BOLDPRINT PILOT IMPROVES LITERACY SKILLS AND ENGAGEMENT
July 12, 2010
BRANDON, FL – Last year, Rubicon brought the award-winning BOLDPRINT series to Hillsborough County in Florida to test its effectiveness in improving literacy skills and student engagement. In the three-month pilot project, BOLDPRINT books were used exclusively with Grades 9 and 10 intensive reading classes at Brandon High School to teach core reading strategies and motivate all readers.
The findings indicate that the project was highly successful, both in terms of improving literacy and connecting with students. Many students noted that their interest in reading had increased over the term of the project. Lauwan Wiseman, the teacher conducting the pilot, also noted that the students possessed greater comprehension afterward because they enjoyed the material.
Renowned educator David Booth and series editor of the newly released INTERFACE anthologies Joan Green developed a questionnaire for the report regarding students’ attitudes toward reading; they also conducted an assessment before and after the project, which evaluated student comprehension. The report includes observations from Wiseman, school principal Leslie Granich, and reading coach Sunny Royal on BOLDPRINT. It also contains a record of Wiseman’s observational journal, which was maintained throughout the project and provides an analysis of each of the books used.
Booth also conducted a series of interviews, which are available for viewing in a short video that was released along with the findings of the report. In the video, Wiseman and her students discuss the BOLDPRINT books and their experience with them.
Both Wiseman and her students noted that the books made difficult passages easier to understand through their effective use of pictures and integration of vocabulary definitions. Wiseman also noted that the size of the books felt appropriate for her classroom.
The bottom line was that BOLDPRINT’s success in captivating students allowed their reading comprehension and affinity for reading to improve.
To view the complete summary of findings, please click here.
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