Calibre Audio is a national charity that makes audio-recordings of books available to individuals with barriers to accessing print. In 2021, a pilot study of the use of audiobooks supplied by Calibre was carried out from March to June, 2021,at King Edmund School, in Essex. It aimed to:

• investigate the use of audiobooks to re-engage the interest of secondary-aged low-achieving literacy learners in the process of reading acquisition, encourage enjoyment of reading, and raise reading levels;
• explore the feasibility of incorporating the use of audiobooks into a secondary curriculum.

BERA’s (2018, p.9) strategy of informed consent was adopted throughout the study.

A sample of twenty-five Year 8 learners participated. Results from the New Group Reading Test (GL Assessment, 2020) had indicated very poor percentile reading scores: 13 at or below the 5^th percentile, 7 between the 6^th and 10^th, and 5 between the 11^th and 21st. Two staff participated: the special educational needs co-ordinator who taught the learners and implemented the audiobooks approach and the Deputy Head who oversaw the project in the school.

The audiobooks project was introduced to the sample group during bi-weekly additional literacy lessons, with books of particular interest to the students, and their recordings. To stimulate the students’ interest in their own learning the SENCo adopted a multi-sensory sound+sight+movement information-processing approach to reading acquisition, likening the brain to a computer, as she encouraged them to run their fingers under the text while listening to recordings.

Learners’ engagement, enjoyment, confidence and self-assessment of progress in reading were assessed prior to, and following, the project through Likert Scales and staff interviews. Reading gains in both accuracy and comprehension were assessed through NGRT norm-referenced assessments (GL Assessment, 2020). Interviews were held with the staff to determine how audiobooks were introduced to the students and how books were chosen, students’ reactions to the project over time, facilitators and constraints on the use of audiobooks, and whether there was value in continuing their use.

Overall the project achieved what the school had hoped.

• Likert scale data indicated that, among the students who reported dislike of reading initially, there was a small positive difference in some reports of levels of enjoyment and improvement in reading, and/or the frequency with which they actively chose to read. Some individuals reported improvement in almost every area. For example, one reported improved enjoyment and ability in reading, greater frequency in choosing to read at home, and greater effort.
• In terms of reading gain, above the initial 5th percentile there was a clear shift upwards, with the greatest gain made by those with the highest percentile rankings. The two initially at the 21st percentile had improved to scores above the 45th percentile.

Interviews with staff indicated positive changes in students’ comprehension and enjoyment of books, the value of the project to the school, the usefulness of support from Calibre Audio, pragmatic constraints on the progress of the project, and future plans in the school for the use of audiobooks recordings.

The school intended to continue trialling the use of audiobooks at school and at home in 2021-22. In-school GDPR clearance for students to have personal Calibre usernames was organised subsequent to the project. In future, students would be able to access recordings of their choice during the holidays.

OECD. (2016). PISA 2018 draft analytical frameworks – available at https://www.oecd.org/pisa/data/PISA-2018-draft-frameworks.pdf , accessed 31st January, 2022

Best, E. (2020) Audiobooks and Literacy, London: National Literacy Trust

GL Assessment (2020) New Group Reading Test – available at https://www.gl-assessment.co.uk/assessments/new-group-reading-test/ , accessed 31st January, 2022

Clark, C. and Picton, I. (2019) Children, young people and digital reading, London: National Literacy Trust

BERA (2018) Ethical guidelines for educational research, fourth edition (2018), available at https://www.bera.ac.uk/publication/ethical-guidelines-for-educational-research-2018, accessed 31st January, 2022