The Most Effective Fluency Strategies to Use in the Classroom

Abstract

Many adolescent students have often struggled with reading fluently which hindered other aspects of literacy, such as comprehension. Therefore, it was necessary that elementary school teachers used more effective fluency strategies to remove this deficit in middle and high school. To address this problem the principal investigator asked the question, “What are the most effective fluency strategies that elementary teachers can use in the classroom?” Since technology has been an up-and-coming feature in the classroom, specific studies that focused on technology-based fluency strategies were selected along with repeated reading, peer-assisted tutoring, and Readers Theatre. Studies had taken place only in the elementary classroom (grades one through six). After a review of the literature and a research synthesis, it was found that technology-based fluency strategies contributed to student motivation and contained a student-centered approach, more so than the other fluency strategies. Improvements in reading fluency were also noticed with the technology-based fluency strategies. These findings formed the basis of a professional development project presented through a workshop for elementary school teachers (grades one through six). Technology-based fluency strategies were explained and practiced during the workshop, and then implemented in the classroom.