TrustRadius Insights for Renaissance Accelerated Reader are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.
Business Problems Solved
Renaissance Accelerated Reader has a wide range of use cases in educational settings. Teachers and students across various grade levels use the software to promote independent reading, improve reading skills, and track progress. With its comprehensive tracking features, Renaissance Accelerated Reader allows teachers to monitor student reading practice and growth, providing standardized data that can be shared with other support personnel. This data-driven approach helps identify specific areas of challenge for individual students and guides discussions about their progress.
In addition to fostering a love for reading, Renaissance Accelerated Reader motivates students to read independently by allowing them to earn points and incentives. The software offers a vast collection of books that students love, with new additions being made regularly. It is often used as a tool to ensure that students are reading appropriate and challenging materials while checking comprehension skills. By setting goals and holding students accountable for their comprehension, teachers can effectively differentiate instruction based on individual needs. The program's user-friendly interface empowers students to take ownership of their learning and continually grow and improve as readers. Overall, Renaissance Accelerated Reader has become an invaluable resource for motivating and engaging students while using data to guide their growth as readers.
We use the Renaissance Accelerated Reader program for our English regular and English Honors courses at High School level. Teacher's get very detailed information as to how are students are doing in terms of reading and improving on fluency and accuracy in learning to understand and interpret books. There is grade levels in place for the books and by testing at certain grade levels we can fully see where the students need the most help and where improvements can be made. The Renaissance Accelerated Reader program has helped a lot in the past few years by giving us more insight as to where students need to be in terms of reading fluency and basic reading knowledge.
Pros
Gives details on the fluctuation throughout the years since starting the program
Let's teachers use the program as a guide so they can adjust to the students reading needs better
Improves the student's learning skills in the classroom with better reading fluency and accuracy
Cons
Understanding the graphs for first time users
Separating the children based on reading level
Giving details on how and where specifically students would need to improve to bring up scores
Likelihood to Recommend
The best scenario where Renaissance Accelerated Reader is suited is when we place kids in Honors classes or if they are only able to do general classes. More kids are able to improve their reading even more because of the testing that comes out of the Renaissance Accelerated Reader. They get to improve on weak spots and get to see their efforts pay off from the improvement in testing percentage. The worst scenario would be to separate the kids by the level they are reading at and thus not placing them together so that they may learn from their peers and instead are stuck trying to understand reading in a more difficult environment.
As a teacher in the elementary level, Renaissance Accelerated Reader has served as a guide not only for my students, but for me as well. It has allowed us to see individualized reading levels which then helps the students know which books they can read and test on. Doing so boosts the student's confidence and growth in reading. They begin to take an initiative. Their excitement as they reach their goals is amazing to see. I use Renaissance Accelerated Reader on a daily basis. I love how they make it fun and engaging for the students with the various platforms they offer. I will always recommend this company to everyone!
Pros
Individualized reading levels/goals
Selection of books according to reading levels
Monitors the percentages of students reading throughout the year
Books of all topics and ethnicities are included
Cons
Only feature I get confused to find is blocking the students when testing to where it asks for the teacher code
Can some books be more than half a point but under one point? Like 0.75?
Keep adding to the AR list (I know they already do)
Likelihood to Recommend
It offers individualized reading goals. This allows the students the ability to know which books they can read and test on. The students begin to grow a love for reading. They look forward to reading and do not see it as a punishment which is something that makes me really happy.
I use Renaissance Accelerated Reader in my class for students to test on books they have been reading. I run reports weekly to see how the students are doing and if they are comprehendign what they are reading. My students are able to see the number of books they have read, their percentage average and they get to collect items when they meet their goal.
Pros
Large selection of quizzes
User Friendly
Cons
Changing the quiz numbers for a different languages or being more obvious for kids
Likelihood to Recommend
Renaissance Accelerated Reader is well suited for classrooms and schools that want their students to increase their reading and comprehension. This program does a good job to keep track of student averages and book track. I do wish that students could go back and check the responses after the quiz has been graded.
In the school district that I work with we used Renaissance Accelerated Reader by empowering our student for the love of reading. It is very engaging for our students in the whole district.
Pros
Well organized reports
Reports that can show in very detailed way student's progress.
Organization toward student's levels of reading.
Cons
More books in Spanish
More non fiction books in Spanish
Narrators sometimes are not that fluent
Likelihood to Recommend
The scenario where I found less appropriate is when one time I was reading a book to my students and i read a word that in Spanish was a bad word around this region and my students were amazed of that word that i have to stop reading and explained all the meaning a certain word could have.
VU
Verified User
Professional in Professional Services (1001-5000 employees)
Renaissance Accelerated Reader is being fully implemented in our district as well as our campus. Our campus encourages teachers to become Honor Roll members. It is a great program that focuses on reading comprehension and increases students fluency. Students gets exposed to all types of genres. In our classroom, we encourage our students to focus on non-fictions books, a ratio of 3:1. (1 being fiction). Once a week, during our PLC's (professional learning community) our campus administrator hands out our diagnostic summary report and discusses why goals were and were not meet and how we as teachers can ensure our campus weekly goals get to be met. As a district level, reports are pulled and campuses with higher percentages get recognized. In regards of problems, we haven't meet any problems with the program.
Pros
Targets comprehension
Targets fluency
Create a positive atmosphere of readers
Likelihood to Recommend
In our district, we been using Reading Renaissance for more than 15 years and I believe that it works well. We see our students improve in reading comprehension and making them accountable in their learning. When parents are involved, student's become more active and eager to read especially if they take their books home and read to their parents.
My system uses Accelerated Reader to encourage students to read for understanding. We use it to see what they are reading and if they are comprehending the text. This helps me to adjust their instruction to fit their unique needs and to know what their interests are. I also use it to create a classroom competition to further engage students.
Pros
documents what students are reading
gives data to show how students are progressing
encourages reading
show students growth and interest
relates to what I am teaching in class
Cons
It is wonderful! If i have to say anything it would be, I would like for more titles to be added.
Likelihood to Recommend
I love using Accelerated Reader in my classroom. I use it to further my instruction. We read books as a class and test on them individually to see if students are comprehending what I am reading to them as well as what they are reading independently or with a peer. I use it to create a classroom competition each year and it works wonderfully.
I have been using Accelerated Reader for many years. I have been there to watch/participate as the platform has changed over the year. It just keeps getting better and better. I teacher kindergarten and I love how this program encourages daily reading. My young students love to read and go to the library "by themselves" to get new books. We cheer for each child as they meet goals, may 100's on quizzes and earn new badges on the platform. I love the reports that are available to look at student data and growth. Very user friendly. I love this product.
Pros
Reports and Data
Daily Reading goals
Records students progress
Cons
Continue improving and updating platform
Whole group testing for young readers
Make Quiz previews easier to find
More predictable texts available for young readers
Likelihood to Recommend
My students work towards point goals so they can earn prizes. This works will with my young students and helps encourage daily reading/test taking in my class. I do wish that there were more predictable texts readily available for my kindergarten students. Overall, I am happy with this product.
Renaissance Accelerated Reader is used in our district to help ensure that readers are not only reading materials that are appropriate and somewhat challenging for them, but it is also used to check comprehension skills. Accelerated Reader is used in our school as a tool to encourage students to read and meet goals set by the teacher and/or the Accelerated Reader diagnosis. I personally like to have a conference with each student and have each set his/her goal at either what the program suggests or higher if I've seen that he/she is capable of a higher point goal. I have found the tool to be very useful in assigning grade-level appropriate reading materials for my students and for holding students accountable for comprehending what they are reading. My data shows that my students are making between one and two full years' growth in reading already this year. That is due in part to students having books in their hands and Accelerated Reader!
Pros
offers tests over a wide variety of children's books
encourages careful reading
helps assign a reading level range for students to be most successful
Cons
reports are easy for students to understand
program is easy to use
Likelihood to Recommend
I have found Renaissance Accelerated Reader to be well-suited for elementary readers. I don't have experience using it with high school students; however, I know that for our elementary readers, there are no shortages of tests available. Our students can read trade books, articles within the program, or even stories from our textbooks and take tests on them.
My school corporation uses Renaissance Accelerated Reader to ensure students' independent reading. It is used by our junior/senior high school in all of the English departments. Renaissance Accelerated Reader allows us to monitor independent reading and through so doing we are able to monitor improvement in reading scores. I have seen great growth in our student scores through the use of this product.
Pros
Support
Communication
Achievement
Cons
More fun graphics geared toward high school
Data integration with other products
Incentive pairing.
Likelihood to Recommend
It is well suited for accountability in independent reading. It is not something that truly inspires reading. That is up to the administrator of the program. It is important for students to read. I like that there are tons of books available for students reading through this program. I recommend it.
I use Renaissance Accelerated Reader in our school to help monitor students' successes, strengths, and weaknesses in reading. Students take tests after reading their books and it assesses if they comprehend what they are reading. It also has many Vocabulary Activities attached to each of the books they read to help them with their vocabulary, too. We have no problems with Renaissance Accelerated Reader.
Pros
Assesses Comprehension
Creates Data Reports to help monitor students
Has great Vocabulary Quizzes that complement the books they read.
Cons
Training for how the reports have changed over the past several years.
Likelihood to Recommend
I appreciate AR because it helps the student to see if they are comprehending a particular ZPD level. It is detailed in the report to be able to conference with students and show them what they may adjust to be more successful. It also shows the student if they are staying in their "ZPD comfort zone" and not challenging themselves enough.