Reading Partners

READING PARTNERS readingpartners Annual Report one tutor. one child .infinite possibilities. 2012-13 one tutor. one child. infinite possibilities. Our mission is to help children become lifelong readers by empowering communities to provide individualized instruction with measurable results. readingpartners one tutor. one child .infinite possibilities. A Letter from the CEO Dear Friends, I know for certain our volunteer tutors are changing children’s lives by helping them open the doors of literacy. The reason I know this is because we monitor each and every student’s progress in reading. In the 2012-13 school year, we tracked the progress of all 5,373 students across our 104 school-based reading centers, because at Reading Partners, we believe in measuring what matters. While student assessment data are the backbone of our evaluation system, we go beyond that to see the whole story behind a student’s progress. We look also at classroom observations from teachers and principals, as well as read regular re- ports from our thousands of volunteers. ©2013 Photo by Tali Blankfeld We keep track of how many free books students are taking home to build their personal libraries. We also invite parents and families into Reading Partners in many ways reinvents itself each year. our reading centers throughout the year to share their stu- However, what has never changed is our commitment to dents’ progress and celebrate their learning. measuring what matters, even though last year we served Our most important objective is ensuring that every stu- Looking to the future, we will continue raising the bar for 10 times as many students as we did just five years ago. dent is closing his or her own achievement gap in reading. what students can accomplish. “Our most important objective I am profoundly grateful for and humbled by the dedica- is ensuring that every student tion of our staff, volunteers, donors, and school and district is closing his or her own partners. Across the country, we ensure students receive high-quality individualized reading instruction exactly achievement gap in reading.” when they need it most. I hope that our supporters are as For kids who have fallen behind, gaining skills isn’t enough: energized as I am by knowing that together we are expand- they have to make faster progress than their peers to catch ing opportunities for children. up. If one of our students is struggling, our one-on-one model allows us to quickly identify the problem and adjust our strategy to get the student back on track. In the 2012-13 school year, Reading Partners expanded to Michael Lombardo CEO District of Columbia. As a rapidly growing organization, serve students in nine regions across five states and the 1 Literacy Unlocks Opportunity 2012-13 Year in Review ability to comprehend the world in which we live. With comprehension comes the power We believe literacy unlocks opportunity. With the ability to read confidently comes the to interact, engage, and change. The power of this equation is electrifying. Its implica- – Karen, Tutor – Karen, tions inspire us to work with focus, diligence, and passion. Every child, regardless of back- ground, deserves the opportunity to learn this fundamental skill. Moreover, they deserve the opportunity to comprehend, engage, and improve the world around them. Yet, we know that too few of our children are being given that opportunity. Experts esti- 1 For children from low-income families, the numbers are much higher. Too often, our students do not have mate that two-thirds of fourth graders cannot read with proficiency. access to the individualized, one-on-one instruction they need to develop a strong foundation in reading. Together, we empower community volunteers to deliver highly effective, one-on-one reading instruction to students struggling to read. In the 2012-13 school year, we doubled the number of students we served over the previous year, and we did so with a strong commitment to the quality of our services. While we grew substantially, our impact was as strong as ever: of our students finished the year accelerated closer to their target % their rate of % grade level, bringing 88 learning. 72 them closer to their on-grade-level peers. In the following pages we’ll introduce you to members of the Reading Partners community who are committed to ensuring that all children have the skills they need to succeed in school and beyond. You’ll meet Jennifer Mao, a member of Reading Partners’ Community Engagement team; Pamela Mitchell, principal of PS 48 in New York City; Kaycee Moua, a site coordinator supporting tutors in our community; Dean Elson, Senior Vice President of Re- search and Evaluation at Reading Partners; Jehan Velji, Portfolio Manager at the Edna Mc- Connell Clark Foundation; and Deric Pinales and Jason, a tutor and student in our program. Together, these men and women are working to ensure that children have the chance to determine their future. 1 National Center for Education Statistics (2011). The Nation’s Report Card: Reading 2011 (NCES 2012– “Over the year, Francisco didn’t just learn to enjoy reading, he learned he could try something difficult and succeed at it.” it.” and succeed at difficult something he learned could try learn to enjoy reading, just Francisco didn’t year, “Over the 457). Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C. 2 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14* Students Served 3,395 5,373 7,000 Volunteers 5,162 8,595 10,000 Hours of Service 121,000 166,000 215,000 Partner School Sites 67 104 137 Regions 7 9 11 *Projected 3 Measuring What Matters: Research & Evaluation Reading Partners is dedicated to ensuring that each student gains the critical reading skills he or she needs to be prepared for academic, social, and civic success. To support each student on his or her unique journey to reading achievement, Reading Partners aligns its curriculum with evidence-based standards and relies on a rigorous program of research and evaluation. We assess students’ reading skills and collect teachers’ feedback throughout the school year to track each student’s progress and to ensure high-quality programming. In the 2012-13 school year, 88 percent of students accelerated their progress in reading, and 72 – Principal, Friendship Academy at Cherry Hill – Principal, Friendship Academy percent of students narrowed their literacy gaps with their peers who read at grade level. Teachers and principals at our partner schools consistently note student accomplish- ments, as well as school-wide improvements: of principals reported schoolwide % improved reading progress after 92 joining Reading Partners this year. of teachers and principals felt that % Reading Partners was valuable to 98 their schools. t’s a life changing experience when you help a child learn to read.” read.” a life changing experience when you help child learn to t’s I “ Rates of Learning Students who are reading at their actual grade level need to learn one month of skills for every month of instruction to remain on grade level. Before enrollment into Read- ing Partners, our students were already below grade level, gaining an average of only 0.6 months of reading skills for every month of learning in the classroom. By the end of just six months with Reading Partners, on average, our students typically gained 1.6 months of reading skills per month. That’s more than double their prior rate of learning! MONTHS OF READING SKILLS GAINED PER MONTH OF INSTRUCTION Before Enrollment 0.6:1 With Reading Partners 1.6:1 4 reading partners .org Reading Partners and Seeking Robust Evidence of the Common Core Student Impacts This year, Reading Partners launched its most rigor- In 2012-13, Research & Evaluation staff ous evaluation study to date. Partnering with leading collaborated with expert advisors and con- - trol trial (RCT)—the gold standard for measuring pro- sultants to strengthen alignment to the research firm MDRC, we conducted a randomized con gram impact. The results will help us understand the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), a magnitude of the effect that Reading Partners has on students’ reading achievement above and beyond their set of evidence-based standards for stu- regular school curriculum. dent learning that have been adopted by MDRC administered student assessments and collected Washington, DC and 45 states. Reading other data at 19 schools in California, New York, and Partners’ curriculum review process will Washington, DC from over 1,200 students—half were enrolled in Reading Partners and half were in a peer continue for the next few years, based on control group at the same schools. Results from the implementation feedback and student data study will be shared in a report to be published in late 2014. (www.corestandards.org). 5 Q&A WITH Dean Elson, Senior VP of Research and Evaluation Dean Elson leads the Research and Evaluation department at Reading Partners, which is responsible for refining the curriculum and program model, and increasing the organization’s evidence base. The department manages independent evaluation studies, leads annual data collection activities, and provides data analyses of student and school performance. What role does your department play What are the important systems we in helping Reading Partners advance have in place to ensure data analysis its mission? translates back into improving My team collaborates with external literacy ex- tutoring sessions for kids? perts to ensure the curriculum is aligned with Reading Partners is committed to using data evidence-based standards and to add new productively, and I think we are especially strategies and resources to inform instruction. good at using data to inform students’ indi- We collect formal feedback from program staff vidual reading plans and reporting annually – Marvin Espinoza, Tutor, Sonoma State Senior – Marvin Espinoza, Tutor, about our lesson plans and other instructional on effectiveness.

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