Across classrooms today, educators face a persistent challenge: too many students are struggling to read—and the consequences ripple far beyond literacy itself.

The Literacy Crisis

Struggling readers often fall behind not only in language arts but across all academic subjects. Their difficulties with decoding, fluency, and comprehension make it harder to access content in math, science, and social studies, widening learning gaps year after year.

The impacts aren’t just academic:

• Confidence erodes.

• Classroom participation declines.

• Many students begin to view reading as a source of frustration rather than joy.

This crisis is especially pronounced among certain groups:

• English Language Learners (ELLs) face compounded challenges, with language barriers making it harder to build reading fluency and vocabulary. National data shows ELL students score 30–40% lower on reading assessments compared to their native English-speaking peers.

• Students with dyslexia, ADHD, or other learning differences often require tailored, multisensory instruction that many traditional classrooms struggle to consistently provide.

• Without effective, early intervention, these learners risk long-term academic struggles, higher dropout rates, and diminished opportunities.

Why the Science of Reading Matters

Decades of research, including findings from the National Reading Panel and the Science of Reading movement, have made one fact clear: strong reading instruction must be systematic, explicit, and grounded in five essential pillars:

1. Phonemic Awareness – Recognizing and manipulating sounds in spoken words

2. Phonics – Understanding the relationships between letters and sounds

3. Fluency – Reading with speed, accuracy, and expression

4. Vocabulary – Knowing the meaning of words and phrases

5. Comprehension – Understanding and interpreting what is read

When these skills are taught together—systematically and consistently—students can develop into confident, capable readers. But achieving this level of instruction across entire schools or districts remains challenging, especially with resource constraints, teacher shortages, and increasingly diverse classrooms.

The Growing Role of Technology

Fortunately, technology has emerged as a powerful tool to bridge these gaps. AI-powered reading platforms like Readability align directly with the Science of Reading by providing:

• Real-time feedback on pronunciation, fluency, and comprehension

• Personalized learning pathways based on each student’s skill level

• Data dashboards for educators and parents to track progress

• Engaging, interactive experiences that motivate reluctant readers

Technology, when used intentionally, can deliver the type of individualized, research-backed literacy support that struggling readers need—at scale, and with measurable results.

In the following sections, we’ll explore exactly how educators and schools can leverage technology aligned to the Science of Reading to help struggling readers succeed.

Understanding the Needs of Struggling Readers

Before educators, administrators, or literacy teams can effectively intervene, it’s essential to first understand the complex challenges struggling readers face—and why traditional approaches alone may not be enough to close the gap.

Common Challenges Facing Struggling Readers

Struggling readers aren’t just falling behind academically—they often face internal obstacles that undermine their confidence and willingness to engage with reading tasks:

Difficulty Decoding Words: Many struggling readers lack foundational phonemic awareness and phonics skills—the ability to connect sounds to letters and decode words accurately. Without this skill set, reading becomes slow, frustrating, and labor-intensive, limiting access to age-appropriate content and stalling vocabulary growth.

Low Fluency and Comprehension: Even when students can sound out individual words, they often read in a choppy, disjointed way that impairs comprehension. Fluency—reading with speed, accuracy, and proper expression—is critical for understanding text. Low fluency rates make it harder to follow narratives, grasp main ideas, or engage with content on a deeper level.

Anxiety and Reluctance to Read Aloud: Struggling readers frequently experience negative emotions tied to reading, especially when asked to read aloud in front of peers or adults. They may:

• Avoid reading opportunities altogether

• Exhibit frustration, meltdowns, or withdrawal

• Lose motivation, believing they “can’t” succeed with reading

This cycle of avoidance and low confidence compounds over time, widening academic and emotional gaps.

The Additional Impact on ELL Students and Those with Learning Differences

For English Language Learners (ELLs) and students with diagnosed learning differences—such as dyslexia, ADHD, or autism spectrum disorder—these challenges are often amplified:

Language Barriers: ELL students face the dual task of acquiring new language structures while also building literacy skills. Limited exposure to English sounds, vocabulary, and grammatical patterns makes decoding and comprehension more difficult. Without targeted support, ELLs fall behind at disproportionate rates—with 71% of ELLs failing to reach reading proficiency by 4th grade, compared to 31% of native English speakers.

Speech Recognition Challenges: Traditional assessments and many educational apps often struggle to accurately interpret diverse speech patterns, accents, or language processing differences. This can discourage students and provide misleading data about their actual abilities.

Limited Confidence and Participation: Students with learning differences or language barriers frequently feel excluded from reading success stories. They may:

• Lack opportunities to practice in a low-pressure environment

• Struggle with inconsistent feedback

• Develop low self-esteem, which further impedes literacy growth

This is why differentiated, inclusive, and technology-enhanced literacy instruction is vital.

Why Tailored, Research-Backed Solutions Are Essential

The good news? These challenges are not insurmountable. But they demand:

• Evidence-based instruction rooted in the Science of Reading

• Tools that adapt to diverse learner profiles, ensuring every student feels seen, supported, and capable

• Ongoing progress monitoring to catch gaps early and personalize interventions

The Science of Reading: Foundation for Effective Instruction

Helping struggling readers succeed begins with understanding the proven, research-based approach to reading instruction known as the Science of Reading. This body of research draws from decades of interdisciplinary studies in education, cognitive psychology, linguistics, and neuroscience to define what works when teaching children to read.

At its core, the Science of Reading emphasizes that strong literacy development depends on mastering five essential pillars. When these skills are taught explicitly, systematically, and in combination, students have the greatest chance of becoming confident, proficient readers.

The Five Essential Pillars of Reading

1. Phonemic Awareness: Phonemic awareness is the ability to recognize and manipulate individual sounds—or phonemes—in spoken words. This includes skills such as:

• Identifying beginning and ending sounds

• Blending sounds to form words

• Segmenting words into their individual sounds

Research shows that phonemic awareness is a critical predictor of later reading success. Without it, children struggle to connect spoken language to written words—a foundational skill for decoding.

2. Phonics: Phonics builds on phonemic awareness by teaching the relationship between letters (graphemes) and sounds (phonemes). Systematic phonics instruction enables students to:

• Decode unfamiliar words

• Recognize spelling patterns

• Build word-reading automaticity

For struggling readers, explicit phonics instruction provides the structured practice needed to overcome decoding difficulties and develop reading fluency.

3. Fluency: Fluency refers to the ability to read with speed, accuracy, and proper expression. Fluent readers:

• Recognize words automatically

• Read aloud smoothly and with confidence

• Spend less mental energy decoding, freeing up cognitive resources for comprehension

Low fluency is a hallmark of struggling readers and directly impacts their ability to understand what they read.

4. Vocabulary: A rich vocabulary is essential for reading comprehension. Vocabulary development includes:

• Understanding word meanings

• Recognizing synonyms, antonyms, and context clues

• Building knowledge of academic and domain-specific language

For ELL students and struggling readers, targeted vocabulary instruction bridges the gap between decoding words and understanding their meaning.

5. Comprehension: Comprehension is the ultimate goal of reading—making meaning from text. Skilled readers:

• Identify main ideas and details

• Make inferences and connections

• Summarize, analyze, and reflect on what they read

Students cannot develop comprehension skills in isolation; they depend on the interplay of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, and vocabulary.

The Importance of Explicit, Systematic Instruction

The Science of Reading is clear: struggling readers benefit most from explicit, systematic, and sequential instruction in these five pillars. This means:

• Skills are taught directly and clearly, not left to chance or student inference

• Instruction follows a logical progression, building from simple to complex tasks

• Students receive ample practice with corrective feedback

Programs and tools aligned with these principles, including technology like Readability, ensure students aren’t just exposed to reading but are supported through structured, research-backed learning experiences.

By grounding instruction in these five pillars, educators provide all students—especially those struggling the most—with the foundation they need to become capable, confident, lifelong readers.

How Technology Can Align with the Science of Reading to Support Struggling Readers

The Science of Reading emphasizes systematic, explicit instruction across five essential pillars—phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. But delivering individualized support in all these areas can be challenging, especially for educators managing large, diverse classrooms with limited resources.

This is where technology, when thoughtfully designed, becomes a powerful ally. Tools like Readability seamlessly integrate with the Science of Reading to provide targeted, personalized instruction that supports struggling readers in real-time.

Here’s how:

A. Real-Time Feedback with AI

One of the greatest challenges for struggling readers—especially those with learning differences or English language barriers—is the lack of immediate, corrective feedback. Delays between practice and feedback can allow errors to go unnoticed, reinforcing poor reading habits.

AI-powered platforms like Readability overcome this barrier by:

• Using advanced speech recognition to listen as students read aloud

• Detecting mispronunciations, decoding errors, and fluency gaps instantly

• Providing real-time, gentle corrections, prompting students to self-correct and try again

This immediate feedback builds:

• Pronunciation accuracy

• Decoding skills

• Fluency through repeated, successful practice

The result? Students gain confidence reading aloud, knowing they are supported, not judged, which fosters a positive reading experience essential for long-term literacy growth.

B. Personalized, Adaptive Learning Paths

Every struggling reader has unique needs. Some require foundational phonics practice, while others need fluency development or comprehension support.

Technology like Readability uses AI to:

• Assess each student’s current reading level

• Adapt content difficulty and instructional focus to match their skills

• Deliver personalized reading materials that gradually increase in complexity

This mirrors the research-backed “I do, we do, you do” cognitive model:

• I do: The system models correct reading or pronunciation

• We do: Students practice with guided prompts and support

• You do: Students independently apply skills with growing confidence

By adapting instruction in real-time, technology provides scaffolded learning tailored to each child, ensuring no learner is left behind—regardless of starting point.

C. Progress Monitoring and Data Insights

Ongoing assessment is vital to effective reading instruction. Educators and parents need actionable data to:

• Track literacy growth

• Identify areas of struggle

• Adjust instruction proactively

Technology delivers this through:

• Interactive dashboards showing key metrics like words read, reading accuracy, fluency rates (words correct per minute), comprehension quiz results, and vocabulary growth

• Trendlines and reports that visualize progress over time

With these insights:

• Teachers can target interventions early

• Parents stay informed and involved

• Students are motivated by seeing their own progress

This data-driven approach ensures instruction remains responsive, personalized, and aligned with literacy goals rooted in the Science of Reading.

D. Engagement and Motivation

Many struggling readers associate reading with frustration, anxiety, or boredom. Without consistent practice, skill development stalls.

Technology helps change this narrative by:

• Providing access to a wide library of age-appropriate, high-interest books

• Offering interactive reading experiences with read-aloud prompts and comprehension questions

• Using digital rewards, points systems, and progress badges to celebrate achievements

This approach is especially impactful for:

• Reluctant readers who avoid traditional reading tasks

• ELL students needing pronunciation support in a low-pressure environment

• Learners with dyslexia, ADHD, or other challenges who require engaging, bite-sized reading opportunities

By transforming reading into an interactive, rewarding experience, technology keeps students motivated to practice regularly—the foundation for sustained literacy improvement.

When used alongside high-quality teaching, AI-driven platforms like Readability embody the principles of the Science of Reading, delivering personalized, scalable support to struggling readers in classrooms, at home, and beyond.

Empower your struggling readers with Readability Tutor

The award-winning, AI-driven reading app designed specifically for students in grades K-6. By seamlessly integrating the Science of Reading principles into personalized, interactive tutoring sessions, Readability provides real-time feedback, adaptive learning pathways, and detailed progress tracking, ensuring every child gains essential phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension skills.

Take the step today: Sign up for Readability Tutor and unlock your child’s path to confident, lifelong reading success.