White Paper: Small-Group Reading Instruction and Mastery Learning

The Missing Practices for Effective and Equitable Foundational Skills Instruction

Too often, all elements of reading instruction are taught in a whole-class setting, regardless of individual student needs.

While whole-class instruction is useful for building knowledge and for reading comprehension, it is markedly less effective — and less equitable —  for developing word recognition skills.

To ensure success, educators must implement two research-supported practices: small-group instruction and mastery learning.

This white paper unpacks the research behind each of these practices and explores how small-group, mastery-based instruction is a crucial missing
ingredient in many core reading curricula.