Case studies
Secondary 1: A small secondary school in a coastal town
Fact file
| Location | South East |
| Setting | Coastal town |
| Size | Four form entry |
| Proportion of SEN | Second quintile |
| Pupils eligible FSM | Second quintile |
| GCSE English (similar schools, 2013) | Second quintile |
| GCSE English (national, 2013) | Second quintile |
Background
The school bought into Rhythm for Reading after a successful trial period.
Delivery
The programme ran for a ten-week period from September to the end of December 2013 with sixty Year 7 students taught in groups of ten. Each group took part in one ten-minute session each week for ten weeks.
Assessment
To measure the impact of the Rhythm for Reading intervention programme, twelve of the Year 7 students were selected by the school’s literacy coordinator for individual reading assessment. The twelve were eligible for FSM and were measured on oral reading using NARA before and after the ten-week Rhythm for Reading programme. Ten students attended school on both testing dates.
Progress report
The average (mean) reading scores for the group showed gains in reading accuracy (7 months) and reading comprehension (27 months) and a decrease in rate (7 months), following the ten-week intervention programme. The standardised scores for the Year 7 FSM students indicate that the rate of progress was faster than might have been expected.
Year 7 FSM student voices
‘Gareth’
Gareth read very quickly, but inaccurately before taking part in the programme. His reading accuracy and comprehension ages were 12 months and 24 months behind his chronological age.
I’ve learned these new words. My English has improved. I’ve learned to concentrate more now – not to mess around.
The follow-up assessment showed gains in reading accuracy (11 months) and comprehension (47 months), enabling him to tackle more complex passages.
‘Polly’
Prior to the Rhythm for Reading intervention programme, Polly read very quickly, but her reading accuracy and comprehension ages were more than 30 months behind her chronological age.
“It was good to help with musical notes. I liked the counting and the ‘splash’ and ‘crash’ and the ‘yeah’. I can understand the words more than I used to”.
After the ten-week programme, the follow-up assessment showed that substantial gains had occurred in Polly’s reading accuracy (25 months) and reading comprehension (27 months) and there was a small gain in reading rate (3 months).
The students’ names have been changed to protect their identity.