Evaluation of the REACH primary (reading with comprehension) reading support programme
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN15145068 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN15145068 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and-evaluation/projects/reach-primary/ |
- Submission date
- 24/07/2019
- Registration date
- 29/07/2019
- Last edited
- 20/12/2021
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Completed
- Condition category
- Other
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
REACH Primary is a programme to support struggling readers. It is delivered by trained Teaching Assistants to individually targeted pupils over a period of 20 weeks during the 2019/20 school year. The project is being run by a team from the University of Leeds, and evaluated by the Sheffield Institute of Education.
Who can participate?
Pupils and Teaching Assistants in schools in the North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humber and Lincolnshire regions of England.
What does the study involve?
Schools were required to identify ten year-3 pupils that are working below the expected standard in reading, and nominate two teaching assistants to deliver the one-to-one support (if randomised into the intervention group). Schools will then be randomly allocated to either receive REACH Primary or to act as a ‘Business as Usual’ control school.
The evaluation will measure the impact of the REACH Primary programme on reading through a standardised test and secondary measures of decoding and language comprehension. The intervention is delivered over twenty weeks through 3 x 30 minute sessions of individual Teaching Assistant support per week for each participating pupil for a 20-week period. Two sessions per week will focus on word recognition/ decoding skills and reading aloud fluently and accurately. The third session targets language comprehension skills. Control schools operate on a business as usual basis.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Participating pupils in the intervention group will receive a structured programme of individual support, delivered by Teaching Assistants in school and during school hours, which has the potential to improve their progress in reading. Pupils in control schools will continue with whatever support is provided by their school on a business as usual basis. The support sessions will be delivered by Teaching Assistants employed by the school, so pupils will not be in contact with unknown adults. Risks to pupils therefore appear to be negligible.
Where is the study run from?
Sheffield Hallam University, UK
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
March 2019 to February 2021
Who is funding the study?
Education Endowment Foundation (UK)
Who is the main contact?
Dr Martin Culliney
M.Culliney@shu.ac.uk
Contact information
Public
Sheffield Institute of Education
10101 Arundel Building
Sheffield
S1 1WB
United Kingdom
 ORCID ID |
0000-0002-7329-8675 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +44(0)114 2256072 |
| M.Culliney@shu.ac.uk |
Study information
| Study design | Multisite cluster randomised trial |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Interventional |
| Secondary study design | Cluster randomised trial |
| Study setting(s) | School |
| Study type | Other |
| Participant information sheet | https://www.shu.ac.uk/about-us/academic-departments/institute-of-education/research/projects/reach-primary |
| Scientific title | Reading with comprehension (REACH) primary, a two-arm cluster randomised trial of a targeted reading support intervention for pupils aged eight |
| Study acronym | REACH Primary |
| Study objectives | The REACH Primary targeted reading support intervention is associated with better reading attainment among participating pupils when compared with a business-as-usual control condition |
| Ethics approval(s) | Approved 11/02/2019, Sheffield Hallam University Ethical Review Committee (SSH-ResearchEthics@shu.ac.uk) ref: ER12082254 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Reading |
| Intervention | Multisite CRT with three levels (school, TA and pupil). Randomisation took place at school level. A total of 79 schools were randomised within five geographical hub areas. 40 were allocated to the intervention and 39 to the control condition. Intervention schools nominate two Teaching Assistants for CPD, which includes three days of training and remote support during the study period. The intervention is delivered over twenty weeks through 3 x 30 minute sessions of individual Teaching Assistant support per week for each participating pupil for a 20-week period. Two sessions per week will focus on word recognition/ decoding skills and reading aloud fluently and accurately. The third session targets language comprehension skills. Control schools operate on a business as usual basis. Randomisation was stratified to ensure balance between the intervention and control groups on two school-level controls; geographical hub area and KS1 reading score. The first stratifying variable was geographical region, the five categories are 1) Yorkshire and Humber (North) 2) Yorkshire and Humber (South) 3) North East 4) Lincolnshire and 5) Greater Manchester. |
| Intervention type | Other |
| Primary outcome measure | Reading comprehension measured using the GL New Group Reading Test (NGRT), a well-established, multiple-choice test for pupils aged 6 - 16. The digital adaptive version of this test will be used. Baseline tests taken during May 2019 (KS1 Reading). Outcome tests conducted as the pupils are toward the end of Y3 (May-July 2020). Added 17/12/2020: The outcome testing period was delayed until November 2020 due to COVID-19. Some participating schools reported difficulty in supporting pupils to complete the testing before Christmas due to absences and hygiene protocols, so it was agreed that testing would continue into January 2021. The NGRT was the original choice for primary outcome measure. Pilot testing during late 2019 showed that this test was not ideally suited to the programme, and it was agreed that the Reading Comprehension subtest of the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (3rd edition for teachers) would become the primary measure. Data was collected from November 2020, with test administrators employed by the evaluation team testing pupils over video calls. Participating pupils were in Y4 by this time, and began the test at the starting point for age 8. The test is scored on a scale from 0-42. The baseline measure remains KS1 Reading. |
| Secondary outcome measures | Tests conducted as the pupils are toward the end of Y3 (May-July 2020): 1. Word recognition/decoding measured using the GL Diagnostic Test of Word Reading Processes (DTWRP). This has three sets of items that pupils read aloud, 1) 30 exception words which provide a measure of lexical-semantic processes 2) 30 non-words which provide a measure of phonological recoding processes 3) 30 regular words which can be read by either process. 2. Language comprehension measured using the Understanding Spoken Paragraphs subscale of the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF -5). Pupils listen to short spoken passages, and after each passage orally respond to a series of comprehension questions. Added 17/12/2020: The outcome testing period was delayed until November 2020 due to COVID-19. Some participating schools reported difficulty in supporting pupils to complete the testing before Christmas due to absences and hygiene protocols, so it was agreed that testing would continue into January 2021. |
| Overall study start date | 01/12/2018 |
| Completion date | 01/02/2021 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Mixed |
|---|---|
| Age group | Child |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | 780 pupils across 79 schools recruited to the trial |
| Total final enrolment | 780 |
| Key inclusion criteria | 1. Schools in the North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humber and Lincolnshire regions of England. |
| Key exclusion criteria | 1. Schools outside of travelling distance of the training locations 2. Pupils with no KS1 baseline data |
| Date of first enrolment | 01/03/2019 |
| Date of final enrolment | 18/07/2019 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- England
- United Kingdom
Study participating centre
Sheffield
S1 1WB
United Kingdom
Sponsor information
Charity
5th Floor, Millbank Tower
21-24 Millbank
London
SW1P 4QP
United Kingdom
| Phone | 0207 802 1676 |
|---|---|
| info@eefoundation.org.uk | |
| Website | https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/ |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/03bhd6288 |
Funders
Funder type
Charity
Private sector organisation / Trusts, charities, foundations (both public and private)
- Alternative name(s)
- EducEndowFoundn, Education Endowment Foundation | London, EEF
- Location
- United Kingdom
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 01/07/2021 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | No |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Stored in repository |
| Publication and dissemination plan | Project report due for publication on EEF website early 2021. |
| IPD sharing plan | The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study will be stored in a non-publically available repository. After the project ends, data will be transferred to the EEF data archive, which is only accessible by researchers commissioned by EEF to conduct meta-analysis of EEF data. Participants are informed of archiving requirements at the start of the evaluation. |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funder report results | 16/12/2021 | 20/12/2021 | No | No |
Editorial Notes
20/12/2021: Funder report reference added.
17/12/2020: The following changes were made to the trial record:
1. The primary and secondary outcome measures were updated.
2. The overall trial end date was changed from 01/12/2020 to 01/02/2021.
3. The intention to publish date was changed from 01/02/2021 to 01/07/2021.
06/08/2019: The total final enrolment was added.
29/07/2019: Trial’s existence confirmed by Education Endowment Foundation (website)
