Insights Significant Reading Growth with CommonLit at Schools Eligible for Title I Funding

Students learning with CommonLit at Title I eligible schools saw significant gains in their reading abilities

CommonLit’s mission is to help all students – especially those who have been historically underserved – become proficient readers. In line with this mission, a recent study examined the reading growth of students at schools eligible for Title I funding during the 2022-2023 school year. It was found that students learning with CommonLit at Title I eligible schools experienced more reading growth and had higher increases in reading proficiency than students who did not use CommonLit at Title I eligible schools. This reading growth can be translated into 2-6 months of additional learning and increases in reading proficiency between 15-25%. 

Study Details

The study examined the reading growth of 45,988 6th-10th grade students at 252 schools that were eligible for Title I funding and had research partnerships or paid partnerships with CommonLit during the 2022-2023 school year. Reading growth was measured by comparing students’ beginning and end of year scores on the CommonLit Assessment Series, which has been shown to be positively correlated with other state assessments. Therefore, students were only included in the sample if they completed the CommonLit Assessment Series.

Key Finding #1: CommonLit usage predicted reading growth among students at Title I eligible schools

Students learning with CommonLit at Title I eligible schools saw higher reading gains compared to students who did not use CommonLit at Title I eligible schools (see Figure 1). This relationship was statistically significant even after controlling for important factors such as students’ baseline assessment scores, demographics, grade level, and classroom effects. Looking at these findings another way, students who used CommonLit gained 2-6 additional months of learning compared to students who did not use CommonLit. 

Figure 1. The graph shows the effect size of the reading growth of students at schools eligible for Title I funding, in standard deviation units. 

Key Finding #2: Students learning with CommonLit at Title I eligible schools had higher increases in reading proficiency

Results also showed that students learning with CommonLit at Title I eligible schools had higher increases in reading proficiency than students who did not use CommonLit at Title I eligible schools. At Title I eligible schools, students who used CommonLit saw increases in reading proficiency anywhere from 15% to 25%. 

Figure 2. Percent increases in proficiency among students at schools eligible for Title I funding. ​​Students' scores on the Assessment Series may be categorized as “Proficient” (on grade level or above grade level) or “Not Proficient” (below/approaching grade level). 

These findings align not only to CommonLit’s mission of helping all students become proficient readers, but they also support the program’s effectiveness with that goal. With 7 out of 10 students in the US not reading at proficient levels according to the latest NAEP Nation’s Report Card, this mission is an increasingly critical one.