Spanish-speaking English learners sometimes struggle to develope proficiency in their native language. These students need support to strengthen their Spanish language skills, enabling them to read in their first language and later transfer this ability to English literacy. Descubriendo la Lectura (DLL: Recovering Reading) is an early intervention program designed for Spanish-speaking first graders at risk of literacy failure. It provides one-on-one Spanish-language tutoring, offering tailored, individualized instruction for 30 minutes daily by trained teachers. The goal is to improve early reading and writing outcomes for the lowest-achieving English learners (ELs). Teachers track each student’s progress throughout the program and at the end of the school year, ensuring consistent, high-quality instruction.
A recent study evaluated the financial resources required to implement the DLL program for first grade EL students in public schools. The cost analysis was based on a three-year randomized control trial in 24 schools across seven districts in four U.S. states. The study involved 19 DLL teachers and 8 teacher leaders who served a total of 199 students. The data were categorized into five groups—personnel, facilities, supplies, equipment, and other inputs—to estimate the costs of implementing DLL, calculate cost-effectiveness ratios (CERs), and compare DLL’s cost-effectiveness to similar programs.
The average cost per student for DLL was $7,120, with schools serving fewer students incurring higher per-student costs, and larger schools seeing lower costs. Personnel expenses for teachers and teacher leaders accounted for 93% of the total cost. DLL’s estimated impact on the IdO (the Spanish version of the Observation Survey of Early Literacy Achievement) was substantial (ES = +0.91), and on the Logramos (the Spanish-language Iowa Test of Basic Skills) total language arts score (ES = +0.23), both statistically significant. By multiplying the impact estimates by $1,000 and dividing by the average annual per-student cost ($7,120), the CERs showed an effect size of +0.03 for Logramos and +0.13 for IdO per $1,000 invested. Thus, a 1-standard-deviation increase in achievement, as measured by IdO, costs approximately $7,824 per student, while for Logramos, it costs about $30,957 per student.
These figures align with the estimated costs of other Spanish-language literacy programs, such as Éxito Para Todos (Success for All). The findings highlight the importance of using data to customize instruction, implementing high-quality instructional materials aligned with classroom content, and fostering strong teacher-student relationships to address each student’s unique learning needs.
Source: Borman, G. D., Brodziak de los Reyes, I., Borman, T. H., Houghton, S., Park, S. J., Zhu, B., & Martin, A. (n.d.). The costs and impacts of Descubriendo la Lectura: Evidence from a multisite experimental study. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 0(0), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1080/19345747.2024.2358824