Pennsylvania School District Uses Horizons to Give At-Risk Readers Foundation for Success

This descriptive study profiles the implementation of McGraw Hill's Direct Instruction at Muhlenberg Elementary Center in Laureldale, Pennsylvania. The school, serving 1,250 students in grades K-5, used the program to support at-risk students in grades 1 and 2. Students who struggled with reading at the end of Kindergarten were placed in separate classrooms for intensive reading instruction with McGraw Hill's Direct Instruction. The goal was to transition these students back to the regular education classroom by Grade 3. The study examined the percentage of these students who maintained or increased their scores on the Terra Nova reading test. From 2002, the year students transitioned out of the program, to 2005, the percentage of students maintaining or improving their scores jumped from 45% to 67%. The school continued using the program for at-risk readers even after the initial grant funding ended.