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Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices

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A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102). This special issue belongs to the section "Language and Literacy Education".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 September 2025) | Viewed by 13926

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Emily Rodgers

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Guest Editor

Department of Teaching and Learning, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
Interests: early literacy development; reading difficulties; teacher education; scaffolding

Dr. Tracy Johnson

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Guest Editor

School of Education Faculty, University of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 46227, USA
Interests: early and emergent literacy development and instruction; word-solving development; teacher instructional moves

Prof. Dr. Jerome D'Agostino

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Guest Editor

Department of Educational Studies, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
Interests: assessment; validation analysis; program development; program evaluation; literacy; reading; quantitative research methods

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015, with its focus on using evidence of effectiveness as a criterion for program adoption in schools, brought with it an optimistic outlook that advances in education sciences would soon follow (Slavin, 2020). Indeed, there is a growing corpus of evidence, much produced by federally funded experiments and rigorously designed meta-analyses, that demonstrate that well-designed teacher professional development and literacy instruction can produce positive and significant impacts on students' reading performance, including those who have great difficulty with literacy development. Concurrent with these advances, however, the COVID-19 pandemic brought learning disruptions to a generation of students, intensifying the need to develop scalable, evidence-based literacy instruction.

The aim of this Special Issue is to disseminate advances in knowledge about evidence-based literacy instructional practices for students from preschool to middle school.

Themes include the following:

New advances in the teaching of reading and writing;
Teacher education and the take up of new, effective literacy instructional practices;
The role of Al in literacy practice and strategy development;
Social and /or political issues that impact instructional practices.
Advances in research methodology.

Submissions may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Classroom literacy instructional practices;
Literacy assessment practices;
Disciplinary literacy/content literacy instruction;
Teacher preparation and professional development;
Multimodal reading and writing strategies;
Differentiated instruction;
Literacy interventions.

In this Special Issue, original research articles are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

Empirical studies (quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods);
Conceptual and theoretical discussions and/or policy analysis.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Emily Rodgers
Dr. Tracy Johnson
Prof. Dr. Jerome D'Agostino
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

literacy instruction
literacy development
teacher education policy
writing
comprehension
word solving
fluency
text characteristics

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Published Papers (11 papers)

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21 pages, 383 KB

Open AccessArticle

Hybrid Schooling and Reading Acquisition: Motivational, Well-Being, and Achievement Profiles in Second Grade

by Vered Vaknin-Nusbaum, Hen Cohen and Elizabeth D. Tuckwiller

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(12), 1691; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15121691 - 15 Dec 2025

Viewed by 271

Abstract

COVID-19 led to substantial changes in early literacy instruction. Although emerging evidence documents its effects on children’s reading achievement, much less is known about how these changes relate to young children’s reading motivation and school-related well-being. This study compared two cohorts of second graders (N = 287) from the same four low-SES schools, all assessed at the beginning of second grade. A pre-COVID-19 cohort, whose first-grade instruction was delivered entirely face-to-face, was compared with a during-COVID-19 cohort whose first-grade reading instruction took place amid extended distance learning with intermittent, restricted in-person schooling. Cohorts were compared on reading motivation, school-related well-being (covitality), and reading achievement (word reading, vocabulary, and reading comprehension). Multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVAs) were conducted to compare cohorts (pre- vs. during COVID-19) and reader groups (typical vs. poor readers), with gender, class, and school entered as control variables. In motivation, self-concept was higher during COVID-19, and typical readers reported higher motivation than their peers. In well-being, covitality was higher during COVID-19 at the total score and across gratitude, optimism, zest, and persistence; a cohort by group interaction for persistence indicated higher scores for typical readers during COVID-19. In achievement, phonological decoding and orthographic word identification were lower during COVID-19; typical readers scored higher than poor readers on all achievement outcomes. Together, these findings suggest that the educational setting shapes motivation and well-being alongside achievement, and that distance learning is not uniformly detrimental, as it coincided with higher covitality and reading self-concept at school reentry. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

16 pages, 264 KB

Open AccessArticle

Testing the Feasibility and Impact of Train-the-Trainer Delivery for a Peer Tutoring Reading Programme in Chile

by Maria Cockerill, Pelusa Orellana and Allen Thurston

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(12), 1590; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15121590 - 26 Nov 2025

Viewed by 290

Abstract

Peer tutoring through a structured low-cost approach to reading in pairs using the Paired Reading programme has resulted in attainment gains in reading in English (UK) and Spanish (Colombia), using developer-led training in schools. Given the continued issues with poor reading attainment globally, in preparation for the scalability of Paired Reading in the Global South, a train-the-trainer delivery programme was developed, implemented, and assessed using a matched study design including 6 classes and 98 Grade 6 students in a high-poverty region of Chile. The results indicate that the Paired Reading train-the-trainer programme (Latin American Spanish version) is feasible to implement in elementary schools in high-poverty areas in Chile and is capable of improving children’s reading ability as measured by an independently designed standardised reading assessment. Positive results were found (effect size d = +0.67, g = +0.66) for the children who engaged in the technique when assessed against a matched control group. The results indicate that this programme is now ready for assessment using a randomised controlled trial in Chile to test the effectiveness of using this more scalable method of delivery, including with standardised digital resources, for sustainable delivery in the Latin American region. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

25 pages, 559 KB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Effects of Culturally Responsive Instruction on Reading Comprehension, Language Comprehension, and Decoding with Bayesian Multilevel Models

by Jeanne Sinclair

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 1560; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15111560 - 19 Nov 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1049

Abstract

Reading comprehension (RC) can be predicted from language comprehension (LC) and decoding, and all three constructs are responsive to structured teaching. Culturally responsive instruction, which explicitly connects students’ lived experiences with school experiences, can also effectively support literacy learning. However, little is known about how structured and culturally responsive approaches work in tandem, and whether positive effects may occur through the path of LC or decoding, or directly on RC. Further, does culturally responsive teaching support transfer from local, personalized learning materials to standardized measures? This study investigates the impact of structured and culturally responsive teaching on standardized measures of RC, LC, and decoding among 263 students in grades 1 through 3. Participants were assigned to one of three groups: (1) generic structured teaching approach that used mainstream materials, (2) a structured culturally responsive approach that centered students’ interests, cultures, and sense of belonging, and (3) a waitlisted business-as-usual control group. Over 10 weeks, students received small-group teaching focused on decoding and LC. Bayesian multilevel ANCOVA models indicate all groups grew, with differential positive effects for LC for the culturally responsive treatment group. The findings suggest benefits to integrating cultural relevance into structured literacy teaching and that a multifaceted approach may be effective. Implications and limitations are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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27 pages, 1140 KB

Open AccessArticle

Flattening the Developmental Staircase: Lexical Complexity Progression in Elementary Reading Texts Across Six Decades

by Elfrieda H. Hiebert

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 1546; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15111546 - 17 Nov 2025

Viewed by 722

Abstract

This study examined lexical complexity patterns in elementary reading textbooks across four pivotal decades (1957, 1974, 1995, 2014) to understand how educational reforms have influenced developmental progressions in reading materials. The study analyzed a corpus of 320,000 words from one continuously published core reading program across grades 1–4 for four copyrights. The corpus consisted of a 20,000-word sample for each grade and year, analyzed for type-token ratio, percentage of complex words, and percentage of single-appearing words. Results revealed three major shifts: (a) systematic within-grade complexity increases in earlier programs (1957, 1974) were replaced by flat progression in later programs (1995, 2014), (b) steep across-grade differentiation collapsed with grade-to-grade increases in lexical diversity declining from greater than 100% to under 10%, and (c) first-grade expectations accelerated dramatically, whereas third- and fourth-grade texts remained remarkably stable across all six decades. By 2014, first graders encountered lexical complexity levels that characterized fourth-grade texts in 1957. These findings challenge narratives of declining text complexity and reveal that contemporary elementary readers experience compressed developmental progressions with elevated starting points but minimal growth trajectories. The implications suggest the need for reconceptualizing text design to balance appropriate challenges with systematic scaffolding, particularly for students dependent on school-based literacy instruction. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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25 pages, 1392 KB

Open AccessArticle

Theoretical Foundation and Validation of the Record of Decision-Making (RODM)

by Emily M. Rodgers and Jerome V. D’Agostino

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 1483; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15111483 - 4 Nov 2025

Viewed by 645

Abstract

This study presents the development and validation of the Record of Decision-Making (RODM), a formative assessment designed to measure beginning readers’ use of phonic elements to decode unknown words while reading. Grounded in overlapping wave theory and theories of early reading development, the RODM captures adaptive strategy use during oral reading, including rereading and subword analysis. Using multifaceted Rasch modeling, the authors demonstrate that RODM scores align with a unidimensional reading proficiency scale and reflect predictable patterns of strategy use across proficiency levels. Findings indicate that as reading proficiency increases, students employ a broader range of phonic elements and shift from basic strategies (e.g., initial letter use) to more sophisticated ones (e.g., medial and final letter use). Additionally, proficient readers exhibit greater self-correction and reduced reliance on rereading. Generalizability analysis yielded strong interrater reliability and accuracy with minimal training, suggesting its practical utility for frequent classroom use. Implications for instruction include the need to teach flexible, efficient decoding strategies that adapt to task difficulty. Future research should explore score consistency with educators in classroom settings and instructional impact. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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19 pages, 644 KB

Open AccessArticle

A Quasi-Experimental Study of the Achievement Impacts of a Replicable Summer Reading Program

by Geoffrey D. Borman and Hyunwoo Yang

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 1422; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15111422 - 23 Oct 2025

Viewed by 1613

Abstract

The “summer slide,” the well-documented tendency for students to lose academic skills during the extended summer break, remains a persistent challenge for educational equity and achievement. Although traditional summer school programs can mitigate these losses, an emerging body of research suggests that summer book distribution initiatives, which provide students with free, high-quality books to read at home, represent a cost-effective and scalable alternative. This study presents results from a quasi-experimental evaluation of Kids Read Now (KRN), an at-home reading program designed to sustain elementary students’ literacy engagement over the summer months. The program’s central feature is the delivery of nine free books directly to students, supported by school-based components that foster home–school connections and promote shared reading between parents and children. Across two districts, five schools, four grade levels (1–4), and 110 KRN and 156 comparison students, we used propensity score matching and doubly robust regression analyses, indicating that KRN participants outperformed their non-participating peers, with an average effect size of nearly d = 0.15. Further, two-stage least squares regression analyses revealed that students who benefited from all nine books achieved an effect size of d = 0.21. These impact estimates correspond to approximately two months of additional learning for the average participant and more than three months for full participants. Collectively, the results contribute to a growing evidence base indicating that book distribution programs are an effective and sustainable means of mitigating summer learning loss and promoting continued growth in reading achievement. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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21 pages, 1214 KB

Open AccessArticle

Connecting Beliefs and Practice: Graduate Students’ Approaches to Theoretical Integration and Equitable Literacy Teaching

by Tina Chaseley and Qian Chen

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(10), 1411; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15101411 - 21 Oct 2025

Viewed by 636

Abstract

This qualitative study explores how graduate students in literacy education connect theoretical frameworks to classroom practices. Grounded in Deweyan pragmatist philosophy and Kucer’s multidimensional literacy theory, researchers analyzed course assignments from online graduate students using document review and content analysis. The methodology employed a collaborative codebook and Dedoose software (version 10.0.25), utilizing descriptive coding to identify literacy practices and deductive coding to examine theoretical alignments. The results show patterns in how graduate students link theory and practice, with varying frequencies of references to different frameworks. Three main themes emerged: students’ integration of multiple theoretical frameworks, their focus on tailoring instruction to students’ developmental needs, and their emphasis on relating literacy instruction to students’ cultural backgrounds and personal experiences. The findings highlight participants’ preference for theoretical diversity, indicating a nuanced understanding of how multiple perspectives can inform teaching practices. This integration reflects educators’ recognition that complex classroom environments require diverse theoretical foundations, emphasizing the value of developing a new survey tool that captures this complexity. These results contribute to our understanding of how literacy educators integrate theoretical knowledge with practical classroom applications in contemporary educational settings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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24 pages, 1182 KB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Power and Possibility of Contextually Relevant Social Studies–Literacy Integration

by Courtney Hattan, Jennie Baumann, Meghan M. Parkinson and Deborah MacPhee

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(10), 1401; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15101401 - 18 Oct 2025

Viewed by 1997

Abstract

The authors of this article describe a study designed to support first-grade students’ social studies knowledge and literacy development through a teacher–researcher co-constructed and teacher implemented integrated unit within the context of a rural community. The goals of the study were to determine the extent to which a contextually relevant unit of study affected the development of students’ content knowledge of key terms from the domain of social studies and influenced students’ reading and social studies interest. The researchers used a combined multi-phase and convergent mixed methods design, implementing a matched pairs design for the quantitative, quasi-experimental component of the study. Results indicated that assignment to the treatment condition was a predictor of students’ post implementation vocabulary scores and social studies interest. In pairing these results with the qualitative analyses of students’ end-of-unit retellings, researchers found that vocabulary can be a powerful bridge to cultural and content knowledge when the focus of instruction and texts is on local and community knowledge, demonstrating that contextually relevant social studies–literacy integration is a promising practice for building content knowledge and interest in first grade classrooms. Directions for future research are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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31 pages, 820 KB

Open AccessArticle

Is Use of Literacy-Focused Curricula Associated with Children’s Literacy Gains and Are Associations Moderated by Risk Status, Receipt of Intervention, or Preschool Setting?

by Zhiling Meng Shea, Shayne B. Piasta, Ye Shen, Alida K. Hudson, Cynthia M. Zettler-Greeley, Kandia Lewis and Jessica A. R. Logan

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(10), 1368; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15101368 - 14 Oct 2025

Viewed by 1396

Abstract

Integrating literacy-focused curricula in preschool settings may help support children’s literacy learning. In this study, we explored the use of literacy-focused curricula and how it was associated with preschool children’s literacy gains (i.e., print and letter knowledge, phonological awareness, language and comprehension, and emergent writing) relative to non-literacy-focused curricula. We estimated multilevel structural equation models using data from an intervention study that included a sample of 571 children nested within 98 preschool classrooms. Because early disparities in emergent literacy are associated with later reading and writing difficulties, we examined how such associations might be moderated by child risk status, receipt of emergent literacy intervention, and program settings. We found that literacy-focused curricula were not often used by teachers in preschool classrooms, but teachers’ use of such curricula was positively associated with children’s phonological awareness gains. Risk status did not moderate the association between use of literacy-focused curricula and children’s emergent writing gains. Additionally, emergent literacy intervention and program settings did not moderate the associations. However, we found that teachers’ use of literacy-focused curricula was positively associated with print and letter knowledge, phonological awareness, and language and comprehension for children identified as at risk for later reading difficulties compared to those who were not at risk. As such, our findings suggest that integrating or supplementing existing classroom instruction with literacy-focused curricula could yield meaningful benefits for children identified as at risk for later reading difficulties. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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17 pages, 715 KB

Open AccessArticle

Validation Analysis During the Design Stage of Text Leveling

by Jerome V. D’Agostino and Connie Briggs

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(5), 607; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15050607 - 15 May 2025

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1334

Abstract

Using leveled books to ascertain students’ reading levels has been found to yield scores that are not sufficiently reliable and that lack criterion-related validation evidence. One reason for these findings is the sole reliance on content validation to level books. We present in this study a demonstration of an integrated leveling process for assessing the complexity of text passages. The procedure, which capitalizes on conventional test development practices such as field-testing items, contains a built-in validation process that allows for the selection of text that falls along a confirmed gradient of difficulty, from easy to advance levels of challenge. The integrated leveling process applies both well-established procedures for assessing text levels of complexity as well as a thorough item analysis of the books through pretesting. The resulting assessment tool provides rich information to identify student competencies and needs, inform instructional decisions, and document progress. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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18 pages, 618 KB

Open AccessSystematic Review

A Model for Adolescent Reading Instruction

by Nancy Frey, Douglas Fisher, Kierstan Barbee and Sarah Ortega

Educ. Sci. 2025, 15(11), 1442; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15111442 - 28 Oct 2025

Viewed by 2687

Abstract

This rapid review and knowledge synthesis study presents a multicomponent model for adolescent reading instruction aimed at improving Tier 1 classroom practices across content areas. The authors conducted a rapid review of literature (RRL) on recent research on effective reading instruction and identified six evidence-based components necessary in reading instruction for students in middle and high school classrooms. The proposed Reading Circuit model integrates evidence-based strategies that address word recognition, word knowledge, sentence analysis, and verbal reasoning, while also emphasizing the role of self-efficacy and background knowledge in reading development. By combining cognitive and motivational components, the framework supports content area teachers in delivering instruction that fosters reading proficiency among all students, particularly those reading at basic or below-basic levels. This model aims to bridge the gap between elementary and secondary reading instruction, providing a scalable, whole-class solution for improving adolescent reading. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Evidence-Based Literacy Instructional Practices)

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