Council of Chief State School Officers
PSA worked with CCSSO to develop a reading resource intended to help improve national student reading performance. The resource builds on a discussion with state chiefs, reading experts, policy experts, and other stakeholder groups at the CCSSO’s 2020 Literacy Summit (CCSSO Hosts Literacy Summit | CCSSO). Specifically, the resource describes four actions state leaders can take to set the conditions for key stakeholders—including educator preparation programs, regional educational services agencies, school districts, and schools—to align curricula and instruction to evidence-based reading practices.
Report: A Nation of Readers: How State Chiefs Can Help Every Child Learn to Read
Save the Children
For more than 15 years, PSA has evaluated the impact of participation in the Save the Children literacy program on student achievement. PSA created and analyzed databases that integrate information from program administrative data, reports of student participation in program activities, and performance on literacy assessments during the school year. Analyses focused on the achievement of established program benchmarks and estimation of the gains in literacy proficiency in light of the duration and intensity of participation.
Cornerstone National Literacy Initiative
PSA designed an evaluation of the Cornerstone National Literacy Initiative to examine the implementation of the practices and principles of the Cornerstone Literacy Initiative school reform model and the impact of attendance at a participating school on student achievement. Analyses assessed the changes in program implementation over time and compared changes in literacy achievement among students attending participating schools with literacy achievement of similar students attending schools not participating in the initiative.
Scholastic, Inc.
PSA conducted a series of impact studies of Scholastic READ 180, a comprehensive computer-based literacy intervention program. The READ 180 studies featured quasi-experimental designs and analyses of student-level gains on state assessments in several school systems, including New York City, Austin (TX) Independent School District, and Phoenix (AZ) Union High School District. The studies were positively cited by the What Works Clearinghouse in its recent designation of READ 180 as a program with potentially positive effects.
Improving Student Literacy: READ 180 in the Austin Independent School District 2004-05
Performance of District 23 Students Participating in Scholastic READ 180
Study of the Performance of READ 180 Participants in the Phoenix Union High School District – 2003-04