McGraw Hill Expands Literacy Portfolio with ROAR, the Only Research-Backed Dyslexia Screener for K–12

Exclusive integration will bring assessment developed at the Stanford Graduate School of Education, Reading and Dyslexia Research Program to K–12 classrooms around the world

Key takeaways:

• Exclusive integration adds ROAR, the only literacy screener designed to assess foundational reading skills across the full K–12 continuum, to McGraw Hill's literacy portfolio.
• ROAR, developed at the Stanford University Graduate School of Education, Reading and Dyslexia Research Program, extends McGraw Hill's ability to support educators in connecting assessment, curriculum and intervention.
• Expanding state requirements and focus on literacy screening are underscoring demand for solutions that identify student needs and support targeted, individualized instruction.
• The ROAR Foundational Reading Skills Suite is already approved for use in multiple states, including California.

COLUMBUS, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--McGraw Hill, Inc. (NYSE: MH), a leading global provider of education solutions for preK-12, higher education and professional learning, announced today the exclusive integration of ROAR® (Rapid Online Assessment of Reading), including the technology and intellectual property that underpins the assessment model, into its literacy portfolio, enabling the company to bring to market a research-backed approach to literacy screening across K–12 classrooms.

Developed at the Stanford Graduate School of Education, Reading and Dyslexia Research Program, ROAR is the only literacy screener designed to assess foundational reading skills across the full K–12 continuum. Bringing ROAR together with McGraw Hill’s K–12 literacy portfolio will enable educators to provide personalized support for each student by leveraging curriculum and other learning resources to help them develop the skills they need.

Grounded in more than a decade of reading and neuroscience research, ROAR helps educators identify and support students with diverse reading needs, including students with dyslexia, earlier and more effectively. As states increasingly prioritize literacy screening, this agreement strengthens the connection between assessment, instruction and intervention while helping educators translate reading research into classroom practice.

“ROAR was designed to provide educators with scientifically validated assessments that support real classroom decision-making,” said Dr. Jason Yeatman, founder of ROAR, director of the Brain Development and Education Lab at Stanford Graduate School of Education, and Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Education and Department of Psychology at Stanford University and the Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine. “From the beginning, our goal has been to ensure that advances in reading and dyslexia research can make a meaningful difference for students. McGraw Hill’s reach and deep K–12 relationships provide a clear path to scale ROAR in a way that expands access for schools and districts while staying true to the research foundation behind the assessment.”

“Improving literacy outcomes is one of the most urgent challenges facing education today,” said Jana Thompson, Interim President of McGraw Hill's School group. “At McGraw Hill, we believe some of the most important advances in education happen when research can be meaningfully applied in classrooms—and our role is to help scale that impact for more schools and students. Offering ROAR as part of our literacy portfolio represents a major step forward in helping schools identify reading difficulties earlier and connect students to the support they need to succeed.”

Connecting Assessment, Instruction and Intervention

ROAR is an online screener that assesses foundational reading skills including phonological awareness, word recognition, vocabulary and other key indicators of reading development, and is available in both English and Spanish. The assessments provide educators with rapid, actionable insights—delivered in real-time—that can help identify reading strengths, uncover potential reading difficulties and support earlier and more targeted intervention.

Unlike many literacy screening tools that focus primarily on early elementary grades, ROAR is the only literacy screener on the market that assesses foundational reading skills from kindergarten through 12th grade, helping schools identify and support students in later grades who may benefit from additional literacy support.

ROAR will complement McGraw Hill's K–12 literacy programs including its core ELA curriculum—Emerge!, Summit!, Soar! and ¡Emerger juntos!—as well as its intervention and supplemental solutions, creating a more seamless pathway for educators to identify student needs and connect each student with personalized support, learning tools and curriculum that help build the skills they need.

“Our research reinforces that children of all ages, not just those in the early grades, can make meaningful progress in overcoming dyslexia and other reading challenges, making it critical for educators to have tools that identify student needs and high-quality curriculum and intervention resources to provide targeted support,” Dr. Yeatman said.

The ROAR Foundational Reading Skills Suite has been validated for dyslexia screening and is already approved for use in several states, including California, Kentucky, Minnesota and Ohio. Through research partnerships with the Stanford Graduate School of Education, Reading and Dyslexia Research Program, ROAR has already been used by more than 500,000 learners, providing a growing foundation for continued research and innovation in reading assessment.

For more information on ROAR, visit https://www.mheducation.com/prek-12/resources/roar.html

McGraw Hill

McGraw Hill (NYSE: MH) is a leading global provider of education solutions for preK-12, higher education and professional learning, supporting the evolving needs of millions of educators and students around the world. We provide trusted, high-quality content and personalized learning experiences that use data, technology and learning science to help students progress towards their goals. Through our commitment to fostering a culture of innovation and belonging, we are dedicated to improving outcomes and access to education for all. We have over 30 offices across North America, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East and South America, and make our learning solutions available in more than 80 languages. Visit us at mheducation.com or find us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or X.