This trial was recruiting, but is now full.

Fluency Focus is a sequenced programme of twenty one-hour whole class reading lessons for Year 5 pupils, to be delivered once per week in place of an existing reading lesson. The aim of the lessons is to improve pupils’ reading fluency and consequently their comprehension of challenging texts. The programme is led by Charles Dickens Research School, who train teachers and an SLT champion to deliver the programme to Year 5 pupils.

Lessons follow a clear structure in which fluency strategies are taught, modelled and then practised by children. Comprehension questions are included to reinforce the connection between fluency and comprehension. Programme resources and lesson content is captured in a comprehensive teacher handbook.

Each school nominates one or two participating teacher/​s to deliver the lessons and an SLT champion. Participating teachers and SLT champions attend one day of upfront, face-to-face training at the start of the Autumn term: each school is also offered two coaching conversations, and training webinars.

This programme is designed to improve reading fluency: reading accurately at an appropriate rate, with prosody.

Evidence suggests that children should continue to practice fluent reading of the same material within a guided setting while the teacher provides timely, specific feedback (Bashir and Hook, 2009). Teachers can achieve this by demonstrating the various aspects of fluency, before prompting children to apply the strategies in their own reading and finally providing a child with specific feedback.

Fluency Focus was designed to address the challenge that poor fluency for some pupils in Key Stage 2 results in poor comprehension, and this attainment gap continue to widen as these pupils move into KS3.

CDRS delivered Fluency Focus to 10 settings as part of an EEF development cycle and gathered feedback from participating teachers and pupils to inform and improve further programme delivery.

The pilot evaluation will be conducted in 20 schools with Year 5 pupils. It will be a mixed-methods IPE which will thoroughly explore the Theory of Change developed for the Fluency Focus programme.

The pilot will assess the feasibility of implementation, evidence of promise, and readiness for trial of the programme. The pilot aims to evaluate the acceptability of, and engagement with, the programme, and the extent to which it is delivered with fidelity within schools via interviews, surveys, and analysis of programme data.

The evaluation will look at teachers’ perceived impact of the programme on children’s reading fluency and comprehension, and also examine the extent of any unintended negative consequences via surveys and interviews with teaching and SLT staff.