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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of rhythmic interventions (e.g., steady beat, rhythm production, and rhythm discrimination activities) on oral reading fluency scores of first- and second-grade music students. This study was guided by the following research questions: (1) What is the psychometric quality of the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) used in the context of measuring the oral reading fluency of first- and second-grade general music students? (2) What is the effect of rhythmic interventions on firstand second-graders’ oral reading fluency scores? and (3) What is the interaction effect between rhythmic interventions and fluency achievement? Participants included two first-grade and two second-grade elementary music classes (N = 72; male, n = 37; female, n = 35). Participants were randomly assigned into control and treatment groups in each class for first-grade (N = 34; control, n = 17; treatment, n = 17) and second-grade (N = 38; control, n = 19; treatment, n = 19). All participants were administered the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) to measure oral reading fluency ability as a pretest and posttest. Treatment groups underwent rhythmic interventions throughout seven, 45-minute sessions. After controlling for differences in students’ pretest scores, results indicated an overall statistically significant treatment effect for first-grade students and a statistically significant interaction effect for the core grouping of second-grade students. The researchers discuss Implications for implementation and advocacy.

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