Accelerated Reader

Accelerated Reader is a computerized program that assess comprehension of a book that a student has a read. With the computerized program, students are given a goal that consists of how many points they need a certain time span along with their reading level. The books are leveled and points are assigned depending on how many difficult the book is. After a student reads a book, they take a test to see how well they comprehend the book. Teachers can access the quiz grades and keep track on how well the students are doing with percent correct on tests and percent of goal points. Nunnery, Ross and McDonald (2006) report that according to the National Clearinghouse on Comprehensive School Reform (NCCSR) in 2004, more than 65,000 US schools had implemented Accelerated Reader. The research shows there are trends that show positive effects of using the accelerated reader program as well as negative effects. According to Smith and Westberg (2011) the Accelerated Reader (AR) program was designed by Renaissance Learning to increase students’ motivation to read and students’ achievement in reading; however, a review of the literature reveals …show more content…
Students are able to choose books that interest them on their level. When they are able to read the books that interest them, they will spend more time reading. According to Pappas, Skinner, & Skinner (2010), allowing students to choose reading material may enhance their engagement because students often choose material that they find interesting. Martin-Palmer, Codling, and Gambrell (1994) reports that 75% of the participants in their study chose books according to personal interests. When asked to talk about the most interesting books they had read, the participants repeatedly discussed the books they had chosen themselves. Moyer and Williams (2011) found that implementing AR in a high school, library usage and the student contact with librarian