The Characteristics of Children who are Referred On from Reading Recovery

Abstract

This study investigates the hypothesis that children who are Referred On (RO) from Reading Recovery (RR) may share certain learning and behavioural characteristics. These characteristics were investigated and compared to those identified by the researcher based on experience as a classroom teacher, and to seven characteristics identified by Al Otaiba and Fuchs (2002) in their meta-analysis of 23 studies which had focused on children unresponsive to literacy interventions.

Schools that use Reading Recovery as an early intervention programme were invited to participate in the research. Reading Recovery teachers, as well as students who had been through the programme, but had been RO, provided qualitative and quantitative data, to enable common characteristics to be identified, correlated and discussed, with reference to current literature and research around reading difficulties.

This study does not offer any suggestions as to the remediation of children who are RO or unresponsive to intervention programmes. However, it does uncover some unexpected correlations that implicate the need for further research, particularly in the area of gender differences, within a sample group of RO students.