New Research Confirms Heggerty Meets ESSA Level II Requirements for Bridge to Reading: Effectively Closes Literacy Skill Gaps and Boosts Student Growth

Using Heggerty Bridge to Reading, First Graders in Georgia Achieve Significant Growth, Closing Skill Gaps in Just Six Months

OAK PARK, Ill., April 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --First-grade students do not learn to read automatically but rather require daily, explicit, systematic science of reading-based phonics instruction. Daily, explicit instruction in foundational skills supports the development of phonemic awareness, decoding skills, and overall phonics knowledge which supports reading fluency and comprehension.

A new report written by Learning Experience Design (LXD) Research demonstrates that using a daily, explicit foundational literacy skills instruction program for half a school year can increase 1st graders' overall reading scores and help them reach their projected growth targets. As part of a school's literacy toolkit, students who are considered low quintile (below 20%) can outperform national growth norms and can start closing their knowledge gap. This was the result for 1st-grade students in Hall County, Georgia, encouraging the investment in high-quality, evidence-based structured literacy programs.

During the first half of the 2023-2024 school year studied, 1st-grade students in three elementary schools in Hall County learned phonemic awareness and phonics skills through the Bridge to Reading Foundational Skills Curriculum. Students realized significantly higher MAP Growth Reading RIT scores compared to students in comparison schools that used Fountas and Pinnell during their Tier 1 instruction. A significantly higher proportion of Bridge to Reading students (47%) met their projected growth targets on MAP Growth compared to comparison students (30%). Interestingly, the students who are considered Low (below 20th percentile) on MAP Growth made significantly more gains (12.1 RIT points) than the national growth norms would anticipate (9.92 points). On another assessment, MAP Fluency, subdomains were investigated and analysis revealed that students who used Heggerty had significantly higher score gains from Fall to Winter than comparison students in the Phonological Awareness domain and the Phonics and Word Recognition domain. These results highlight the importance of implementing a strong, evidence-based Tier 1 phonics and phonemic awareness program that aligns with the science of reading research.

Hall County is a rural, local school district in Georgia with 20 elementary schools in total. Academically, 32% of elementary students in Hall County Public Schools tested at or above the proficient level for reading (U.S. News, 2023). Demographically, 38% of Heggerty students in this study are Hispanic and 24% are English Language Learners.

These results are from an independent analysis conducted by Learning Experience Design (LXD) Research. LXD Research founder Rachel Schechter, Ph.D., explained the implications, "This study used a rigorous matching process to create similar quasi-experimental groups, so seeing meaningfully higher gains for the Heggerty group in the first half of the year is very encouraging. We look forward to following the students who started the year below grade level to watch them continue to catch up by using Heggerty's Bridge to Reading."

"At Heggerty, we understand the transformative power of literacy in shaping students' academic trajectories,'' stated Alisa VanHekken, Chief Academic Officer. "Securing the ESSA Level II certification for Heggerty's Bridge to Reading reaffirms our commitment to providing teachers with the tools needed to cultivate strong readers and thinkers across disciplines. With our curriculum, students not only develop essential literacy skills but also gain the confidence and proficiency needed to excel as readers and writers."

Aligned to the Science of Reading, the Heggerty Bridge to Reading Curriculum combines Heggerty Phonemic Awareness lessons with daily explicit phonics instruction. The program features 170 lessons (34 weeks) of logically sequenced, step-by-step lessons that follow an I Do, We Do, You Do model to introduce new phonics concepts, help students build confidence through Tier 1 whole-group instruction, and develop independent readers through frequent individual practice opportunities. The curriculum is designed to meet the needs of a diverse range of learners by providing daily differentiated instruction activities, targeted assistance, and resources to maximize every learner's potential.

About Heggerty

Heggerty is an education company that equips teachers with effective and engaging products and professional learning opportunities that help prepare and empower all students to become lifelong readers. Heggerty strides to make products aligned with effective reading instruction that help close the literacy gap. Inspired by Dr. Michael Heggerty, the company now evolves the curriculum and resources based on research to provide elementary educators with the very best tools to help students learn to read.

For additional information on Heggerty, visit: https://heggerty.org/

About LXD Research

LXD Research is an independent evaluation, research, and consulting division within Charles River Media. We focus on building and communicating evidence for educational programs. We conduct rigorous research studies, integrate multifaceted data analytic reporting, and design dynamic content to disseminate insights. Visit www.LXDResearch.com.

Media Contact
Kara Barten
Senior Manager, Product Marketing—Heggerty
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Heggerty