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Reciprocal Reading Effectiveness Trial. Evaluation Report

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Reciprocal Reading Effectiveness Trial. Evaluation Report
Language: English
Authors: Neus Torres Blas, Emma Forsyth, Andrés Cueto, Patrick Taylor, Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) (United Kingdom)
Source: Education Endowment Foundation. 2026.
Availability: Education Endowment Foundation. 9th Floor Millbank Tower, Millbank, London, SW1P 4QP, UK. Tel: +44-207-802-1676; e-mail: info@eefoundation.org.uk; Web site: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 101
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Descriptors: Reading Strategies, Reading Instruction, Reading Programs, Reading Comprehension, Literacy, Reading Difficulties, Instructional Effectiveness, Intervention, Foreign Countries, Elementary School Students, Teaching Methods, Program Evaluation, Effect Size
Geographic Terms: United Kingdom (England)
Abstract: The Reciprocal Reading programme is a targeted intervention, developed by Fischer Family Trust Education (hereafter FFT), which aims to improve pupils' reading comprehension and, in the longer term, their overall literacy. This intervention is designed for pupils who read words accurately but often struggle to understand the meaning of what they read. It aims to develop pupils' understanding of a text through the application of four strategies--predict, clarify, question, and summarise--used repeatedly on small sections of the text, to deal with comprehension difficulties as they emerge. The intervention is delivered by trained teachers and teaching assistants for two 20-30-minute sessions per week, for a minimum of 12 weeks, to pupils in Years 5 and 6, identified as having reading comprehension difficulties using FFT's screening tool. At least 12 pupils receive the intervention in groups of four to eight, in addition to normal reading/English lessons. To support scale-up, Reciprocal Reading uses a train-the-trainer model. FFT trainers deliver the initial training and ongoing support to school staff, with a senior trainer overseeing the FFT trainers and monitoring delivery quality. The trial was conducted in 295 primary schools across England throughout the academic year 2023/2024. This large-scale effectiveness trial used a two-arm clustered randomised controlled trial, complemented by a mixed methods implementation and process evaluation (IPE). The IPE included in-depth case studies in four schools. This combined semistructured observations of Reciprocal Reading sessions, interviews with school coordinators and teachers/teaching assistants, and focus groups with pupils. It also included interviews with a sample of 20 parents of pupils in the treatment group. Pupils in the Reciprocal Reading schools made, on average, one month's additional progress, in their reading score compared to those in the control group. [This evaluation was conducted and prepared with Behavioural Insights Team (BIT).]
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: ED680981
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:The Reciprocal Reading programme is a targeted intervention, developed by Fischer Family Trust Education (hereafter FFT), which aims to improve pupils' reading comprehension and, in the longer term, their overall literacy. This intervention is designed for pupils who read words accurately but often struggle to understand the meaning of what they read. It aims to develop pupils' understanding of a text through the application of four strategies--predict, clarify, question, and summarise--used repeatedly on small sections of the text, to deal with comprehension difficulties as they emerge. The intervention is delivered by trained teachers and teaching assistants for two 20-30-minute sessions per week, for a minimum of 12 weeks, to pupils in Years 5 and 6, identified as having reading comprehension difficulties using FFT's screening tool. At least 12 pupils receive the intervention in groups of four to eight, in addition to normal reading/English lessons. To support scale-up, Reciprocal Reading uses a train-the-trainer model. FFT trainers deliver the initial training and ongoing support to school staff, with a senior trainer overseeing the FFT trainers and monitoring delivery quality. The trial was conducted in 295 primary schools across England throughout the academic year 2023/2024. This large-scale effectiveness trial used a two-arm clustered randomised controlled trial, complemented by a mixed methods implementation and process evaluation (IPE). The IPE included in-depth case studies in four schools. This combined semistructured observations of Reciprocal Reading sessions, interviews with school coordinators and teachers/teaching assistants, and focus groups with pupils. It also included interviews with a sample of 20 parents of pupils in the treatment group. Pupils in the Reciprocal Reading schools made, on average, one month's additional progress, in their reading score compared to those in the control group. [This evaluation was conducted and prepared with Behavioural Insights Team (BIT).]