Renaissance, a global leader in student-centered, pre-K–12 personalized practice and assessment, has acquired KeyPhonics, to deliver early literacy assessment data that can be linked directly to phonics-based reading instruction.
KeyPhonics, the first commercially available web-based phonics assessment, was developed after years of research with the goal to quickly and efficiently screen and diagnose the twelve most critical phonics categories and 102 specific target patterns. It was created by Dr. Michelle Hosp after realizing as a school psychologist that phonics assessments didn’t answer one crucial question: which phonics patterns the student needed help with. Universal screening assessments confirm which students are struggling to read, but they are not designed to identify which phonics patterns students need instruction on, therefore limiting their utility to plan instruction. KeyPhonics is designed for grades 1 through 6 and for older students who need help learning phonics. It provides valuable information about phonics skills essential for instruction through a fast and easy assessment, while providing data at the student, class, grade, and district levels. In addition to diagnosing and monitoring progress, educators can also screen all students to enable teachers and administrators to see how students are performing. This helps teachers to provide more effective instruction, and administrators to determine the resources needed to support students and staff.
“Detailed awareness of a child’s mastery of phonics skills is one of the most important indicators of early literacy, and we know it is a top priority for teachers and reading specialists to have actionable data they can use to inform their instruction,” said Todd Brekhus, chief product officer at Renaissance. “We look forward to adding KeyPhonics to the Renaissance family, and together providing teachers and administrators with the insights they need to prepare students for reading proficiency.”
KeyPhonics is Renaissance’s second recent acquisition to support foundational literacy. In 2021, the company acquired Lalilo, which provides K–2 students with engaging practice and instruction across all components of literacy. Lalilo also aligns with Science of Reading research and supports Renaissance’s commitment to reading development.
Source: PR Web
