Reading Acceleration Program: A Schoolwide Intervention

Abstract

This article shares the research‐based instructional techniques used in a reading program (Reading Acceleration Program, or RAP) in a school in which the majority of the students were English‐language learners and came from low‐income families. In this model, special education and general education teachers collaborated in order to intervene on behalf of struggling readers, both identified special education students and low‐performing general education students. Fluency training using cassette‐taped selections from grade‐level literature books was a key component of the program. Aspects of the traditional neurological impress method were employed in the fluency training. Phonemic awareness, music, rhythm, and fun were other major components of RAP. Participating students showed gains in reading skills as demonstrated by scaled score results on California Achievement Tests and on school‐based assessments.