This study examined the relationships of 3 levels of reading fluency--the individual word, the syntactic unit, and the whole passage--to reading comprehension among 278 5th graders heterogeneous in reading ability. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that reading fluency at each level related uniquely to performance on a standardized reading comprehension test in a model including inferencing skill and background knowledge. The study supports an automaticity effect for word recognition speed and an automaticity-like effect related to syntactic processing skill. In addition, hierarchical regressions using longitudinal data suggest that fluency and reading comprehension have a bidirectional relationship. The discussion emphasizes the theoretical expansion of reading fluency to 3 levels of cognitive processes and the relations of these processes to reading comprehension.

Relationships of Three Components of Reading Fluency to Reading Comprehension.

The purpose of this study was to examine the development of reading prosody and its impact on later reading skills Suprasegmental features of oral reading were measured for 92 children at the end of grades 1 and 2 and oral reading fluency and reading comprehension assessments at the end of the third-grade school year Tests were carried out to determine (a) the manner in which the key features of oral reading prosody unfold with development and (b) the extent to which the development of reading prosody is predictive of later oral reading fluency and comprehension outcomes beyond word reading skills alone Path model tests found a relationship between the presence of fewer pausal intrusions during oral reading in first grade and subsequent development of an adult-like intonation contour in second grade Outcome model tests indicated that the intonation contour was a significant predictor of later fluency once word reading skills were taken into account Decreases in the number of pausal intrusions between the first and second grades and early acquisition of an adult-like intonation contour predicted better comprehension later Thus, prosodic oral reading might signal that children have achieved fluency and are more capable of understanding what they read Results of this study support the inclusion of prosody in formal definitions of oral reading fluency

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A Longitudinal Study of the Development of Reading Prosody as a Dimension of Oral Reading Fluency in Early Elementary School Children

Reading fluency has traditionally been viewed as a goal of reading that is taught and mastered in the elementary grades. In this article we challenge that notion by exploring the role of reading fluency as a contributor to reading proficiency and difficulty among intermediate and middle grade students. We assessed reading fluency development among a large number of third-, fifth-, and seventh-grade students, using prosody (expressiveness in oral reading) rather than reading rate (word recognition automaticity) as a measure of reading fluency. We found moderately strong correlations between fluency and silent reading comprehension as measured by a standardized achievement test at all three grade levels. Our findings suggest that reading fluency appears to be a significant variable in upper elementary and middle grade students' reading. Moreover, the findings add to mounting evidence that prosody is an important component in the full manifestation of reading fluency. Both components of fluency, automaticity...

Reading Fluency: More than Automaticity? More than a Concern for the Primary Grades?.

Over a quarter of 8th-grade students and more than one-third of 4th graders do not read well enough to understand important concepts and acquire new knowledge from grade-level text. For students with learning disabilities, the numbers are more troubling. This article describes features of evidence-based instruction for students who continue to struggle with reading in late elementary, middle, and high school. Recommendations are organized into 5 areas that are critical to the reading improvement of older struggling readers: (1) word study, (2) fluency, (3) vocabulary, (4) comprehension, and (5) motivation. Much of the content in this article reflects our efforts with the Special Education and Reading Strands at the National Center on Instruction, funded by the Office of Special Education Programs and the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. Two reports, both available at http://www.centeroninstruction.org/, have particular relevance—Interventions for Adolescent Struggling Readers: A Meta-Analysis with Implications for Practice and Academic Literacy Instruction for Adolescents: A Guidance Document from the Center on Instruction.

Evidence‐Based Strategies for Reading Instruction of Older Students with Learning Disabilities

Due to the great interest of practitioners on reading fluency in first language (L1) and second language (L2) English classroom settings, fluency has become a hot topic. A number of studies have suggested that an extensive reading (ER) program can lead to improvement of L2 learners’ reading rate; however, studies about high school students are scarce. Inspired by current issues in reading and previous ER investigations, this study examined the effectiveness of ER on reading rates of high school students in Japan. In this study, students were provided with graded readers and comic books as reading material they would find enjoyable. Pretests and posttests of reading rate and language proficiency were administered and a t test was used to compare means of the rates and language proficiency within groups. Results indicate that ER is an effective approach to improve students’ rate and general language proficiency.

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Developing Reading Fluency: A Study of Extensive Reading in EFL.

Fluency has traditionally been viewed as a goal of reading taught and mastered in the elementary grades. This article challenges that notion by exploring reading fluency as a contributor to reading proficiency (and difficulty) among ninth-grade students. The authors assessed reading fluency development among a large number of ninth graders and found a moderately strong correlation between fluency and overall reading proficiency as measured by a standardized achievement test. Moreover, a significant number of students were substantially below norms for fluency. The findings suggest that reading fluency is a significant variable in secondary students' reading and overall academic development. More research is called for into the role of reading fluency among older students, especially those experiencing difficulty in achieving high levels of literacy.

Is Reading Fluency a Key for Successful High School Reading

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Julie A. Friedauer

Papers

Is Reading Fluency a Key for Successful High School Reading

Is reading fluency a key for successful high school reading? Is reading fluency a key for successful high school reading?