Phase Two Research Study Demonstrates Efficacy of PCI Reading Program

SAN ANTONIO, April 21 /PRNewswire/ -- For the second year in a row, students using the PCI Reading Program achieved significantly higher sight-word assessment scores than students who were not exposed to the program, according to the results for Phase Two of a five-year study conducted by Empirical Education. Researchers found that the effect of the PCI Reading Program is larger after two years than it was after one year, with students who used the PCI Reading Program achieving sight-word assessment scores that were 31 percentile points higher than the scores for students not using the program.

PCI Education, the number-one provider of resources for students with special needs, created the PCI Reading Program to teach students with intellectual disabilities to read. An alternative to traditional phonics-based approaches, the PCI Reading Program uses visual discrimination, the ability to quickly distinguish one letter from another, to increase a student's sight-word vocabulary.

"This independently conducted research confirms the efficacy of the PCI Reading Program, and links the curriculum to higher sight-word assessment scores," said Jill Haney, Director of Reading and Government Relations for PCI Education. "The Phase Two research findings are better than expected, and support the anecdotal stories we've been hearing from teachers and parents as the PCI Reading Program has been deployed across the country."  

Empirical Education is conducting a five-year longitudinal efficacy trial in two Florida districts, Brevard Public Schools and Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Phase Two of the study focused on students with intellectual disabilities in grades 3-8 taught in self-contained classrooms. The research analysis compared the assessment scores of 26 students who had received the PCI Reading Program as their primary language arts instruction for two years, to those of 51 students who received no exposure to the program.  

In addition to quantitative findings, the study gathered qualitative data from surveys, observations and informal interviews. Findings show that teachers are very satisfied with the PCI Reading Program, and that students are highly engaged with the curriculum. Nearly all the teachers using the PCI Reading Program reported that they would continue to use the program after the study is finished.

For Phase One of the study, Empirical Education conducted a randomized control trial in Brevard Public Schools and Miami-Dade County Public Schools during the 2007-08 academic year. Participating teachers were randomly divided into two groups: one using the PCI Reading Program and a control group using the standard reading program. After one year, students using the PCI Reading Program had substantial success in learning sight words when compared with students in the control group. The difference between the two groups amounted to 21 percentile points.

Empirical Education will present this research at the 2010 American Educational Research Association Annual Conference in Denver this month. The session, entitled "Reading, Written Expression, and Language Arts," will demonstrate the success nonreaders achieved through the PCI Reading Program.

For more information on the PCI Reading Program, or to download a copy of the research summary, visit http://www.pcieducation.com/reading.

About Empirical Education

Empirical Education partners with and provides research services to school districts, research organizations, publishers and state and federal agencies, including Regional Education Laboratories and the U.S. Department of Education, to determine the effectiveness of programs. The mission of the company is to help school districts make cost-effective decisions about adopting new instructional and professional development programs. For more information, please visit http://www.empiricaleducation.com.

About PCI Education

PCI Education offers more than 7,500 instructional materials for a wide range of students with special needs, including significant or developmental disabilities such as autism. In addition, the company's products are used in English language learner and adult literacy classes, and to help students performing below grade level. Based in San Antonio, PCI Education has been helping educators lead students to success in school, at home and in the community since 1991. For more information, visit http://www.pcieducation.com or phone 800-594-4263.

For more information:

-- Leslie Boulet, PCI Education, 800-594-4263, ext. 124, [email protected]

-- Emily Embury, C. Blohm & Associates, Inc., 608-839-9800, [email protected]

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SOURCE PCI Education