School-Level Matthew Effects in Reading: An Analysis of Within-Year Benchmark Data
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Date
2022-10-04
Authors
Harman, Melissa
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Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
The Matthew Effect is an educational theory that children who begin their academic careers with lower reading scores do not catch up to their peers, instead falling farther and farther behind as their schooling progresses. This study includes a hierarchical multiple-regression analysis of within-year benchmark data for the presence of Matthew Effects in literacy. School mean and median school reading scores for three DIBELS measures: oral reading fluency, word reading fluency, and nonsense word fluency were analyzed. The sample included schools in the DIBELS data system which completed universal screening during the 2018-2019 school year for their second-grade students. The analysis of school scores compared schools with above average proportions of historically under-resourced student populations to better understand systematic inequalities in education, specifically including groups identified by the Department of Education as experiencing achievement gaps. Findings were not statistically significant, meaning schools that served above average proportions of racially underrepresented students or students living in poverty did not have significant differences in beginning of year DIBELS scores nor beginning to end of year change in scores. Limitations and future directions are addressed.
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Keywords
Benchmark, DIBELS, Matthew Effect, Reading