The Buenos Aires literacy intervention project, Aprendo Leyendo, began its research efforts in the 2022 school year. A coalition of key partners collaborated to bring the project to life and ensure systematic data collection for ongoing evaluation. These partners included the Haskins Global Literacy Hub, Aprendo Leyendo by Interlexia, Universidad de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Ciudad, Yale Child Study Center, and the University of Connecticut.

Enhancing Teachers’ Knowledge of Reading: Shifting Reading Instruction in Argentina

In Argentina, the traditional approach to reading instruction is a "whole language" method, based on the idea that learning to read and write comes as naturally to children as learning to speak and understand speech. This approach emphasizes engagement with and exposure to printed words, rather than the systematic teaching of component reading skills. In contrast, the "structured literacy" approach, which focuses on explicit and methodical instruction of reading components, aligns better with research on reading development and effective instruction.

The research conducted in Buenos Aires schools compared the reading development of Spanish-speaking first and second graders receiving structured Spanish reading instruction with that of students receiving traditional instruction. The intervention used a specific Spanish structured reading curriculum, Aprendo Leyendo, which was delivered by teachers who participated in 40 hours of professional development over two school years, with ongoing coaching support.

A total of 15 Buenos Aires schools were selected by the Ministry of Education to participate in the study, 7 as control schools and 8 as intervention schools. Throughout the two-year project, 23 teachers from the intervention schools received over 20 hours of professional development per year in Aprendo Leyendo.

All participating children were native Spanish speakers, and their schools were located in similar areas of Buenos Aires. Student performance data was collected at four time points—at the beginning and end of each school year—using a Spanish-language battery of reading and related measures. A total of 400-500 children participated in each testing session. Teacher surveys were also conducted to assess responses to the professional development program and the use of the Aprendo Leyendo curriculum.

Partners