Education Commons^™

Phonics Instruction To Close The Gap Between Students In 4th And 5th Grade Special Education, Heidi Stevenson

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Action research was conducted to determine if explicit phonics instruction would bridge the gap between students and their grade-level peers. Fourth and fifth-grade students were taught for six-weeks utilizing Really Great Reading’s HD word program. Grade-level fluency probes were used to monitor student progress at the beginning and end of the six-weeks as well as the Diagnostic Decoding Survey (DDS). Findings concluded that all students’ fluency improved on their correct words per minute and accuracy as well as on the DDS. Further research would be needed to determine how long it would take for students to close the gap between …

Lessons Learned: Effective Reading Practices For The Struggling Reader, Maria M. Salaiz, Marie Simonsson, Velma D. Menchaca

Organization and School Leadership Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study investigated schools who received Reading First (RF) monies to determine if student reading achievement in kindergarten through second grade was a function of the funding earmarked for implementation of the RF practices. The researchers also examined a seven-year reading progress trend to observe changes in Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) composite means of 37 participating campuses by grade level and by assessment measure from 2006 to 2012. Multiple linear regression and one-way repeated measures outputs were used for evaluating the evidence. A longitudinal progress trend was used over a seven-year period. Both a linear regression and a repeated …

Developing Teacher Knowledge Of The Science Of Reading: Phonemic Awareness & Phonics, Megan Erin Dziedzic

Culminating Experience Projects

In 2000 the National Reading Panel addressed the low reading proficiency of students in the United States with a report detailing the result of many meta-analysis studies regarding five key areas of literacy: literacy, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension (Report of the National Reading Panel, 2000). Through compiling research regarding literacy teaching practices, the panel concluded that to improve literacy scores, we need to focus on research-based, systematic, and explicit instruction, especially in the foundational years of lower elementary (Report of the National Reading Panel, 2000). The science of reading is a broad heading that incorporates neuroscience research …

Comparing The Effects Of Phonics Instruction Provided To Students With Disabilities, Ashley Rohlf

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

Special education teachers work each day to implement effective curricula to help students with disabilities receiving special education services reach grade-level standards. Recent research supports the need for implementing a comprehensive reading program that includes phonics instruction. With numerous curricula available, this action research seeks to inform educators of two methods of instruction that have a heavy phonics component that leads to growth in student reading skills. Two methods were evaluated: one method used multiple curricula to target all areas of a comprehensive reading program while the other method used a single curriculum that targeted all of the same areas. …

The Status Of Phonics Instruction: Learning From The Teachers, Sherry Sanden, Deborah A. Macphee, Luminita Hartle, Stephen Poggendorf, Caleb Zuiderveen

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

Increasingly alarmed by instructional mandates more founded on journalistic rhetoric and popular opinion than on research findings or practitioner expertise, researchers gathered survey data from teachers to better understand the status of K–2 phonics instruction. Data demonstrate that the overwhelming majority of these K–2 teachers teach phonics, rely on a published curriculum, and teach phonics in systematic and explicit ways. These findings contradict media assertions that reading classrooms are largely devoid of phonics instruction and that teachers fail to include phonics as an important element of their reading instruction. Implications include calls for researchers to explore what teachers can share …

Exploring Early Childhood Teachers’ Experiences When Teaching Phonics With The Letterland Program, Laura A. Winters

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2015, a small school district in a mid-Atlantic state implemented Letterland, a phonics-based early reading program, to increase early reading levels. The problem investigated in this study was that, despite district implementation of the Letterland phonics program, early childhood students continued to struggle with mastery of phonics and phonemic awareness skills, suggesting that improvements might be needed in program implementation. The purpose of this project study was to explore the experiences and perceptions of early childhood teachers who teach phonics and phonemic awareness using the Letterland program. The conceptual framework that guided this study was the constructivist theory. The …

The Effectiveness Of A Caregiver Delivered Phonics Intervention For At-Risk Students, Iwalani Dela Paz-Miller

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Reading skills are important for students' academic success. Phonics specifically is a foundational skill which is necessary for reading fluency and overall reading proficiency. Additional support outside of the classroom can be beneficial for those struggling and at-risk. There are various strategies and interventions that can help students' gain important academic skills. In addition to various reading skills and interventions, parents and caregivers can help implement interventions within the home setting to support students in their academic growth. Overall, the research has documented the effectiveness of reading intervention delivered by parents and caregivers, but there is little research on caregiver …

Evidence-Based Reading Interventions For Middle And High School Teachers, Brittany Evans, Beverly Hart, Mashonda Surratt

Instructional Modules for Professional learning Responding to Opportunities and Valuing Educators (IMPROVE)

Welcome to Evidence-Based Reading Practices. This module is designed to help middle and high school teachers intervene with struggling readers in their regular education classrooms. This module will take you approximately three hours to complete. During that time, you will learn what to do when students are missing the necessary foundational skills to become skilled readers.

View professional learning module.