Congratulations to Chad Thompson who on August 14, 2026, successfully defended his dissertation proposal.
The title of his dissertation is, "EVALUATING THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MCLASS ASSESSMENT SYSTEM AND GRADE 2 READING ACHIEVEMENT IN AN INDEPENDENT SCHOOL: A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL COHORT STUDY."
The abstract of this study follows:
Overview of Problem: Reading proficiency established during the primary grades provides the foundation for later academic achievement and long-term educational success. Despite the increasing adoption of Science of Reading (SoR)-aligned instructional practices, variability in early literacy outcomes persists, underscoring the need to evaluate assessment systems designed to support data-informed instruction. Although the mClass assessment system is widely used to inform literacy instruction, empirical evidence regarding its implementation and association with student reading outcomes remains limited, particularly in independent school settings.
Research Purpose: Grounded in the Simple View of Reading (SVR) theoretical framework, this quantitative study examines the association between the implementation of the mClass assessment system and Grade 2 reading achievement within an independent school. Specifically, the study investigates differences in reading achievement between a baseline academic year and two post-implementation academic years, examines gender differences in reading achievement and growth, and explores the association between measurable teacher mClass usage indicators and student reading achievement gains.
Research Design: This study employs a quantitative, quasi-experimental cohort design using archival student assessment data collected across three academic years (2023-2024 through 2025-2026). Successive Grade 2 cohorts are compared to evaluate differences in reading achievement following the implementation of the mClass assessment system.
Sample: The sample consists of approximately 120-150 Grade 2 Students enrolled across three successive academic years at an independent PreK-12 school in the northeastern United States. Students are distributed across four single-sex classrooms.
Data Collection and Analysis: Archival mClass and DIBELS assessment data will be collected from benchmark assessments administered at the beginning, middle, and end of each academic year. Descriptive statistics will summarize student performance across cohorts. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) will examine differences in reading achievement across academic years. Independent-samples t tests and two-way ANOVA (Gender x Year) will examine gender differences in reading achievement and growth. Pearson correlation analyses, and when appropriate, exploratory multiple regression analyses, will examine associations between measurable teacher mClass usage indicators and student reading achievement gains.
Dissertation Committee Chair:
Dr. Nora C. R. Broege
Dissertation Committee Members:
Dr. Peter F. Troiano
Dr. Mary Coakley-Fields
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