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Guided Oral Reading
The NRP conducted an initial series of electronic literature searches and identified 364 studies potentially relevant to the effects of guided oral reading instructional practices. Of these, 16 studies met the NRP research methodology criteria and were included in a meta-analysis, and 21 additional studies met the criteria but could not be included in the meta-analysis—although they were used in the qualitative interpretation of the efficacy of these instructional methods.
Findings and Determinations
On the basis of a detailed analysis of the available research that met NRP methodological criteria, the Panel concluded that guided repeated oral reading procedures that included guidance from teachers, peers, or parents had a significant and positive impact on word recognition, fluency, and comprehension across a range of grade levels.
These studies were conducted in a variety of classrooms in both regular and special education settings with teachers using widely available instructional materials. This suggests the classroom readiness of guided oral reading and repeated reading procedures. These results also apply to all students—good readers as well as those experiencing reading difficulties. Nevertheless, there were important gaps in the research. In particular, the Panel could find no multiyear studies providing information on the relationship between guided oral reading and the emergence of fluency.
