Fluency Training Effects on Reading Component Skills of Struggling College Readers

• In Event: 33.044 - Influences Related to Literacy, Numeracy, and Critical Adult Skills

Abstract

This study examined the effects of wide reading (WR) and repeated readings (RR) on college students’ reading components in word recognition and vocabulary knowledge relative to a vocabulary study (VS) control condition. Randomly assigned to a condition, community college students (n = 30) completed a 25-min training individually in class three times a week for three weeks. WR involved silently reading four different grade-level passages, each 400 words, and answering comprehension questions. RR involved silently reading one grade-level passage of 400 words four times and answering comprehension questions whereas the VS condition entailed studying academic words. Significant gains were made by WR and VS in vocabulary development. No other effects were significant. Instructional implications and future directions will be discussed.

Author

• Omer Ari, Georgia State University