Title:

Influence of Soliloquy Reading Assistant on Reading Fluency in Elementary Students 

Presenter:

Paula Whitmer 

Short Description:

This session will focus on the effects of using this software in pilot sites in Fayette County during the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years. 

Category:

Classroom 

Length:

1 hour(s)

Skill Level:

Novice 

Long Description:

The five essential components of reading instruction focus on phonemic awareness, phonics, comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency. Fluency is one area which is often given less attention to than the other areas, but yet is an important skill. Initial instruction in fluency needs to be consistently reinforced until the child matures. This can be a very time-intensive activity for the teacher and the student. Soliloquy Reading Assistant software was developed to support students as they continue to practice their reading fluency skills. The software uses voice-recognition software to guide and support the student as they continue to grow in their fluency skills. This session will focus on the effects of using this software in pilot sites in Fayette County during the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years. Action research results will be shared with the participants. There will also be a brief demonstration of the software. 

ISTE Standards:

NETS-T: II-A, B, D, E; III-A, B, D NETS-S: III 

Research:

Soliloquy Reading Assistant is only a year old, so there is not much, if any, data available. So last year 2003-2004, I conducted a small action research project using a control and test second grade classroom. The posttest results showed a higher increase in reading fluency abilities of the test group compared with the control group (20.9 words correct per minute vs. 14.9 words correct per minute). This year, I am using students from two different schools and two new grade levels. This presentation will include the results of this action research.