I-ready is an adaptive computer program that assesses students and provides them with individualized instruction on their current level of ability. Teachers have access to a wide variety of reports ranging from standards mastery reports, growth reports, skill reports and parent reports. In addition, teachers can print scripted lessons for each student AND for each skill they are currently working on. Teachers can also use the program to group their students to form small group instruction. Once the students are grouped by ability and/or need, the lessons are provided with one click of the mouse.
I-ready’s adaptive nature is based on a theory developed by Georg Rasch in 1960. By using the Rasch Equation, it is possible to calculate the probability of success that a student of a certain ability would have with an item of a certain difficulty. In addition, i-ready meets the rigor of the Common Core Standards in an engaging, high-interest manner. The students earn tokens that can be used in the virtual game room as they successfully complete lessons. The recommended usage of i-ready is thirty minutes per day per student.
With an adaptive computer program that offers so much to teachers and students, it hard to imagine how utilization could not improve student performance. Perhaps that is the opinion of the School District of Palm Beach County because they purchased this program for every elementary school in the district for the 2016-2017 school year for the hefty price tag of six million dollars. However, as with everything, the program will only be as effective as the fidelity of implementation.
The four schools I support used this program last year. I have yet to see another program that is in better alignment with the demands of our new standards. In addition, I have never seen a program that offers more resources to teachers. Along with all of the benefits of this program, I have also observed a number of teachers who do not realize the contributions this program can make to their instruction. Some teachers use this program simply as a tool to keep their students busy. They do not pull the reports nor track their students’ progress. Some teachers want to devote more time to the program, but simply do not have the time to dive into the different facets of the program. Other teachers just roll their eyes when you mention i-ready because it is one more thing added to their “to-do” list.
I do, however, have one teacher who took on i-ready with enthusiasm and 100% effort. She taught her 18 Kindergarten students to alert her whenever they saw the word “congratulations” on their screen. She realized that each time the students successfully completed a lesson, they received the “congratulations” screen. I loved watching their little faces excitedly raise their hand when they experienced success. She then tracked their progress (see chart below) and added lessons to their account that she felt they needed. In addition, she printed the suggested lesson plans for each student to use while she conferred with her Kindergarteners. As a result of her innovate use of this new program, 17/18 of her students were reading on or above grade-level by the end of the year. That is not easy when you consider the high-demands placed on our Kindergarten students (in case you are not familiar with our little ones – the days of playing in the kitchen center in Kindergarten are over). By incorporating the four Cs of creativity, communication, critical thinking, and collaboration, this teacher promotes twenty-first-century pedagogy all day long! In fact, she has created a classroom of super readers!
As technology advances,the benefits will only be as effective as its implementation. I hope that the School District of Palm Beach County takes the time to help teachers understand the “why” behind this program and really embraces the necessary change that we need to occur. I fear that rushed implementation will lead to the improper usage of this valuable program. After I have seen how i-ready can help students make the necessary advances to compete in a global society, we owe it to them to take the time and make our classrooms ready for i-ready.