Item: Renaissance Accelerated Reader
Rating: 10
Author: Vivian Dawson

Overall Satisfaction with Renaissance Accelerated Reader

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

My school system has continuously used Accelerated Reader (AR) to initially assess and monitor reading practice and progress. It is mainly used in grades K-5 presently and is dependent on individual classroom teachers. It is purchased for the entire school system. Teachers are encouraged to have data to assess students. AR helps teachers to have a well-researched computerized system to analyze current reading comprehension of materials chosen by the student. This provides standardized current data that can be shared with other support personnel (reading specialists, curriculum coordinators, media specialists).

Pros and Cons

Pros

Large selection of tests. This does not limit the students' choices of reading materials.
Computer assistance with setting goals for individual student/classroom.
Parent portal eases the communication process to parents.

Cons

Increase ways to improve reading comprehension for grades 6-12.
More read-to tests to support differentiated learning.
More training sessions for free for new and experienced users.

Most Important Features

Number of tests
Customer service/IT support
Ease of use of the program

Return on Investment

It is difficult to bring new teachers on board without further investment in training.
Emphasis on programs that impact "fluency" in early grades (not reading comprehension).
Reading test results are focused on 3rd, 5th, and 8th grades as a group, rather than on the individual annual improvement of the student.

Alternatives Considered

I have not used any of the products listed. However, AR has been my choice of product. My school system choice this product because it interfaces well with all other reading and testing programs that have been purchased. It is an excellent product, but that is a given since it was developed by a teacher to address a problem that all educators deal with (How do you help a struggling reader best?). AR is the answer for me.

Key Insights

Do you think Renaissance Accelerated Reader delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Renaissance Accelerated Reader's feature set?

Yes

Did Renaissance Accelerated Reader live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Renaissance Accelerated Reader go as expected?

I wasn't involved with the implementation phase

Would you buy Renaissance Accelerated Reader again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Renaissance Star Assessments, Freckle by Renaissance, Renaissance myON® Reader

Likelihood to Recommend

AR is well suited for many ELA scenarios. It is less appropriate when reading shorter nonfiction passages (science, for example). This would require group discussion, and immediate assessment after reading. This type of assessment is left to the classroom teachers since the reading material is so short (compared to the length of a chapter book or a novel). I wonder if AR could help with these types of passages.

Using Renaissance Accelerated Reader

Users and Roles

40 - Educators

Support Headcount Required

2 -

Media Specialist

Building IT Technician

Business Processes Supported

Data driven documents to assess reading comprehension for individual students/classrooms at any time.
More than adequate number of choices of tests/books at appropriate reading level for the student.
Ease of setup for school system to collect data.

Innovative Uses

Used to assess students that transfer to our school system that do not have any, or minimal, testing data in their academic record.

Future Planned Uses

My organization could promote AR as a part of summer school programs.

Likelihood to Renew

I support AR everyday and every year.

Evaluating Renaissance Accelerated Reader and Competitors

Products Replaced

Key Differentiators

Price
Product Features
Product Usability
Product Reputation

I was not part of the purchasing decision, however, I was informed that the most important factor was product reputation.

Evaluation Lessons Learned

The evaluation and selection process should have included teachers at all levels.

Renaissance Accelerated Reader Implementation

Implementation Rating

Implementation Details / Implementation Partner

Implemented in-house

Implementation Phases

Implementation Issues

Training all of the educators in my building (only ELA teachers were trained.

Renaissance Accelerated Reader Support

Support Rating

I have always received the support needed in a timely fashion.

Renaissance Accelerated Reader Customer Support Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Quick Resolution Good followup Knowledgeable team Problems get solved Kept well informed No escalation required Immediate help available Support understands my problem Support cares about my success Quick Initial Response	None

Using Renaissance Accelerated Reader

Usability

Again, I use AR all of the time.

Usability Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using Familiar	None