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Renaissance Accelerated Reader

Renaissance Accelerated Reader

Overview

What is Renaissance Accelerated Reader?

Renaissance Accelerated Reader® is designed to save educators time by empowering them with Learnalytics® to make differentiating independent and close reading practice effortless – all while maintaining the flexibility necessary to fit within existing classroom routines. Students are engaged in…

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Pricing

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What is Renaissance Accelerated Reader?

Renaissance Accelerated Reader® is designed to save educators time by empowering them with Learnalytics® to make differentiating independent and close reading practice effortless – all while maintaining the flexibility necessary to fit within existing classroom routines. Students are engaged in…

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

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Product Details

What is Renaissance Accelerated Reader?

Renaissance Accelerated Reader® is designed to save educators time by empowering them with Learnalytics® to make differentiating independent and close reading practice effortless – all while maintaining the flexibility necessary to fit within existing classroom routines. Students are engaged in reading self-selected authentic books and articles.

Short comprehension quizzes and built-in close reading practice activities, combined with automatic and educator feedback, keep students accountable for their learning. Dashboards and reporting provide users with the insights necessary to identify quickly which students need more support, which skills each student is ready to learn, and which resources will cultivate proven growth.

According to the vendor, key benefits include:

  • Students are nearly twice as likely to be college and career ready with they practice with Renaissance Accelerated Reader.
  • A strong research base of 178 scientific studies and review backs Renaissance Accelerated Reader, which ensures that you have scientifically sound practice and reliable data for instructional decisions.
  • The Council of Administrators of Special Education endorses Renaissance Accelerated Reader for improving outcomes for students with disabilities.

Renaissance Accelerated Reader Competitors

Renaissance Accelerated Reader Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationMobile Web

Frequently Asked Questions

ReadnQuiz, Whooo's Reading, and LightSail Education are common alternatives for Renaissance Accelerated Reader.

Reviewers rate Usability highest, with a score of 10.

The most common users of Renaissance Accelerated Reader are from Mid-sized Companies (51-1,000 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews From Top Reviewers

(1-5 of 8)

Accelerated Reader 360

Rating: 9 out of 10
February 12, 2020
KH
Vetted Review
Verified User
Renaissance Accelerated Reader
5 years of experience
Our whole school, though small, uses Accelerated Reader 360. We love the program and being able to see how well our students are paying attention to the books and stories being read. It is also a user-friendly service that helps teachers and parents watch the progress of their child/student. Our students are on the program every day and it is very user-friendly for them as well.
  • It tests students knowledge of books and how close they paid attention to the story.
  • It provides good data for how well a student is growing in their reading abilities.
  • It gives a good level of reading for our students and allows teachers to see what grade level they are close to.
  • I also love the recommendations of other books students could or should read next.
Cons
  • The quizzes test more details from a story versus the comprehension of the story.
Accelerated Reader is great for students of all grade levels and good for schools of all sizes from our small school to a much larger school.

Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 Review

Rating: 10 out of 10
February 05, 2019
JS
Vetted Review
Verified User
Renaissance Accelerated Reader
5 years of experience
I am using Renaissance Accelerated Reader in my first and second grade classroom. AR 360 is also being used by all other classrooms--4K-5th grade--in our building. Renaissance Accelerated Reader keeps my students motivated and eager to read and improve their reading skills and strategies. Renaissance AR is the perfect fit when using the Reading Workshop Daily 5 model. Children in my classroom begin every day with reading to themselves, taking comprehension and vocabulary quizzes, and working toward their goal. I have found my students take ownership of their reading and learning and have become much more independent. They challenge themselves and each other to continually grow and improve.
  • Renaissance Accelerated Reader has great customer service support. They are clear, concise, and respond quickly. Their live chat support service is great.
  • Renaissance Accelerated Reader is constantly adding new quizzes to their data base. They keep current with the most popular books that children currently read. They also have quizzes for the timeless classics.
  • Renaissance Accelerated Reader has reports that provide data ranging from the number of words students have read to a students growth trajectory. This is helpful when planning lessons to work with children in small groups or independently.
  • Renaissance allows me the capability to see real time quizzing data. This allows for me to monitor students' progress while also working with other children. I am able to my time efficiently and effectively.
Cons
  • It was helpful--and quicker--when my students were able to log in to Accelerated Reader through the iPad app. Unfortunately, the app is not going to be supported. My students will still be able to use the iPad for quizzing and STAR assessments. It is just a couple of extra steps.
Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360 is easy to use. It helps build comprehension and expand vocabulary for my students. I love it for the accountability for the read-to-self rotation.

Great Product with a Great Price Tag

Rating: 8 out of 10
February 19, 2019
JE
Vetted Review
Verified User
Renaissance Accelerated Reader
5 years of experience
Our school/district uses Accelerated Reader. Generally, it is used by Language Arts teachers, but it does help track reading and reading comprehension. Students are given goals to strive for each grading period and strive to reach that goal. There are many pros and cons for using Accelerated Reader but our students have used it for years and I don't see it going away any time soon.
  • If used correctly, Accelerated Reader helps students grow with their reading comprehension and vocabulary skills. I advise teachers to have one on one conversations with students when setting goals (allow students to have input) so that the students are given more responsibility to achieve their own goals.
  • Renaissance's online chat/customer service is outstanding. They can usually answer my questions and do so in an understandable manner. They seem to be willing to help and will follow through if necessary.
  • There are many reports that Accelerated Reader administrators can use to help decipher the data created from their students taking Accelerated Reader quizzes.
Cons
  • Lately, Accelerated Reader has been adding "New Reports" which would help single class users such as a teacher with one class. But for a person with administrative rights, it creates a bit of a hassle to get the information needed at times.
  • Cost - Accelerated Reader is expensive. For the price paid, I feel Renaissance should include some features instead of having additional fees paid.
Accelerated Reader is what it is. It has been around for years and pretty much has a lock on this type of service. With that being said, Renaissance still makes improvements and works with the customer to make things better. If people use the product the way it is intended, results can be great. Yes, there is a danger that a product like this hurts the love of reading by "forcing" kids to read. *There are articles written about the positives and negatives of AR elsewhere if you look* But Accelerated Reader gathers plenty of data that can be used by educators to help their classrooms if they choose to use the product as intended.

Drop Everything and Read

Rating: 10 out of 10
October 07, 2019
Vetted Review
Verified User
Renaissance Accelerated Reader
10 years of experience
We use Accelerated Reader school-wide to assess student comprehension and to motivate/cultivate life long learners. We can measure growth and/or regression in the area of reading comprehension when monitored regularly.
  • Accelerated Reader gives immediate feedback.
  • It provides clear and concise instructions.
  • Accelerated Reader provides data to assist with instructional planning.
Cons
  • I would like to see a feature that will notify the building admin that a child has reached their reading certification.
  • I would like a feature that would generate a half size sheet of paper to include a student's username and password as well as their ZPD.
  • I would like the rollover rights from year to year be given to the building admin versus the district admin.
Accelerated Reader is best suited for grades 2nd - 5th. They are more independent. As noted, Accelerated Reader is a guided program. However, most schedules don't permit the time to guide students in kindergarten and first grade.

Accelerated Reader creates Accelerated Progress

Rating: 10 out of 10
August 17, 2019
Vetted Review
Verified User
Renaissance Accelerated Reader
12 years of experience
Renaissance Learning is widely used throughout the school system as a reliable indicator of reading comprehension through its STAR and AR tests. It has progressed thousands of readers to excellence and comprehension.
  • Real time progress monitoring of student reading comprehension.
  • Multiple reports detailing successes and areas of struggle.
  • Amazing customer service.
Cons
  • The price for schools to use AR and STAR, especially with budgets being cut, is very high.
AR is well suited in all educational environments. It can be used to improve the comprehension of the remedicat readers as well as continually push the high achievers.
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