This intervention program is effective and comprehensive for helping students raise their reading and comprehension levels. It is weak in writing instruction and practice, but is excellent for systemically building reading skills and is ideal for small classes or intervention programs. The program is strongest for elementary and middle school learners, as by high school, the redundancy and targeted reading materials are not particularly interesting.
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sensitive Materials and Prohibited Submission 53G-10-103, R277-628 | Does Not Violate Law | NA | NA | May Violate Law | ||
| - Biases: (accessible for students regardless of background): Working more toward this. Text topics are various, but not as many cultural representations as there could be. There's a bias toward the dominant culture and a little bit toward assimilation. - Commercial Free, including political interest: Avoids controversial issues entirely - legal compliance: yes | ||||||
| Prohibited discriminatory practices 53G-2-103-5, 53B-1-118 and 67-27-107 | Does not violate law | N/A | N/A | May violate law | ||
| - Variety of Settings/situations: Easier to use in smaller classrooms if teachers want to make adaptations. Works well for targeted, individualized instruction. Very unlikely to be practical for a regular, grade-level class of 30+ students, as it is too involved and requires too much set-up effort. Must be followed entirely for whole-class instruction, making it an unlikely fit for teachers and students who need creativity and adaptability as part of their model. - Appropriate time frame: Yes. | ||||||
| Maintaining constitutional freedom in the public schools. 53G-10-202 | Does not violate law | N/A | N/A | May violate law | ||
| Does this require additional materials, assistance, hardware, software, etc?: Depends on the resources schools have. Schools may need to update their internet capacity, students will all need access to computers, and each district will need a person who is prepared to trouble shoot. For example, the Growth Measure portion of this program has been unreliable, requiring troubleshooting and adjustments. The complexity of the system increases the need for training and personnel. Not necessarily more tech requirements in terms of hardware and software, but the tech expertise, comfort level, and district support requirements are high. | ||||||
| Free from advertising, e-commerce, or political interest | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alignment | The content of this material is evidence-based and aligns with grade-level Utah core standards. It is current, well-researched, and referenced from reliable sources. | The content of this material is evidence-based or research-based. The material aligns with most grade-level Utah core standards but will need supplementary materials to ensure coverage of all the Utah core standards. | The content of this resource aligns with a few grade-level Utah core standards but is not evidence-based or research-based. | The content of this resource does not align with any of Utah's core standards. | ||
| - Aligns with grade level Core Standards: Focused on reading standards and bringing students up, so less comprehensive - Current, Well-Researched, Reliably Sourced: Frequently updated, pulls from a variety of sources, extensive material - Explicit, systemic, engaging: Lesson by lesson and unit by unit options, visually appealing - Phonics: explicit phonics instruction, interactive for students - Fluency: Yes -- students read aloud and at their own pace - Comprehension: yes, particularly around vocabulary building - Oral language: weak -- individualized for students. Whole class instruction for teachers with oral language opportunities, but not as guided or as many resources. - Writing: reading-centric. Writing prompts optional if teachers adopt the entire program, but there's not enough time. - Text-Complexity (Lexile, etc): on level; some variety - Text-Mix (lit/non-fiction): More non-fiction than fiction; could use more literary texts. | ||||||
| Navigation | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| - Assistance for variety of Levels: If teachers are willing to invest intial time upfront, this program can be adapted for different learning levels. I am not certain how engaging the material is as presented; instructor adaptation is essential to make these lessons fun and adaptable for kids, especially as the year progresses -- they begin to feel extraordinarily redundant. - Student sharing/presenting: Part of the lesson plans | ||||||
| Instructional Support | This material goes beyond the content outlined in "Adequate" by providing problem or project-based content with integrated skills and concepts from various disciplines to help students make sense of the material. It also supports the learning needs of all students, including those with disabilities, multilingual learners, etc., by offering flexibility and maintaining high standards. | The material provides supplemental resources and some examples to educators of ways to deliver instruction. It contains a few of the following: scaffolding lesson plans, personalized/differentiated instruction, experiential learning, concept mapping, questioning techniques, and family involvement. | The material contains a limited amount of instructional support. | The material does not provide instructional support or examples for the educator. | ||
| Clear, easy, and understandable navigation: This is where HMH struggles. It's always pretty, but requires extensive experience and playing around with in order to use effectively as a teacher. Student navigation is a little easier if teachers familiarize themselves with the platform and can appropriately set up assignments and resources for students. | ||||||
| Assessments | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Ethnic Studies Ethnic studies in core standards and curriculum should be a narrowly tailored incorporation of age-appropriate opportunities that naturally arise through education without pretextual effort in courses, programs, or activities where ethnic studies is not a primary focus. The material should incorporate a curriculum of people and cultures that reflect the state’s various demographics without commentary that seeks to violate the neutrality standard established in codes: 53B-1-118, 53G-2-103, 53G-2-104, 53G-2-105, 67-27-107, | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Shared Values and Character Traits | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Characteristics | This material goes beyond the content outlined in "Adequate" by incorporating modern, up-to-date, and relatable visuals. | In physical terms, the material is interactive and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. | The material offers limited or low-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for students, but it is reusable. | The content either has low audio-visual quality or is not intended for reuse. | ||
| Durability and reliability: As long as the online systems remain in tact, yes HMH provides high quality, durable physical products. | ||||||
| Technical Standards | This material surpasses the content outlined in "Adequate" by ensuring the safeguarding of student data privacy and easy installation or access without technical assistance. Furthermore, any licensing information is clearly stated in the description. | The materials meet all the requirements of federal and state laws, as well as accepted technical standards such as ISTE Standards and VPAT Compliance. Additional technical specifications and limitations, including hardware requirements, bandwidth demands, and software/web access restrictions, are clearly outlined in the description. The design of the materials allows for error-free installation or access without the need to purchase additional components. | The material is constrained by specifications that require additional materials, technical assistance, hardware, software, or infrastructure. Access to resources within the material expires after a trial period. | Student data privacy is at risk. | ||
| Instructor Support: Yes, if the instructor is willing to invest a lot of time looking for answers, most of the time, they can be found. In terms of instructional ideas, there are a plethora of suggestions, materials, plans, approaches, and supplemental materials to give even a new teacher a lot to work with. | ||||||
| Adaptability | The material is currently relevant and adaptable for educators and students. The material can be customized for the needs of diverse learners. | Educators or students can utilize the material, but it may not be customizable for the needs of diverse learners. | The material has limited options to address adaptability for the needs of diverse learners. | The material is not suitable for different educational settings with diverse learners. | ||
| Supplements Available: Yes, a variety Supplements Referenced: Supplemental materials are self-contained. This program does not provide much in the way of suggestions or resources outside of HMH, minimizing the variety and potential. | ||||||
250 East 500 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84111-3204
Phone: 801.538.7807