2. Technology has a wide variety of uses in the classroom and can be used for a wide variety of subject areas. When used as a supplement to classroom instruction, technology can be a great asset to students and teachers. These technologies have been more successful in some subject areas than others. Experts have noticed that for reading assistance and instructions, technology has been slow to catch on. This presentation examines three articles that study different technology options available for learning and teaching reading. In “Technology Infusion in Success for All: Reading Outcomes for First Graders” (Chambers et al.), the authors examine embedded multimedia and computer-assisted tutoring, both of which are approaches that combine technology with beginning reading. In “Assistive Technology in the Reading Clinic : Its Emerging Potential” (McKenna and Walpole), the authors examine assistive technology in the reading clinic setting. In “Exploring the New Literacies Using Two New Approaches: The Schoolwide Enrichment Model in Reading and Renzulli Learning” (Reis and Field), the authors explore the combination of two new programs, The Schoolwide Enrichment Model in Reading and a Internet-program called Renzulli Learning.

4. Success For All also uses computer-assisted tutoring to help students learn to read. The program that they use, Alphie’s Alley, is used “…to increase program fidelity by assisting tutors and students in each of the three phases of tutoring, planning, instruction, and assessment” (Chambers et al., 2008, p. 5). It also uses embedded multimedia to increase student motivation and learning. Alphie’s Alley helps both the students and the tutors. For the students, it performs an assessment which tailors a program that contains multimedia screens with tasks. These tasks help students build their reading skills. For the tutors, it provides tutor training, monitors student progress, and provides them with strategies for adapting instruction. These resources on Alphie’s Alley gives the tutors as much or as little support as they need (Chambers et al, 2008, p. 6). The authors evaluated the combination of embedded multimedia and Alphie’s Alley and thought they would see that students that used these supplemental technologies would perform better on standardized tests. They examined two schools that already used the Success for All program, therefore the only difference between the two groups was the use of technology. The groups they examined were high poverty and mostly non-white, along with a large percentage of English learners. Their studies found students who received the experimental technology did better on the posttest and the authors conclude that their study provides support that computer-assisted tutoring is beneficial in teaching reading (Chambers et al., 2008, 6).