency beyond English:
Investigations into reading fluency in Turkish elementary students. International
Electronic Journal of Elementary Education. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1053598
 35

Appendix A

Research Product

I am using a quantitative data method. I am using quantitative data in the

form of standardized testing for pre and post testing through the Basic
Reading Inventory (BRI).

Product Alignment and Impact

The research will be based on an intensive instructional intervention.

Using all of the pieces available, which are MAP, Fast Bridge, BRI and small
group instruction starting at their basic level, will address the issue of low
reading fluency beyond elementary school and how it effects students’
future academia. It will allow teachers to focus in short time period the
specific gaps for a select small group of students

Product Components

The components of the product are Basic Reading Inventory ( BRI)

Measuring Academic Performance ( MAP), Fast Bridge online instructional
program and assessment piece. The combined instructional hours will be 18-
19 hours. The students will meet for intensive instruction for 40-45 minutes a
day, five days a week for 5 weeks.
In the first 2 hours, the participants will complete the BRI assessment to get
a baseline on on their reading fluency and comprehension ability.
In the next 1-2 hours the participant will then be given the direct instruction
at their level using the Measure Academic Progress (MAP) program.
Starting in week two, the next 3 hours will consist of continuation of the
Fast Bridge online lessons. An hour will be allotted to a teacher made
assessment to check for reading growth as a benchmark.
At the start of week three, the students will continue to utilize their
online MAP program for a total of 3 hours and complete a 30-minute fast
bridge test checking for fluency improvements and the final 30 minutes are
allotted to the teacher lead BRI which will check for fluency and
comprehension.
Week four will be a continuation of the online MAP program used for 30
minutes 5 days a week with the teacher checking for online level growth
within the program.
Week five will consist of an hour to utilize their final online MAP program
lesson. An hour is allotted for the teacher to assess check for growth of
levels within the program byt proctoring a fast bridge test, and finally the
teacher gives the final BRI which will check for fluency and comprehension
growth.
36
 37

Appendix B

Appendix A

A 3717 ( Grade 7) Say: “I’d like you to read out loud. Think about what
You are reading because I’ll ask you some questions about it when you are
Done. Please begin here.” (Point to the title)
Lexile 1030

Miscues

Meaning Change
Self-Correction
Substitution

Omission
Insertion

Reversal
BLACKOUT
The soft buzzing of the computer relaxed
Anthony as he worked on the quarterly report
for his demanding employer. He typed the final
sentence, sighed in relief, and saved the file.
Suddenly, the office lights flickered, the
computer screen went black and Salt Lake
City was eerily silent until sirens began blaring
Emergency personnel guided employees from
several departments downthe stairwells.
An hour later, the police chief announced
through his loud speaker, "All if clear." The
workers filled into the elevators like clockwork,
returning to their projects. One observer
commented, "All in a days work in Salt Lake
City."
Total
Total Miscues
Significant Miscues

Word Recognition Scoring Guide

Total Miscues Level Significant Miscues

0-1 Independent 0-1

2-4 Independent/ 2
Instructional
5 Instructional 3
6-9 Instructional/Frustration 4
10+ Frustration 5
 38

Appendix C

Child Assent Form

My name is Helen Wilson-Marquardt, and the purpose of my Capstone Research Project is to

find out if, after four weeks of intensive instruction, based on specific needs of individual
students if there is a marked positive impact of students becoming more fluent readers.

If you agree to join my research project, you will be asked to take a Basic Reading Inventory
assessment pre-test, participate daily in an online reading program and then complete a
Basic Reading Inventory assessment post-test. As a result of participation in this research
project, you will be directed to focus on skills that the Basic Reading Assessment deems
necessary. You do not have to give any personal or private information in order to
participate.

Mrs. Wilson-Marquardt will have access to all information collected. Parents/guardians and
students will have access to all information collected if requested. Names and any other
identifiers will be changed to protect your scores if/when it is shared with classroom faculty
member, Mr. Johnson.

You do not have to participate in this research project unless you choose to do so. Even if
you begin the project, you may stop at any time. If you choose to remove yourself from the
research you will still participate in the class as normal, but your data and scores will not be
collected and evaluated for the research.

You may ask questions about the project at any time, and I can answer any questions you
have before you sign this form. If you would like to discuss anything about the research you
may email me, text me or schedule an appointment with me through Outlook. All meetings
will be in person and confidential.

__________YES. I want to join this project. I understand the project will be done during regular
Personalized Learning Time (PLT) class and will not disrupt my learning. I understand that even if I
check “yes” now, I can change my mind later and stop participating.

Type or spell
Child’s Name [Date]

Child’s Signature
[Date]

X
 39

Signature of Helen Wilson- Marquardt

Student December 20,
Investigator 2022

Parent/Guardian Permission Form

I am, Mrs. Helen Wilson, your child’s ELA teacher and a Student Investigator who seeks your permission
for your child to participant in a Capstone Research Project entitled “Reading Fluency Remedies Past
Elementary School.” The purpose of this Capstone Research Project is to the purpose of my Capstone
Research Project is to find out if, after four weeks of intensive instruction, based on specific needs of
individual students if there is a marked positive impact of students becoming more fluent readers. The
Capstone Research Project will involve approximately 20 participants. Your child can participate in this
project if they:
 Return the documents signed (Parent and student)
 Attend school regularly from January 3-27th
 Complete the pre-assessment and the post-assessment

If you give permission for your child to participate in this project, your child will be asked to asked to take
a Basic Reading Inventory assessment pre-test, participate daily in an online reading program and then
complete a Basic Reading Inventory assessment post-test Your child’s participation in this project is
strictly voluntary.

Your decision whether or not to give permission for them to participate will not affect their current or future
relations with West End Middle School or MNPS. If you initially decide to give permission to participate,
you are free to withdraw permission at any time later without affecting those relationships.

There is no more than minimal risk associated with participating in this research project, which means
participation in this project does not involve risks for your child beyond those associated with normal day-
to-day living. While there is no individual benefit to your child for participation in the project, findings may
provide the overall benefit of The benefits for the students is academic growth based on specific
strategies and tailored curriculum based on their pre-test scores to “close gaps” in learning.

In the event your child experiences stress or anxiety during their participation in the project, they may
terminate participation at any time. They may also refuse to answer any questions you consider invasive
or stressful. All work and testing will be done one on one with your child’s teacher or independently online.
At any time the student may request a private meeting with the teacher to discuss any questions or
concerns.

Your child’s participation does not involve any audio or video recording or classroom observations.

Any data or records gathered from your child’s participation will be kept private and confidential. Any
identifiable data gathered will be coded to protect your child’s identity.The student data will be changed to
a psudenom and they will be given a number similar to their MNPS 190 number that is specific to them
but has no identifying information attached. The data will be stored on a separate encrypted hard rive in a
safety vault cabinet located at West End middle during the research and then transported to my private
residence. The safety vault has a combination code that only the instructor is privy to. Research records
will be securely stored and only accessible to the researcher.
 40

Please ask any questions related to this permission for your child’s participation. If you or your child have
questions later, you may contact me via email at [email protected] or the WGU IRB at
[email protected]

Parent/Guardian Permission

I, ____________________________, a parent/guardian of ___________________, a minor-aged child,

have read the above information, have been given adequate time to consider the information, and
understand my child may stop participation at any point. I have asked questions and received answers. I
give permission for my child to participate in this research project. I understand I will be offered a copy of
this signed form.

Typed Name of
Parent/Guardian [Date]

Parent/Guardian
[Date]
Signature

Signature of
Student Investigator [Date]

Parent/Guardian Permission

I have read the above information, been given adequate time to consider the information, and understand
my child’s participation is voluntary so they may stop participation at any point. I have asked questions
and received answers. I give permission for my child to take part in this project and understand I will be
offered a copy of the completed form.
Yes
No
 41

Site Authorization Form

Re: Capstone approval

From: Stephens III, James A

To: Wilson,
Thu 12/29/2022 4:11 PM

Dear Mrs. Wilson

We have reviewed your request regarding your study and I am pleased to support your Capstone Research Project
entitled “Reading Fluency Remedies Past Elementary School” at West End Middle School agrees to collaborate with
you for data collection. The study involves pre and post-testing for reading fluency while utilizing an online
program specific to their academic level.

This permission covers the time period of January 3, 2023, to January 27, 2023. We look forward to
supporting your capstone research. We understand your study requires the determination of the Western
Governors Institutional Review Board as exempt research and data collection will not begin until this
determination is received.
Sincerely,

James Stephens

James (Trey) Stephens III

(He/Him/His)
Principal
West End Middle School
(629) 910-6193

If you’d like to schedule a Virtual Meeting with any West End Staff, use our
Bookings App to find availabilities and automatically book today!
Reply
Forward
 42

Student IRB Application for Exempt Research

WGU Teachers College students completing a capstone research project must prepare and submit this
application form to the WGU Institutional Review Board (IRB) to receive a letter of determination that the
capstone research project is exempt for IRB purposes prior to beginning data collection for the Capstone
Research project. Please carefully review the guidelines for the design of an exempt capstone research
project found at the IRB Student Research Information site, before completing this application. Note: The
description of the proposed research project should align with the proposal previously approved.

Once you have completed and signed the IRB application form, combine it with each of the required
supporting documents and submit in your performance assessment. Supporting documents may include:

1. Your CITI Completion Certificate

2. Signed Site Authorization Form
3. Parent/Guardian Consent Form (child participants)
4. Child Assent Form (child participants)
5. Informed Consent Form (adult participants)
6. Data collection instrument

Student Investigator Name: Helen Wilson Student ID Number: 009924300

WGU Email address: [email protected] Degree Program: Master of Science,

Curriculum and Instruction

Capstone Instructor: Cindy Norton Course and Assessment Code:

MSCIN

Capstone - D181

Title of Your Capstone Research Proposal: Reading Fluency Remedies Past Elementary School

Capstone research projects in the Teachers College may be designed as exempt research with no more
than minimal risk for human subjects under three of the eight categories of IRB exemption or may be not
human subjects research. Three categories of Exempt research, as well as Not Human Subjects
Research, are allowed for Capstone projects:

Exempt Category 1: The capstone research design involves a classroom-based or other educational
setting research design and may employ the following types of data collection:

 Learning assessment data or other instructional data gathered over the normal course of
instruction from children or adults that involve commonly accepted educational practices
and where data collection does not adversely impact students’ ability to learn, such as
o Formative and/or summative assessment data
o Test scores
o Learning artifacts
o Rubric results
o Other educational program effectiveness measures
 43

Exempt Category 2: The capstone research design involves a classroom-based or other educational
setting research design and may employ the following types of data collection:

 Recorded observations of classroom behavior of children or adults without researcher

involvement/intervention where identities are not readily ascertained
 Educational test data from children or adults (cognitive, diagnostic, aptitude,
achievement)
 Recorded interviews or focus groups with adults
Exempt Category 4: The capstone research design involves research of secondary data from a
classroom-based or other educational setting research design where informed consent is not required
and may employ the following types of data collection:

 Identifiable private information where at least one of the following criteria is met:
o The identifiable private data are publicly available
o Appropriate deidentification protocols are applied for identifiable data from
children or adults
Not Human Subjects Research: Research is considered Not Human Subjects Research when data
collection involves
 No live subjects
 Only deidentified data used where the student investigator has no access to the identifier key or
participant identities
 Data other than from human subjects

Please provide complete information for each of the following:

1. The capstone project involves live human subjects (choose one): ✘ Yes No
2. Study start date: January 1, 2023 Study end date: January 27, 2023
3. The capstone project involves (choose one): ✘ Children in an educational setting
Adults in an educational setting Both adults and children in an educational setting
No live subjects will be involved in the project
4. Obtain Site Authorization from an administrator/supervisor of the educational setting where data will
be gathered and choose method below.
This location of data collection is: West End Middle School
Study method (choose one): ✘ Quantitative Qualitative Mixed Methods
5. Type of data for the capstone project (choose all that apply):
Survey or Questionnaire Data ✘ Assessment Data Educational Test Data Learning Artifacts
Interviews (adults only) Focus Groups (adults only) Classroom Observations (adults or
children) Archival Secondary Data Rubric Data Other, please describe:
6. The students will complete a one on one Basic Reading Inventory Pre-assessment and a post-
assessment. I will not be using audio/video recordings or classroom observations.

7. The assurances I will provide is that all identifying data will be changed, all information kept on
computer will be encrypted and password protected. All data will be kept on a separate harddrive
which will not be connected to the internet unless in use and sotred in a passcoded filing cabinet.
 44

8. The procedure I will use to remove all personal identifiers is to assign each person a psuedenom and
an associated data number which will also be kept on the encrypted documents on the harddrive in a
locked cabinet.

9. The data will be stored on a separate encrypted hardrive in a safety vaut cabiney located at West End
middle during the research and then transported to my private residence. The safety vault has a
combination code that only the instructor is privy to. Once the three year period has expired a local
shredding company will shred the documents in their secure location.

10. The demographic profile of the target population I have access to is 104 7th grade students,
46.78 % are female and 53.22% are male, 23.39% are Economically Disadvantaged, 3%
are
English Language Learners, 22.51% are Students with Disabilities and there are 5
langauges
spoken in whole at my school. The student investigator has a dual relationship with
all of the
study participants as their primary English, Language Arts teacher. In order to
mitigate any
conflict of interest, all students will be given the Pre-assessment, instruction
and post
assessment.

11. The Capstone project is no more than minimal risk. ✘ Yes No

The benefits for the students is academic growth based on specific strategies and tailored
curriculum based on their pre-test scores to “close gaps” in learning. The risks involved are
minimal in that the students will still be receiving the curriculum in the course that they
require at the grade level, and the risk of a confidentiality breach are mitigated through
encryption of data and the security of the location of data kept.

12. Each student will be presented with the consent form and have a one on one meeting with
the instructor in order to answers any and all questions they may have within the two day
period they have to return the consent form. The parents will be emailed a consent form and
be given a link to an online meeting for any parent to sign up for a time to meet to discuss
the research, procedures and to answer any questions they may have.

The Student Investigator signature below indicates the rights and welfare of all human subjects and data will be
appropriately protected for this research. The Student Investigator will ensure the principles and best practices
outlined in the Belmont Report and 45 CFR 46 for the protection of human subjects will be upheld throughout the
research and storage period. It is understood any changes to IRB approved protocols may require a modification
application to be submitted.
 45

X
Helen Wilson
Instructor

Student Investigator (Print name and sign) Date

Be sure to consult your Course Instructor for any questions you may have as
you prepare the application and supporting materials for your Capstone IRB
task.