Read the PBS KIDS Raising Readers Story of Success
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A STORY OFUsing media across SUCCESS all platforms to close the literacy achievement gap. To watch a reel about the success of the PBS KIDS Raising Readers project, click here. Prologue Literacy: A National Problem Today, nearly half of America’s children are not prepared to succeed when they enter kindergarten. Research shows that children living in poverty enter kindergarten at an especially high disadvantage, particularly in literacy skills. The 1995 Hart Risley study found that by kindergarten, a child in poverty has heard only 5,000 distinct words, whereas a child from a professional family has heard 20,000 words. The effect of this deficit continues as a child progresses through elementary school — studies show that if a child is not reading on grade level by the 4th grade, he or she will never catch up. Furthermore, 4th grade literacy rates are directly tied to high school dropout rates, which are the most cited predictors of crime, low income, and reliance on social services. As Paul Schwartz, a coalition principal in residence at the U.S. Department of Education noted, “Based on this year’s 4th-grade reading scores, California is already planning the number of new prison cells it will need in the next century.” prologue 1 AN InnovativE Solution 2 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success To address this national problem, PBS partnered with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to launch PBS KIDS Raising Readers, a national initiative that surrounds children ages 2 to 8 with research-based literacy content, with a special focus on children living in poverty. Funded by a Ready To Learn grant from the U.S. Department of Education, from 2005 to 2010 PBS KIDS Raising Readers developed an innovative blend of media across all platforms — TV, online, mobile, and more — and related community engagement activities designed to help young children learn to read. PBS KIDS Raising Readers created content for kids as well as resources to guide their teachers, caregivers, and parents to support literacy. The results of this initiative speak for themselves, and prove that PBS KIDS Raising Readers has successfully leveraged the power of media across all platforms to close the literacy achievement gap. PROLOGUE 3 4 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success Chapter1 ENgAgiNg KidS TransmEdiA Content & EffectivE Teacher Tools and TraiNiNg: A WinniNg COmbination PBS KIDS Raising Readers aims to build literacy skills by surrounding kids with multimedia content, while simultaneously providing resources and training for teachers to support their students’ learning. To evaluate this approach, a 2009 study conducted by the Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) and SRI International tested the impact of immersing children and their teachers in PBS KIDS Raising Readers content. The study took place in 80 preschool classrooms with 398 children from low-income families, and combined teacher training with video and online games from PBS KIDS Raising Readers programs SESAME STREET, BETWEEN THE LIONS, and SUPER WHY!. engagIng Kids tranSmedia content & effectIve teacher toolS anD traInIng: a WInnIng combinatIon 5 “ Pre-K Lessons Linked to Tv Produce Gains The study found that preschoolers from low-income communities who participated in the PBS KIDS Raising Readers media-rich iN Literacy, curriculum outscored their peers who did not participate in the curriculum on all tested measures of early literacy, such as naming StudY Says.” letters and knowing their sounds. Furthermore, children who started out with the lowest literacy skills gained the most, learning —Education Week, October 19, 2009 an average of 7.5 more letters than children in the comparison group.1 Ultimately, the study showed that utilizing PBS KIDS Raising Readers content for both kids and teachers helps build critical literacy skills to better prepare children from low-income communities for success in kindergarten. To view the full study, click here. 1. education Development center, Inc. and SrI International, “Summative evaluation of the ready to learn Initiative” 2009 6 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success “ What’s really powerful here is the combination of media, digital content, and professional development. Particularly when you put these things together, preschool teachers can implement something that is powerful, and it can have effects that help to close the gap between low-income students for school readiness.” —Bill Penuel, Director of Evaluation Research, SRI International engagIng Kids tranSmedia content & effectIve teacher toolS anD traInIng: a WInnIng combinatIon 7 8 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success Chapter2 TeleviSion gROUNdEd iN RESEARCh WiTh Proven Results The Ready To Learn grant helped fund four new television series — SUPER WHY!, MARTHA SPEAKS, THE ELECTRIC COMPANY, and WORDWORLD — along with their companion websites. The grant also supported two legacy shows — SESAME STREET and BETWEEN THE LIONS. All of the content developed under PBS KIDS Raising Readers was grounded in research, based on the 2000 National Reading Panel recommendations, and integrated into a literacy framework to address all of the critical skills needed to achieve literacy. television grounDeD In reSearch with proven reSultS 9 BETWEEN THE LIONS aims to help 3- to 7-year-olds develop key reading skills, such as fluency and phonemic awareness, while playfully demonstrating the joys of reading. SUPER WHY! — this animated preschool series offers interactive storybook adventures, featuring a team of superhero characters with literacy-based powers, who jump into books to look for answers to everyday problems. the program is built on critical literacy building blocks, including alphabet skills, word families, spelling, comprehension and vocabulary. 1. linebarger, Deborah l., annenberg School for communication at the university of pennsylvania, “Between the lions: 10 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success mississippi literacy Initiative Study” 2009. Preschoolers at risk for reading failure made significant gains in reading skills after using an educational curriculum based on 1 Since its debut in 1969, SESAME STREET has helped children develop early language and Between the Lions. literacy skills such as letter knowledge, vocabulary, and reading and writing fundamentals. To view the full study, click here. WORDWORLD — a preschool series that focuses on a place where characters and objects, called Wordfriends,™ spring to life from the letters that spell their names. the series reinforces the pre-reading concept that letters (and their sounds) make words and that words have real meaning, as well as other literacy concepts such as sounding out letters and rhyming. television grounDeD In reSearch with proven reSultS 11 MARTHA SPEAKS — Based on the popular children’s book series, this animated show focuses on vocabulary and follows the humorous adventures of martha, a loveable dog who learns to speak after eating a bowl of alphabet soup. THE ELECTRIC COMPANY — this multi-platform reinvention of the classic television series focuses on four crucial areas of literacy for struggling readers ages 6 to 9: decoding, vocabulary, comprehension of connected text and motivation. In addition, the outreach program has collaborated with 20 pBS ready to learn stations, distributing 300,000 children’s magazines and 145,000 educator resource kits, and reached thousands of children nationwide with 20 free community events. 12 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success Research demonstrates that PBS KIDS Raising Readers shows are effectively helping children ChiLdren WhO watchEd build key literacy skills. A study by the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania found that viewing SUPER WHY! helps children acquire early literacy abilities SUPER WhY! scored that lead to reading success. Children who watched SUPER WHY! scored 46% higher on standardized tests than those who did not watch the show — indicating that the children learned from the show and were able to transfer and apply that knowledge. A different study from the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication found that 46% preschoolers at risk for reading failure made significant gains in reading skills after using an higher on standardizEd educational curriculum based on BETWEEN THE LIONS, which combined TV, supporting tests Than Those WhO 2 classroom materials and teacher training. did not watch ThE Show. To download more research on SUPER WHY!, click here. 2. linebarger, Deborah l., Deborah K. Wainwright and Katie mcmenamin, annenberg School for communication at the university of pennsylvania “Summative evaluation of SUPER WHY!” 2008 television grounDeD In reSearch with proven reSultS 13 14 pBS KIDS raising reaDerS: a Story of Success Chapter3 Online Adventures BuiLd ReadiNg SKills PBS KIDS Raising Readers created two immersive online experiences to help children build reading skills and to provide resources for parents, teachers and caregivers. PBS KIDS Island, for preschoolers, and The Great Word Quest, for 6- to 8-year olds, allow children to engage with their favorite characters through interactive games. As children master different literacy skills through play, they advance to higher levels to build upon what they’ve learned. The sites provide resources for parents and caregivers, including reading activity ideas and a progress tracker that monitors each child’s progress in the skills that the games target. All resources for adults are available in Spanish and English.