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Program yields SMART results Kids� reading ability continues to improve By Vicki Guarino The coordinator of the massive volunteer reading program expected it. The hundreds of volunteers probably sensed it, and hoped for the best. Now, test scores quantify and confirm the benefits of SMART, Oregon�s Start Making a Reader Today program. A professional research company in Eugene has found that a year after SMART students leave the program, they continue to read better than a control group of students who did not spend time with SMART volunteers. The program pairs adult volunteers with youngsters in kindergarten through second grade who need some extra help and attention. Each volunteer spends an hour a week in a local school, splitting the time between two students. The research on SMART readers� abilities showed that in all of the skill areas measured by Oregon assessment tests, the students who had participated in SMART equaled or bettered the control group. "I�d say we expected it all along,�� Jackson County SMART coordinator Cameron McCandless said Friday. "But it actually was almost startling to the researchers. "We all expected a benefit to the child, but this was such a significant gain." For instance, the SMART reader group had a higher level of reading fluency than other students. Reading fluency measures a student�s ability to read out loud. Students were tested for word accuracy when reading a passage at the third-grade level. The adjusted mean scores were 64 words per minute for the SMART group, versus 46.2 words per minute for the comparison group. Tests began two years ago on a random group of Eugene first-graders. They revealed comparable literacy levels between SMART students and a control group. After the second grade, the SMART group had made significantly greater gains in word reading accuracy, reading fluency and word comprehension. What makes this year�s results significant, however, is that the evaluation for the first time incorporates the reading skills tested in the Oregon assessment test. The standardized state test is given to all public school third-graders. Students are tested again in the fifth, eighth and 10th grades. The 10th-grade reading test is one of the elements of the CIM, the state Certificate of Initial Mastery for high school students. "These results show that SMART is relevant in today�s education climate, when the CIM is so important,�� McCandless said. In other test results, SMART students exhibited statistically significant gains over the control group in being able to analyze what they read and make inferences from the material. There was a borderline statistical significance in the gain in SMART readers� understanding of word meaning. SMART students and the comparison group were statistically equivalent in literal comprehension, the ability to understand information that is directly stated in the reading selection. The researchers concluded that SMART has its largest impact on a student�s ability to understand the content of what they read as well as their ability to read accurately and fluently. The results are being released as the Jackson County SMART program begins preparing for its biggest year ever. The program is adding four schools to its weekly schedule this fall � two in Ashland, one in Central Point and one in Medford � bringing the total to 23 elementary schools. For that, SMART will need 1,120 volunteers, up from 985 volunteers last school year. SMART began seven years ago in just two Medford schools. Volunteers are matched with students who are selected by their teachers for a particular need for help and attention. SMART pairs read together and talk about books one day a week. Each student gets 28 SMART hours through the course of the school year. Also they get to keep a total of 14 books, donated through the SMART program. McCandless said the new test results may help in this summer�s recruitment effort. "I think volunteers really want to know it helps,�� she said. "They help kids develop lifelong skills.�� SMART is signing up volunteers now. To apply, call the SMART office at 734-5628. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA