• Results indicated that students participating in the program for a minimum of 40 or more lessons over approximately six months made significantly greater gains on both the Criterion Referenced and Norm Referenced Reading Tests that are part of the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test than students who did not participate in the program.
• Students participating in the program demonstrated gains on the Criterion Referenced Reading Test that were greater than the mean gains for the state and district level.
• The gains were found generally in all grade levels studied and in all subpopulations.
• Positive results were also demonstrated for various subpopulations often considered at-risk for reading difficulties. 
• African-American, Latino-American, special education, and learning disabled students who participated in the RP intervention demonstrated significantly and substantially greater gains in measures of reading achievement on both the CRT and NRT portions of the FCAT than students not participating in the intervention. 
• The results of the study suggest that reading programs such as RP that are aimed at improving silent reading fluency and proficiency through extensive, focused, wide, and repeated reading in which students are held accountable for their work can have a significant and substantial positive effect on student reading comprehension and overall reading achievement. 

• Controlled study, conducted during 2006-2007 through the University of South Alabama, involving 79 second grade students from Woodlands, TX, April 2007.
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• Preliminary controlled study report of second graders in six elementary schools conducted by the University of South Alabama during 2006-2007, February 2007
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• Preliminary report of a longitudinal study involving second, third, and fourth grade students in Belleville, IL, February 2007. View Summary | Download Study
• Preliminary report of a controlled study conducted in 2005-2006 involving 145 fourth grade students from five different elementary schools, February 2007.
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Middle Schools

• Study conducted in 2006-2007 of a large-scale implementation of Reading Plus® involving 98 schools and over 28,000 students in Miami-Dade County, FL, 2007. Download Study
  
• Preliminary Report of a longitudinal study involving third, fourth, fifth, and sixth graders in Choctaw, OK, February 2007. View Summary | Download Study
• Study conducted by North East Florida Educational Consortium's Foundation for Rural Excellence (NEFEC) and Educational Learning Systems, Inc., involving sixth, seventh, and eighth grade struggling readers in Starke, FL, 2003-2004. View Summary

High Schools

• Preliminary report of a longitudinal study conducted 2006-2007, involving students in grades 9-11 in Prescott, AZ, February 2007.
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• A Reading Plus® research study involving 82 ninth and tenth grade Florida students conducted in 2003-2004 by North East Florida Educational Consortium’s Foundation for Rural Excellence (NEFEC) and Educational Learning Systems, Inc. View Summary
  
• A preliminary report of a control study of 182 high school students in Visalia, CA conducted by the University of South Alabama during 2006-2007, March 2007.
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Colleges

• Preliminary report of a longitudinal study involving college students in Sterling, CO, who were enrolled in remedial reading courses.
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Peer Reviewed
Reading Plus® and Visagraph® Studies

Dumlao, Edwin S.  “Retaining Improved Eye Movement Efficiency using a Home-based PA/VE and Guided Reading Therapy Program.”  A thesis submitted to the faculty of the College of Optometry, Pacific University, May 2007. (Request copy.) View Summary

Solan, Harold, A., Shelley-Tremblay, John, Larsen, S., & Mounts, J.  “Silent Word Reading Fluency & Temporal Vision Processing; Differences Between Good And Poor Readers", Journal of Behavioral Optometry, December 2006. (Request copy.)
View Summary

Bragg, S., Hartman, T., & Pham, T.  “Evaluation of a Computerized, Home-based PA/VE and Guided Reading Therapy Program and Its Influences on Reading Performance in an Adult Population.”  A thesis submitted to the faculty of the College of Optometry, Pacific University, May 2005. (Request copy.) View Summary | Download Study

Solan, Harold, A. “Visual and Auditory Processing in Reading Disability: A Matter of Cognitive Dissonance.”  Journal of Optometric Vision Development 35; Spring 2004, pp. 16-21. (Request copy.) View Summary

Tran, Kim, Cui Yu (Daniel), Okumura, Tomohito, & Laukkanen, Hannu.  “Effectiveness of an On-line Computerized Eye Movement Training Program to Improve Oculomotor Control in Adult Readers: A Pilot Study.”  Journal of Behavioral Optometry 15; No. 5, 2004, pp.115-121. (Request copy.) View Summary

Solan, Harold, A., Shelley-Tremblay, John, Hansen, Peter, C., Silverman, Michael, E., Larson, Steven, & Ficarra, Anthony.  “M-Cell deficit and reading disability: a preliminary study of the effects of temporal vision-processing therapy.”  Optometry 75; No. 10, October 2004, pp.640-650. (Request copy.) View Summary

Solan, H. A., Larson, S., Shelley-Tremblay, J., Ficcara, A., & Silverman, M. “Effect of Attention Therapy on Reading Comprehension.” Journal of Learning Disabilities 36, November/December 2003, pp. 556-563. (Request copy.) View Summary

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2000).   Report of the National Reading Panel. "Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and its Implications for Reading Instruction.” Report of the Sub-Groups (MIH Publication No. 00-4754). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. (Request copy.) View Summary

Stevens, David A. “Leveraging Technology to Improve Test Scores: A Case Study of Low-Income Hispanic Students.” Presented at the International Conference on Learning with Technology, March 8, 2000. View Summary

Schlange, D., Patel, H., & Caden, B. “Evaluation of the Reading Plus 2000 and Visagraph System as a Remedial Program for academically ‘at risk’ Sixth and Eighth Grade Students: A Pilot Study.” Optometry and Vision Science 76, poster 11, 1999.
(Request copy.) View Summary

Schlange, D., Scharre, J., & Caden, B. “Evaluation of an Eye Movement Recording Technique in a Population of Autistic Children.”  Optometry and Vision Science 74, poster 27, 1997. (Request copy.) View Summary

Solan, Harold A., Feldman, Jerome, & Tujak, Laura. “Developing Visual and Reading Efficiency in Older Adults,” Optometry and Vision Science 72, No. 2, 1995, pp. 139-145.
View Summary

Foundational Research

Taylor, S. E., “National Study of Fluency in the Primary Grades, Phase II Final Report - School Years 1978-81.” Monograph No. 11, 1981. Huntington, New York: Instructional/Communication Technology, Inc., p. 29. (Request copy.) View Summary

Gelzer, Austin, & Santore, Nicholas J. “A Comparison of Various Reading Improvement Approaches.” Reported in the Journal of Educational Research 61, No. 6, February, 1968. (Request copy.) View Summary.

Hetrick, William M., & Wilson, F.R. “The Use of the EDL Controlled Reader at Lincoln School.” E.S.E.A. Evaluation Report of the Monroe (Michigan) Public Schools, April, 1968.(Request copy.)

Taylor, Earl A. The Fundamental Reading Skill as Related to Eye-Movement Photography and Visual Anomalies. (Second Edition) Springfield, Illinois: Charles C. Thomas, 1966. View Summary.

Witham, Anthony Patrick. “An Investigation of a Controlled Reading Technique with Eighth Grade Students.” A Dissertation for Ed.D. Degree, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, 1966. ERIC Reading Review 7046, Supplement 1. View Summary.

Waldstreicher, Joel S. “Educational Rehabilitation and Visual Education – An Integrated Approach.” The Optical Journal and Review of Optometry, May 1, 1962.
(Request copy.) View Summary.

Warren, Mary Bay. “The Massapequa Junior High School Reading Program.” Journal Of Developmental Reading 5, Summer 1962, pp. 245-255. (Request copy.)
View Summary.

Bottomly, Forbes. “An Experiment with the Controlled Reader.” Journal of Educational Research 54, No. 7, March, 1961. View Summary.

Taylor, S. E., Frackenpohl, H., & Pettee, J. L. (1960). “Grade Level Norms for the Components of the Fundamental Reading Skill.” Research and Information Bulletin, 3, Huntington, NY: Educational Development Laboratories, Inc. (Request copy.)
View Summary.

Witzeman, B. Evangeline. “An Experimental Study Using the Opthalm-O-Graph and Metron-O-Scope in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Reading Defects.” Journal of Psychology 11, 1941, pp. 307-34. (Request copy.) View Summary.

Taylor, Earl A., Controlled Reading: A Correlation of Diagnostic, Teaching and Corrective Techniques. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1937. View Summary.

Summaries

Shelley-Tremblay, John & Authelet, Ann.  “Reading Plus National Research Project; Galatas Elementary School Study Overview 2005-2006." Preliminary report of a controlled study involving second grade students, April 2007.

Second grade students from Galatas Elementary School in The Woodlands, Texas participated in this controlled study using Reading Plus®. Thirty-four students in the treatment group received at least 40 sessions of Reading Plus®, which included PAVE™, D-Code™, Word Memory™, Cloze Plus™, Comprehension Power™, and at least 40 lessons in Guided Reading™. Forty-five students in the control group used leveled reading books and both groups spent equal time in reading instruction. The treatment group’s average score on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests improved significantly (.015) by an average gain of 1.25 Grade Equivalents, while the control group made a less average gain of .72 Grade Equivalents. In pre and post Visagraph® recordings, the treatment group also made substantial improvements in reports of fewer regressions and fixations, and a greater improvement in reading rate over the control group. Reading improvement was also seen in the progress made by the treatment group in Guided Reading™ training, with most students showing gains of at least one content level and average increases of 63 more words per minute. Texas standardized tests administered the following year after the study resulted in 71.72% of treatment students receiving a commended performance score of 94% or better, as compared to the state average of 36%.

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While both treatment and control groups did make progress over the course of the study, the treatment group was shown to have achieved greater levels of improvement when post tested with the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test and Visagraph® eye movement recordings. The treatment group’s average score on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests improved significantly (.009) after pre and post testing by an average gain of 1.8 Grade Equivalents, while the control group made a less average gain of .06 Grade Equivalents. In pre and post Visagraph recordings, the treatment group also made substantial improvements in reports of fewer regressions and fixations, and a greater improvement in reading rate, while the control group experienced very little change in reading efficiency.

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Shelley-Tremblay, John, & Tarbell, Victoria.  “National Research Project; Nicoma Park Intermediate School Overview 2005-2006.”  Preliminary report of a longitudinal study involving third through sixth grade students. February 2007.

Summary
Nicoma Park Intermediate School in Choctaw, Oklahoma is one of nine schools involved in the longitudinal component of the national research project being conducted by Dr. John Shelley-Tremblay of the University of South Alabama. This portion of the study includes students ranging from Grade 3 through Grade 6. A preliminary lay analysis of the first year data from this school reveals a dramatic improvement in the Gates-MacGinitie test scores of the students involved, particularly for those in Grades 3 and 6. At the beginning of the study, the overall average GE score on the Gates test for the third graders was 2.3, well below the expected start score of 3.0. At the end of their first year of Reading Plus®, the average Gates score was 3.7, which is the expected score for that point in the school year. For the Sixth Grade students, the overall average at the beginning of the year was only 3.8. At the end of the first year’s Reading Plus® program, the overall average for these same students was 6.6, one month off the expected average and an improvement of 2.8. The expected gain over a school year is .7.

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Maycumber, Evelyn, M.  Reading Plus Research Study at Bradford Middle School in Starke, Florida, 2003-2004.  Unpublished study conducted by North East Florida Educational Consortium’s Foundation for Rural Excellence (NEFEC) and Educational Learning Systems, Inc. Cited by Florida Center for Reading Research in review of Reading Plus®, www.fcrr.org, January, 2006. 

Summary
Between August 2003 and April 2004, 106 students in 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grades, who were defined as struggling readers, participated in this collaborative study.  Using Reading Plus and Lexia S.O.S., 56 students were placed in the treatment group while 50 students in the control group used a reading intervention instruction.  Both groups spent equal time on instruction, averaging 480 minutes during the course of the study.  Pre and post tests used to determine student gains were from the Gates MacGinitie Reading Test, Visagraph Reading Rate Grade Level Equivalent (GLE), Visagraph Reading Rate with Comprehension, and the 2004 FCAT Developmental Scale Score.

While the control group showed no significant gains on the Gates Test, the treatment group made statistically significant gains (from pretest scores of 33.7 to post scores of 42.3).  The treatment group also made higher gains on the Visagraph GLE (3.6 to 6.8) than the control group (4.0 to 4.6), as well as the Visagraph Reading Rate with Comprehension (142.5 to 182.9 for the treatment group and 140.4 to 149.5 for the control group).  On the FCAT, the treatment group showed the most gains with a score change of 220.18, while the control group showed lesser gains with a score change of 142.4.

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Shelley-Tremblay, John, & Tarbell, Victoria.  “National Research Project; Prescott High School Overview 2006-2007.”  Preliminary report of a longitudinal study involving ninth through eleventh grade students, February 2007.

Summary
Prescott High School in Prescott, AZ is one of nine schools involved in the longitudinal component of the national research project being conducted by Dr. John Shelley-Tremblay of the University of South Alabama. This portion of the study includes students ranging from Grade 9 through Grade 11. Over 70% of the students reported on far exceeded the expected Lexile growth for the period covered in this lay analysis, with the vast majority doubling and tripling the expected increase. The expected increase for the period is approximately 44 Lexile points; the average increase among the students reviewed was 105 Lexile points. Lexile points are equal-unit measures and, therefore, can be used for comparison. Within the Reading Plus® programs, the students increased their Guided Reading™ rate by an average of 115 words per minute while maintaining reasonable comprehension. The students also increased how efficiently they read overall.

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Maycumber, Evelyn, M.  Reading Plus Research Study at Dixie High School in Cross City, Florida, 2003-2004. Unpublished study conducted by North East Florida Educational Consortium’s Foundation for Rural Excellence (NEFEC) and Educational Learning Systems, Inc. Cited by Florida Center for Reading Research in review of Reading Plus®, www.fcrr.org, January, 2006.

Summary
This collaborative study was conducted between August 2003 and December 2003 and involved 82 students in the 9^th and 10^th grades who were defined as struggling readers.   Forty-four treatment group students were assigned to Reading Plus and Lexia S.O.S. programs (average time 541.6 minutes), and thirty-eight control group students were assigned to intervention reading classes (average time 747.4 minutes).  Pre and post tests used to determine student gains were from the Gates MacGinitie Reading Test, Lexia Comprehension Reading Test, Visagraph Reading Rate Grade Level Equivalent (GLE), and Visagraph Reading Rate with Comprehension.

While the control group showed no significant gains on the Gates Test, the treatment group made statistically significant gains (p<.05) from pretest scores of 22.5 to post scores of 25.8.  Although both groups showed improvement at the significant level on the Lexia Test, the treatment group having access to Reading Plus® made significant gains on the Visagraph GLE (5.1 to 6.5) and Reading Rate (168.4 to 182), while the control group made no measurable gain.

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Shelley-Tremblay, John. & Authelet, Ann.  “Reading Plus National Research Project; Golden West High School Study Overview 2005-2006.”  Preliminary report of a controlled study involving high school students, March 2007.

Summary
A total of 182 high school students from Golden West High School in Visalia, California participated as part of this national study evaluating the effectiveness of Reading Plus®. Those in the treatment group considered in the final analysis received at least 40 sessions of Reading Plus®, which included PAVE™, Word Memory™, Cloze Plus™, Reading Around Words™, and Comprehension Power™, and at least 30 lessons in Guided Reading™. The control group used a literature book by McDougal Littell and both groups spent equal time in reading instruction.

The results show that the treatment group students, who were shown to be low achievers, made a significant improvement in reading (p=.012) over the control group after pre and post testing on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests. The treatment group also showed substantial improvement in visual/functional and perceptual skills after pre and post testing with the Visagraph®, with an average two year grade level gain and fewer fixations and regressions. Reading rate was also shown to have substantially increased in both Visagraph® recordings and in Part B of Guided Reading™. The control group’s gain was slight, with an average half year grade level gain and little improvement in reading rate, fixations and regressions.

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Tarbell, Victoria.  “National Research Project: Northeastern Junior College Overview 2006-2007.”  Preliminary report of a longitudinal study involving college students, March 2007.

Summary
Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, CO is one of nine schools participating in the longitudinal component of a national research project being conducted by Dr. John Shelley-Tremblay of the University of South Alabama, Department of Psychology. This portion of the study involves college students enrolled in remedial reading courses. The students involved made substantial gains on their Accuplacer™ scores, improving by an average of 26% over their preliminary assessment scores. This includes 57 students who engaged in Reading Plus® activities for one semester and five who continued for two semesters. The students who continued on showed much greater gains on average than did those who were in the program for a semester. A remarkable one semester gain was also seen in the 25 students who were both pre and post-tested using the Visagraph® Eye Movement Recording System. They improved their reading efficiency by an average of 4.6 Grade Level Equivalents in a single semester. The expected improvement over a year without specific training is 1.0 GLEs. Within the Reading Plus® system, the students improved their Part B, or guided slot, rate by an average of 92% while maintaining an average comprehension of 70% over an average of 43 lessons.

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Dumlao, Edwin S.  “Retaining Improved Eye Movement Efficiency using a Home-based PA/VE and Guided Reading Therapy Program.”  A thesis submitted to the faculty of the College of Optometry, Pacific University, May 2007.

Summary
This is a follow up report which involved a subset of 20 non reading-disabled adult subjects from a previous study conducted by Bragg et al. All of the subjects had previously participated in a treatment group who used Taylor Associates’ Reading Plus® (PAVE™ and Guided Reading™) for either two or four times per week. After ten weeks, all subjects had shown significant improvement in reading efficiency (see summary below). This longitudinal study investigated whether these subjects had retained their visual efficiency skills after 68 weeks post training on Reading Plus®. The subjects were evaluated with the Developmental Eye Movement test and the Visagraph® to determine reading eye movement efficiency. These recordings were then compared to data from the Bragg et al study. Factors analyzed were number of fixations, number of regressions, reading rate, and relative efficiency. The results show that all of the subjects continued to show significant improvement in reading efficiency in all factors measured (fixations: p=0.001; regressions: p=0.001; reading with comprehension rate: p=0.001). The researchers concluded that the subjects were able to maintain their reading efficiency for at least one year following training with Reading Plus®.

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Solan, Harold, A., Shelley-Tremblay, John, Larsen, S., & Mounts, J.  “Silent Word Reading Fluency & Temporal Vision Processing; Differences Between Good And Poor Readers", Journal of Behavioral Optometry, December 2006.

This study explores the relationship between students’ reading abilities, measures of temporal vision processing and silent word reading fluency. Thirty-seven 7th grade students were classified as “good” or “poor” readers via the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Comprehension tests (17 good readers and 20 disabled). Participants were then administered the Coherent Motion (CM) test for magnocellular sensitivity to evaluate their sensitivity to lateral motion, a Visagraph® eye-movement recording test to evaluate students’ silent reading fluency performance, the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) to determine students’ ability to attend to relevant visual stimuli despite distractions, the Test of Silent Word Reading Fluency (TOSWRF) to determine the speed and accuracy of with which students recognize words as lexical units, and the Rapid Automatized Naming Test (RAN) to evaluate serial naming speed of letter, numbers, objects and colors. Results showed that there was a significant difference (p<0.01) in all visual measures between these two groups of students, except in three RAN subscales.

All Visagraph® median subtest scores, recorded while students read 100 word selections, were significantly different between the good and poor readers (p<0.01). The Visagraph® results lend further support to the premise that eye-movement recordings are important for assessment of reading disabled (RD) students. Dr. Shelley-Tremblay is quoted as saying, “This study demonstrated that the Visagraph® was effective in quickly and easily measuring the degree of fluency in silent reading in terms of the number of fixations, regressions, and the reading rates of both good and poor readers. The rate of reading was significantly related to attentional ability and comprehension. For poor readers in particular, a large number of regressions is a good indicator of a broader array of reading problems.”

This study provides support that RD students may, beyond phonological impediments, also be deficient in visual temporal processing. Additional investigations are recommended to explore benefits of training temporal vision processing sub-skills as a means of developing competency and fluency in silent reading.

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Bragg, S., Hartman, T., & Pham, T.  “Evaluation of a Computerized, Home-based PA/VE and Guided Reading Therapy Program and Its Influences on Reading Performance in an Adult Population.”  A thesis submitted to the faculty of the College of Optometry, Pacific University, May 2005.

Summary
This study involved 53 non reading-disabled adult subjects who exhibited varying reading efficiency levels after being tested on the Developmental Eye Movement test and the Visagraph® Eye-Movement Recording System. A control group was used as well as two treatment groups: one using Taylor Associates’ Reading Plus® four times per week, and the other using Reading Plus® twice a week. Both treatment groups used the Reading Plus® programs PAVE™ and Guided Reading™ for ten weeks.

All subjects were mid-tested on the Visagraph® after five weeks and post tested on the Visagraph® after ten weeks. (Note that Taylor Associates does not recommend such short intervals of training). Results showed that in comparison to the control group, the treatment group who used Reading Plus® twice a week showed significant improvement in the reduction of fixations (p=0.0383) and increased reading rate (p=0.0261). The treatment group who used Reading Plus® four times a week showed significant improvement in all three measures of reading efficiency with reduced fixations (p<0.0001) and regressions (p=0.0001), and increased reading rate (p=0.0001). Furthermore, this treatment group also produced the greatest improvement in reducing the number of fixations and regressions.

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Solan, Harold, A. “Visual and Auditory Processing in Reading Disability: A Matter of Cognitive Dissonance.”  Journal of Optometric Vision Development 35; Spring 2004, pp. 16-21.

Summary
This is a review of several research studies conducted on students with reading disabilities.  In most of the studies mentioned in this article, students used Taylor Associates PAVE™ for visual attention therapy sessions.  In one study, Taylor Associates Guided Reading™ was used in addition to PAVE™ to improve oculomotor performance and fluency in silent reading.  Pre and post tests to determine gains made in reading included the Woodcock-Johnson Reading Mastery Test, the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test, the Cognitive Assessment Test, the Gray Oral Reading Test, and the Coherent Motion Threshold Test.  The author concludes that based on the results of these studies, visual attention therapy to improve magnocellular (M-cell) processing has a profound effect on reading comprehension in the treatment of reading disabilities.

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Tran, Kim, Cui Yu (Daniel), Okumura, Tomohito, & Laukkanen, Hannu.  “Effectiveness of an On-line Computerized Eye Movement Training Program to Improve Oculomotor Control in Adult Readers: A Pilot Study.”  Journal of Behavioral Optometry 15; No. 5, 2004, pp.115-121. 

Summary
This study was conducted on eight adults between the ages of 24 and 35.  Five subjects in the treatment group completed ten weeks of Reading Plus and the other three were placed in a control group with no intervention.  Both groups were pre and post tested with the Visagraph for fixations, regressions, span of recognition, duration of fixations, reading rate with comprehension, and reading comprehension.  After post testing on the Visagraph, results indicated greater improvement on all of the measurable categories listed above for the treatment group, while the control group showed very little change.

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Solan, Harold, A., Shelley-Tremblay, John, Hansen, Peter, C., Silverman, Michael, E., Larson, Steven, & Ficarra, Anthony.  “M-Cell deficit and reading disability: a preliminary study of the effects of temporal vision-processing therapy.”  Optometry 75; No. 10, October 2004, pp.640-650.

Summary
This study involved 16 seventh grade students from a New York City school who were defined as moderately disabled readers after being tested on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test.  Their mean grade equivalent (GE) on the comprehension subset of this test was 4.48.  The Coherent Motion Threshold Test indicated that almost all of the students had M-Cell (magnocellular) deficit with an average of 6.88%.  The Gray Oral Reading Test indicated that students were reading on average 131.81 w.p.m. and on the Woodcock-Johnson Word Attack Test, their mean scaled score was 8.63.  During the fifteen 45 minute, once a week therapy sessions, students used Taylor Associates PAVE™ in addition to other therapeutic procedures for M-Cell deficit, and Taylor Associates Guided Reading™ to improve reading fluency. (It should be noted that Taylor Associates recommends a minimum of 40 sessions, two to three times per week.) Results showed significant improvement on all post tests, with the Gates Test (p=0.001) average GE increase to 6.52, and the Coherent Motion Threshold Test (p=0.011) down to 4.98%.  The students’ average w.p.m. increased to 160 on the Gray Oral Reading Test (p=0.002) as well as achieving 11.19 mean scaled score increase on the Woodcock-Johnson Test (p=0.001). This study concludes that through temporal vision therapy, reading disabled students with M-Cell deficit can improve magnocellular processing and reading comprehension skills.

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Solan, H. A., Larson, S., Shelley-Tremblay, J., Ficcara, A., & Silverman, M. “Effect of Attention Therapy on Reading Comprehension.” Journal of Learning Disabilities 36, November/December 2003, pp. 556-563.

Summary
The purpose of this study was to determine if visual attention therapy had any influence on improvement in reading comprehension of 6^th graders with moderate reading disabilities.  Thirty students from New York City schools were divided up equally into  treatment and control groups.  The fifteen students in the treatment group received individual attention therapy in 12 one- hour sessions of Taylor Associates PAVE™ and  Computerized Perceptual Therapy  Program developed by Dr. Sidney Groffman.  The control group did not receive any intervention during the 12 week period.  Each group was pre and post tested with the comprehension subtest of the Gates MacGinitie Reading Test and the attention subtest of the Cognitive Assessment System (Naglieri & Das).   The treatment group made significant gains on both the comprehension (p<.05) (GE 4.1 to GE 5.2) and attention test (p<.01) (95 to113).  The control group showed no significant improved in either comprehension (GE 4.3 to GE 4.4) or attention (94 to 106).  This study supports the findings that visual attention therapy can have a beneficial effect on reading comprehension of those with reading disabilities. 

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National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2000).   Report of the National Reading Panel. "Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and its Implications for Reading Instruction.” Report of the Sub-Groups (MIH Publication No. 00-4754). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Summary
This report reviews and assesses scientific research on reading instruction conducted by the National Reading Panel and various other researchers.  In the chapter on fluency, it describes how eye movement research in the past “has provided a perspective from which to observe the fluent reading process.”  Through studies of eye movement measures by Taylor and other researchers, it was found that fluent readers make fewer fixations, shorter duration of fixations, and fewer regressions than those of poor readers.  Taylor’s norms for ocular motor behavior with over 12,000 students were cited.     

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Stevens, David A. “Leveraging Technology to Improve Test Scores: A Case Study of Low-Income Hispanic Students.” Presented at the International Conference on Learning with Technology, March 8, 2000.

Summary
The study was conducted at Tornillo Elementary School, located near El Paso, TX, which implemented a program of Taylor Associates’ Guided Reading™ and Lexia’s Phonics Based Reading in 1996. Tornillo, located three miles from the Mexican border, has a student population of 98% Hispanic, and more than 96% are economically disadvantaged. The study encompassed 33 students who received training with a combination of Guided Reading™ and Lexia, compared with 37 students in prior years who received traditional reading instruction. According to Stevens, “In both the math and reading portions of TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skills), the students who participated in the intervention curriculum demonstrated statistically significant higher gain scores (p<.05) than the students who participated in the traditional curriculum.”

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Schlange, D., Patel, H., & Caden, B. “Evaluation of the Reading Plus 2000 and Visagraph System as a Remedial Program for academically ‘at risk’ Sixth and Eighth Grade Students: A Pilot Study.” Optometry and Vision Science 76, poster 11, 1999.

Summary
This study was conducted at Shields Elementary school in Chicago. At-risk students were assigned to receive instruction with Taylor Associates Reading Plus System. Each student received three sessions per week of PAVE™ and Guided Reading™ for a total of 40 sessions, in addition to their regular classroom instruction.  All students received a pre-and post instruction analysis with the Visagraph® and Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS). Results showed that students in the 6th and 8th grade who received training with Reading Plus® made significant improvements (p<.001) with a gain of 0.9 and 2.3 levels in their GLE as measured by the Visagraph®, respectively. In addition the 6^th and 8th graders had a significant average ITBS gain of 1 year 5 months (p<.001) as compared to the school’s average student gain of 1 year 1 month. Beyond the reading gains, students also improved in visual skills, reducing instances in which the two eyes performed differently in terms of binocular coordination (p<.0005). Schlange concluded that the Reading Plus and Visagraph systems are an effective remedial program for “at risk” elementary students, improving both reading and visual/functional skills.

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Schlange, D., Scharre, J., & Caden, B. “Evaluation of an Eye Movement Recording Technique in a Population of Autistic Children.”  Optometry and Vision Science 74, poster 27, 1997.

Summary
The purpose of this study was to evaluate TA's Visagraph® II for recording fixations and saccades in autistic children. The study suggested that that this technique has clinical value for evaluating eye-movement skills in a population of autistic children. Guidelines are provided to assist the clinician in interpreting the results and integrating them with data from other members of the interdisciplinary team.

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Solan, Harold A., Feldman, Jerome, & Tujak, Laura. “Developing Visual and Reading Efficiency in Older Adults,” Optometry and Vision Science 72, No. 2, 1995, pp. 139-145.

Summary
This study involved twenty subjects, ages 62 to 75 from the New York Metropolitan area who had corrective Snellen visual acuity of at least 20-30 with no known oculo-motor anomalies. Eye movement recordings were taken before and after a program of reading efficiency development. Subjects were assigned to either a control/training group (those given an 8 week nonintervention period followed by reading efficiency training) or training group (those with the reading efficiency training). Twenty training sessions involving Taylor Associates’ PAVE™: Perceptual Accuracy/Visual Efficiency and Guided Reading™ programs as well as tachistoscopic training and React training were provided.  The training group was given such reading efficiency training for eight weeks (16 sessions) and then were tested again.  (It should be noted that Taylor Associates  recommends a minimum of 40 sessions.)  The control/training group was tested after eight weeks and then some members received similar reading efficiency training for eight weeks beyond the control period and were tested again. Results revealed a statistically significant (fixations: p=0.012; regressions; p=0.004; average span of recognition: p=0.012) and clinically meaningful improvement of all aspects of reading efficiency for all members who received such reading efficiency training. The recommendation in this report was that reading efficiency training be stressed to a greater extent at all age levels.

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Gelzer, Austin, & Santore, Nicholas J. “A Comparison of Various Reading Improvement Approaches.” Journal of Educational Research 61, No. 6, February, 1968.

Summary
The purpose of this study was to compare a number of devices and practices commonly used to increase rate and comprehension in secondary level reading programs. Specifically, a comparison of the Controlled Reader using its left-to-right guided slot was made with devices and practices providing timed pacing only. One group used Taylor’s EDL Controlled Reader with a “guided left to right window”; the second group was trained with the Controlled Reader with open or “free reading” window; the third used the Shadowscope Accelerator with a downward moving band of light; the fourth used the Rateometer; and the fifth used Timed Reading. The subjects were 159 ninth-grade students. The authors concluded that while all techniques produced significant increases in rate scores at the end of the training period, the group using the Controlled Reader with the guided slot showed the greatest retention of rate gain eleven months after training.  It was also noted that in a comparison of reading performance as measured by eye-movement photography, the Controlled Reader (guided slot) group showed the greatest improvement with a .01 level of significant difference in fixations and regressions versus no significant change in the other groups. The Controlled Reader group also showed a significant gain in reading rate (.01), and comprehension (.05).

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Taylor, S. E. “National Study of Fluency in the Primary Grades, Phase II Final Report - School Years 1978-81.” Monograph No. 11, 1981. Huntington, New York: Instructional/Communication Technology, Inc., p. 29.

Summary
A national study of 2,904 students in 1st and 2nd grades was conducted in two Phases from 1976-1981. Phase I was conducted from 1976-78 and sampled the visual-functional, perceptual, and other reading behaviors of 1^st and 2^nd grade children who received instruction with conventional basal reading programs. Phase II was conducted from 1978-81 and it compared the reading performance of students who received instrument training with Taylor’s earlier projection programs: Guided Reading Visual Fluency Training (timed scanning of numbers and letters), Guided Reading Word Fluency Training (timed scanning of basal words), Tach-Mate Perceptual Accuracy Training (flashing of number and letters), Guided Reading of stories from the school’s basal reader series for Grade 1, and Taylor’s Guided Reading™ selections in Grade 2.  Results showed that first graders who received instrument training (Phase II) read a 100 word basal reader passage 28 words per minute faster (123 wpm compared to 95 wpm) than students who received instruction with a traditional basal reading program. The second grade Phase II students read 24 words per minute faster (143 wpm compared to 119 wpm) than second graders who only received instruction with a conventional basal reading program.

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Taylor, Earl A. The Fundamental Reading Skill as Related to Eye-Movement Photography and Visual Anomalies. (Second Edition) Springfield, Illinois: Charles C. Thomas, 1966.

Summary
The author points out the necessity for teaching the total process of reading: the interpretive skills as well as development of the fundamental reading skill. He explains how the usual procedures (used by teachers and specialists) and the use of educational instrument techniques can increase the reading and overall functional efficiency of the majority of pupils. Thirty-two case studies describing the improvement that can be produced through instrument training techniques are included.

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Witham, Anthony Patrick. “An Investigation of a Controlled Reading Technique with Eighth Grade Students.” A Dissertation for Ed.D. Degree, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, 1966. ERIC Reading Review 7046, Supplement 1.

Summary
This is a comparison study over a ten-week training period which involved two groups: 1) an instrument-oriented group utilizing Taylor’s Controlled Reading program two to five times per week with a total average of 33 sessions and 2) a material-oriented group. Post-study measurements indicated significant differences in favor of the instrument-oriented group in the following areas: speed and accuracy (p<.01), vocabulary, (p<.05), fixations (p<.01), regressions (p<.01), and rate of reading (p<.01). Significant differences (p<.01) also appeared in favor of the instrument-oriented group over the control group after a fourteen-week interval following the training program in all areas other than vocabulary and level of comprehension.

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Waldstreicher, Joel S. “Educational Rehabilitation and Visual Education – An Integrated Approach.” The Optical Journal and Review of Optometry, May 1, 1962.

Summary
The author describes the procedures used at the Reading and Study Skills Center in New York City found to be effective for the individual with educational or vocational problems. The program of instruction is designed to re-educate the students with regard to their fundamental reading and learning skills through instrument training techniques; specifically, increased comprehension, better organization and more rapid interpretation of thoughts, improved directional attack, more orderly perception, heightened attention and concentration, more efficient binocular coordination and motility, and much greater skill and comfort in reading.

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Warren, Mary Bay. “The Massapequa Junior High School Reading Program.” Journal Of Developmental Reading 5, Summer 1962, pp. 245-255.

Summary
An experiment comparing the results of two reading programs – one machine oriented, the other using no mechanical devices – at Massapequa, New York, is described. In the pilot program two groups of twenty-five students of average ability were selected from two junior high schools. The Iowa Silent Reading Test, Form AM, and eye-movement photographs taken with the Reading Eye camera were used to check the subjects’ reading skills. Both groups were then given a seven-week, twenty-one-session course including verbal and nonverbal perceptual training, vocabulary development, timed reading exercises with comprehension quizzes, and discussion of their reading. The non-instrument group used only workbooks and regularly printed materials and received additional training in the SQ3R reading technique. The instrument group was trained with the EDL Controlled Reader. At the end of the training, Form B of the Iowa Test was administered and eye movements were re-photographed. Excellent gains were reported for both groups, but the instrument group achieved significantly higher gains in both reading rate and comprehension (.01) than the non-instrument group.

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Bottomly, Forbes. “An Experiment with the Controlled Reader.” Journal of Educational Research 54, No. 7, March, 1961.

Summary
This experiment involved 460 pupils in the fifth and eighth grades of two Spokane elementary schools; one from an upper-middle socioeconomic neighborhood and the other from an upper-lower socioeconomic neighborhood. The researchers concluded that the Taylor Controlled Reader fluency development program demonstrated promise for inclusion in the regular developmental reading program. Its major points of potential for the Spokane schools were to 1) boost reading speed, 2) use with average or better achievers who do not read sufficiently rapidly, 3) include as a natural element of the long-term developmental reading program, and 4) boost reading speed of pupils in the lower socioeconomic areas. Interestingly, post-test gains five months after the conclusion of the Controlled Reading program students continued to gain in reading rate, demonstrating the existence of latent gain and the long-term benefits of Controlled Reading.

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Taylor, S. E., Frackenpohl, H., & Pettee, J. L. (1960). “Grade Level Norms for the Components of the Fundamental Reading Skill.” Research and Information Bulletin, 3, Huntington, NY: Educational Development Laboratories, Inc.

Summary
This is a norm study with over 12,000 students participating in grades 1 through 6, junior high, high school, and college level from schools throughout the United States.  The Reading Eye Camera was used to record the students’ fixations, regressions, average span of recognition, average duration of fixation, and rate with comprehension (in wpm).  Data was analyzed and charted to represent the mean performance by grade levels.  Personnel from thirty-nine colleges and universities assisted in the recording of eye-movement and analysis of the data.  This study was cited by the National Reading Panel in their 2000 Reports of the Subgroups, “Teaching Children to Read.”

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Witzeman, B. Evangeline. “An Experimental Study Using the Opthalm-O-Graph and Metron-O-Scope in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Reading Defects.” Journal of Psychology 11, 1941, pp. 307-34.

Summary
This study set out to evaluate the Opthalm-O-Graph (a binocular eye-movement Camera) and the Metron-O-Scope (a device for providing controlled reading), developed by Earl A. Taylor, as remedial reading instruments. The subjects were 400 students from Buchtel High School in Akron, Ohio. In addition to standardized test measures (Iowa Silent Reading Test and Monroe Standardized Silent Reading Tests, the Opthalm-O-Graph was used to take eye movement photographs of the subjects at the beginning and end of the experiments. The evidence after completion of the training indicated that use of the Metron-O-Scope provided significant improvement in reading rate and comprehension in the experimental groups over that achieved by the control groups. There was also significant improvement in reading performance as reflected in a reduction in the number of fixations measured by the Opthalm-O-Graph

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Taylor, Earl A. Controlled Reading: A Correlation of Diagnostic, Teaching and Corrective Techniques. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1937.

Summary
This study concludes that Controlled Reading training can be effective when teaching a student to read with speed and comprehension. The mechanical process should be controlled and developed simultaneously with the interpretative process. When comparing an experimental group trained with the Metron-O-Scope to a control group, the experimental group evidenced a more efficient method of attacking print as measured by the Opthalmagraph Eye-Movement Recording System, as well as higher comprehension scores on standardized tests.

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