The Impact of a Literacy Intervention Program on Student Achievement and Behavior at Two Urban High Schools.

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of a literacy intervention program on student achievement and behavior at two urban high schools. Two groups were identified and the sample was a convenience sample for this study. One group of students is not enrolled in the intervention program, while the other group of students is enrolled in the literacy intervention program. The study will examine the correlation between improved reading ability, academic achievement, and student behavior. Student achievement is defined by credits earned towards graduation, A-G credits earned, and results of the California Standardized Test and California High School Exam. Student behavior is defined by student attendance and suspension data. The literacy intervention program used in this study was structured to provide research-based instructional strategies to improve reading and is aligned to the scientific-based reading research which incorporates the five elements of effective reading instruction (phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension). The primary foci of this study are those students deficient in reading who lacked grade-level reading skills and the impact of a literacy intervention program on these students over one academic year.