Ian Egan 
New Technology Helps Drive Impressive Gains for Orange Township Students
Orange Township Public School students achieved impressive gains this academic year. This reading proficiency may be attributed to an investment in the innovative reading technology, Reading Plus.
Reading Plus developed a system from the three domains of reading (physical, cognitive, and emotional) by integrating them in one personalized online reading program. Rooted in eight decades of research, Reading Plus is reported to increase achievement in students from elementary grades through college.
Developed by the Taylor family, Reading Plus has been involved in designing and producing innovative reading assessments and instructional technology to improve silent reading proficiency since the early 20th century. Brothers Earl, James, and Carl Taylor started the tradition in the 1930s with pioneering research and groundbreaking inventions that have helped millions of students become more fluent readers. In the latter half of the century, Earl’s son, Stanford Taylor, and later his son, Mark Taylor, carried on the tradition with ongoing developments that led to the current web-based version of silent reading interventions.
Students who used the Reading Plus personalized online reading program as recommended (30+ hours) achieved one and a half to two grade level gains in reading over the course of seven months. Reading Plus Progress Reports indicate that the program had a significant positive effect on students at all grade levels.
“Independent reading can have a powerful effect on literacy achievement,” explained Karen Harris, Director of English Language Arts and Testing, Orange Board of Education. “Reading Plus provides real-time assessments and actionable data so critical to personalizing reading education and developing successful independent readers.”
Harris added, “We found that the more lessons the students completed, the greater their academic achievement.”
For more information about the Orange Township Public School District visit www.orange.k12.nj.us/. For more information about Reading Plus visit www.readingplus.com.
Reading Plus Contact:
Stacy Pearson
Triumph Educational Solutions
C: 615.516.2258
E: stacy.pearson@readingplus.com
Further Reading
- The Guardian – Out with the old school? The rise of ed tech in the classroom
- EdSurge – How Edtech Developers Design Around ‘Screen Fatigue’
- The Economist – Together, technology and teachers can revamp schools
