This study compared two reading fluency approaches on students in a low socioeconomic population. These students were exhibiting difficulty in reading fluency, which was believed to have impeded their reading comprehension and achievement. Prior research has shown significant proof for the repeated oral reading approach to be used in fluency instruction; however, it has not shown the independent silent reading approach to be effective. This study intends to fill the gap concerning the lack of research in the area of the two approaches. This study dealt specifically with low socioeconomic third grade student populations. The study used Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) to assess each student's fluency rate and comprehension percentage. The independent-samples t-test was used to compare the mean score of the two different groups—experimental and comparison. The paired-samples t-test was used to compare the mean scores of the words correct per minute (WCPM) and comprehension percentage in the pre- and posttest of each group. The one way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the mean score of age, ethnicity, and sibling rank.

The experimental and comparison group of low socioeconomic third grade students along with the low-achieving fifth grade students showed a significant increase in fluency rate change from pre- to posttest. However, the testing data suggested that comprehension percentage change did not differ in a statistically significant manner from baseline to end of study for the experimental or comparison third grade groups. The study did show a significant increase for comprehension percentage change at the end of the study for the fifth grade students. In the end, neither group showed any statistical difference in achievement.