Reading 360 Evaluations

A Partnership Between the
Tennessee Department of Education
and the University of Tennessee.

PROPOSAL ONE: Early Reading Training and Implementation Networks

Purpose:

TDOE is offering districts the opportunity to participate in two different literacy networks – the Early Literacy Network (addressed in this project plan) and the Literacy Implementation Network (addressed in its own project plan). The purpose of this analysis is to examine the effects of participation in either of the two networks on students’ learning and consequently address learning loss. The specific foci are subject to revisions based (a) on the feedback and priorities set by the Procuring State Agency, (b) on data shared with the Contracting State Agency, or (c) the need to develop tools for data collection. The timeline for the completion of the tasks will be agreed upon, in advance, by both parties.

Current Research Center Project:

Evaluate the association between ERT, ELN, and LIN participation and student literacy outcomes in Grades K-5.

Meet the Personnel:

Deborah K. Reed, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

Huibin Zhang, Ph.D.

Statistician Research Assistant Professor

Reports and Documentation:

PROPOSAL TWO: Teacher Pedagogy and Instruction

Purpose:

Examination of the effects of teachers’ participation in summer professional development (PD) to student achievement. Further, examination of the effects of HQIMs on teachers’ instructional practices and on students’ academic achievement. Description and examination of the effects of the Local Education Agency Literacy Implementation Networks and Early Literacy Networks on Teachers’ instruction. The specific foci are subject to revisions based (a) on the feedback and priorities set by the Procuring State Agency, (b) on data shared with the Contracting State Agency, or (c) the need to develop tools for data collection. The timeline for the completion of the tasks will be agreed upon, in advance, by both parties.

Approved Project:

Evaluate patterns in the selection of HQIMs (e.g., by district size, location, percentage of students not reading proficiently, percentage of students with various demographic characteristics, participation in ELN/LIN) and the association with student’s year-to-year literacy growth on TCAP in Grades 3-10.

Meet the Personnel:

Deborah K. Reed, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

Hannah Guthrie, M.Ed.

Project Manager

Marianne Rice, Assistant Professor of Literacy Education, Fellow at the TRRC

Marianne Rice, Ph.D.

TRRC Fellow

Louis Rocconi, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Louis Rocconi, Ph.D.

TRRC Affiliate

Huibin Zhang, Ph.D.

Statistician Research Assistant Professor

Reports and Documentation:

PROPOSAL THREE: Educator Preparation Providers

Purpose:

The purpose is to examine revisions made by EPPs to address the new literacy standards released in June 2021. The purpose is to examine the role of EPPs on teacher preparation and on their use of HQIMs. The goal is to examine whether EPPs other than those that participated in the Foundational Skills Integrated Content (a) PreK-3, K-5 and (b) K-8 special education Interventionist grants used the Modules, how they used them, and what their effects were on their teachers’ pedagogy and achievement as measured by a test designed for the purpose of analyzing the innovation grant. The specifics are subject to revisions based (a) on the feedback and priorities set by the Procuring State Agency, (b) on data shared with the Contracting State Agency, or (c) the need to develop tools for data collection. The timeline for the completion of the tasks will be agreed upon, in advance, by both parties.

Suggested Project:

Evaluate the implementation of the EPP Innovation Grant Modules across institutions.

Meet the Personnel:

Deborah K. Reed, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

Anna Gibbs, Ph.D., headshot

Anna S. Gibbs, Ph.D.

Research Assistant Professor

Reports and Documentation:

OVERALL SCOPE OF WORK

The Tennessee Reading Research Center serves as a partner to the Tennessee Department of Education by evaluating and independently analyzing the effects of statewide literacy initiatives.

Click below to visit the Tennessee Department of Education’s website, learn more about Reading 360,
and access free training and resources.