Program Description
Intelligent Tutoring for the Structure Strategy (ITSS) is a web-based reading comprehension program that teaches students to use the organization of nonfiction texts to identify and remember important information. Students learn common text structures, including comparison, problem and solution, cause and effect, sequence, and description, and use signaling words to identify main ideas, organize information, and monitor comprehension. Students work individually with an animated tutor that models strategies, provides practice and feedback, and allows them to progress through lessons at their own pace. ITSS is typically used as a partial substitute for regular language arts instruction for 30 to 45 minutes per week.
Program Outcomes
ITSS has been evaluated in three randomized studies involving students in Grades 4, 5, and 7 in rural and suburban schools. One study evaluated ITSS with more than 2,000 fourth-grade students, and a second included 2,485 fifth-grade students in 128 classrooms across 45 schools. In both studies, classrooms were randomly assigned to use ITSS or continue with regular language arts instruction, and outcomes were assessed after 6 to 7 months of implementation. On the Gray Silent Reading Test, the effect was positive but not statistically significant in Grade 4, with an effect size = +0.10, and significant in Grade 5, with an effect size = +0.20.
A third randomized study included 2,489 seventh-grade students in 108 classrooms across 25 rural and suburban schools. Teachers and their classrooms were randomly assigned within schools to use ITSS or continue with regular language arts instruction. Teacher aides supported computer lab setup and monitored implementation during ITSS sessions. After 6 to 7 months, students using ITSS scored significantly higher on the Gray Silent Reading Test, with an effect size = +0.18. These results qualify ITSS for a Strong rating and a badge for having multiple Strong studies.
Staffing Requirements
System administrator – part-time
Professional Development/Training
The developers offer 2 days for teachers and school leaders followed by 4 in-school coaching sessions. In the research, the developers generated biweekly reports for the teachers showing student progress, contacted teachers when usage was below the recommended amount, and responded to technology and software challenges via phone or school visit to resolve the issues. Similar levels of support should be included if outcomes like those in the research are to be attained.
Technology
Web-based