Project REAL (Results through Early Advantages in Learning) is funded by an Early Reading First grant from the US Department of Education. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of Project REAL and to provide information for program improvement. The evaluation focuses on three areas:

• Child language and literacy development
• Quality of home literacy environments
• Classroom quality

The Clayton Early Learning Institute is collaborating with four participating agencies (Clayton Family Futures, Adams County Head Start, Rocky Mountain SER, and the Community College of Denver’s Children’s College) to implement Project REAL. The study also involves a small comparison group of children and families not participating in the Project REAL. The study involves three types of data collection:

• Direct assessment of children in their classrooms. The Early Reading First intervention has an explicit focus on teachers using data about the children in their care to customize instruction so they can scaffold children’s development.  As part of this effort, two language and literacy assessments of all children in these classrooms are conducted. These assessments are administered to children in their classrooms by literacy coaches and other evaluation staff.
• Data collection home visits with families. Two evaluation staff members visit families in their homes for approximately 90 minutes. During the visit, parents complete an interview with staff, staff conduct a standardized language assessment with the child, and parents and children participate in a book reading and a free play activity. Families can earn up to $40 for participation in this part of the study.
• Observation of classrooms.  Research assistants complete the Early Language and Literacy Classroom Observation Toolkit (ELLCO: Dickinson, Sangeorge, & Anastasopoulos, 2002). This valid and reliable observation system provides information about the quality of the literacy environment in pre-kindergarten classrooms. Administration of the ELLCO involves a combination of both interviewer observation and teacher self-report during a short interview with the teacher. Results of observations are shared with Project REAL Coaches who incorporate the results into their work with teachers.

Findings from Year Two reveal the following key results:

• Child Language and Literacy Development.
  • Kindergarten-eligible children who were enrolled in Project REAL classrooms for six months or more made statistically significant gains in their PPVT-4 standard scores. On average, children increased more than five standard score points.
  • Increases over time in standard scores on the PPVT-4 were greater for children who had pretest scores that were below the test’s mean of 100. These children increased seven standard score points on average.
  • Nearly two-thirds of kindergarten-eligible children enrolled for six months or more had post-test PPVT scores in the average range (standard score of 85 or greater).
  • 80% or more of children assessed with the Preschool Language Scales (includes kindergarten-bound and younger children) earned standard score points of 85 or above.
  • Kindergarten-eligible children enrolled for six months or more could identify an average of 15 upper-case letters at the posttest.
• Home Literacy Environments. Home environments of children enrolled in the program for six months or more were good. The mean score on the HOME (Home Observation for the Measurement of the Environment, Bradley & Caldwell, 1998) for the 47 families we visited was at a level that would be described as supportive of children’s development.
• Classroom Quality and Teacher Development.
  • Classrooms scored high on average on the Literacy Environmental checklist from the ELLCO. Book Area, Book Selection, and Writing Materials were areas of strength.
  • In terms of Literacy Activities, the majority of classrooms scored high on measures of reading. Writing Activities were less frequently observed.
  • Every classroom participating in the project was rated as high quality in the area of Language, Literacy and Curriculum this year.
  • Scores on nearly all areas observed on the ELLCO improved over last year’s average scores.