Education Commons^™

Supporting Multilingual Learners’ Reading Competence: A Multiple Case Study Of Teachers’ Instruction And Student Learning And Motivation, Melissa A. Gallagher, Jori S. Beck, Erin M. Ramirez, Ana Taboada Barber, Michelle M. Buehl

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Supporting students’ reading competence (i.e., their comprehension and vocabulary) is complex, particularly when working with multilingual learners, and involves implementing instructional practices to support their behavioral engagement in reading as well as their reading motivation. The purpose of this mixed methods case study was to examine changes in multilingual learners’ reading comprehension, academic vocabulary, reading engagement, and reading motivation after participating in a 7-week intervention called United States History for Engaged Reading (USHER) and then examine qualitative data to explain why these changes may have occurred. We found changes in the reading comprehension of MLs across all four teachers’ classes, …

A Multi-Case Study Examining The Practices Of Fourth-And Fifth-Grade Teachers In Title 1 Schools Who Use Specific Reading Strategies To Teach The Comprehension Of Informational Text, Candice Maureen Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this multi-case study was to examine the practices of fourth- and fifth-grade teachers in Title 1 schools who use specific reading strategies to teach the comprehension of informational text. One theory that guided this study was Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory focusing on the zone of proximal development as it applies to what a learner can do with and without help, and his concept of learning and development, whereby a child does not develop independently of his or her environment. In addition, Bandura’s social cognitive theory served as a guiding theory for this study. The design was a multiple …

Adventure Book Club - The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, Courtney Helseth, Jillian Jacoba

Honors Expanded Learning Clubs

This after school club serves to improve reading comprehension, teach ideas such as storyline and character development, and to add creativity to reading to encourage love of reading. The club utilizes the text, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis and includes various crafts, worksheets, and games to improve comprehension and make reading fun.

The Impact Of A Teacher’S Implementation Of The Readworks Digital Reading Program On Second Graders’ Reading Fluency And Comprehension Test Scores, Cynthia Molina

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

Since elementary school student performance on the end-of-year summative Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) Standards of Learning (SOL) reading test is vital in impacting school accreditation, computer-assisted instruction has become popular. Online reading programs have existed in many elementary schools in Norfolk Public School district since 1996, such as Breakthrough to Literacy (McGraw-Hill Companies, 2002), Istation in 2014 (Mathes, Torgesen, & Herron, 2015), and the i-Ready program from 2015 to 2017 (Curriculum Associates, 2014). The problem is that there is insufficient empirical research supporting the use of the ReadWorks program at several Norfolk, Virginia’s elementary schools.

The purpose of this …

Influence Of Technology On English Language Learners' Vocabulary, Reading, And Comprehension, Catherine Elizabeth Crum

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have shown that vocabulary development is a challenge for English Language Learners (ELLs) as they are less prepared to use contextual and linguistic clues to decode unfamiliar vocabulary. Beginning in the upper elementary grades, reading in content areas becomes lengthier and more complex. Technology-supported vocabulary instruction to teach social studies to ELLs is a relatively new concept in the 5th grade classroom. The purpose of this comparative study was to assess the vocabulary and reading comprehension outcomes of ELLs in the content area of 5th grade social studies when taught using technology-supported versus traditional textbook instruction. Mayer's cognitive theory …

High School Science Teachers' Perceptions Of Teaching Content-Related Reading Comprehension Instruction, Theresa D. Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In order to achieve academic success, students must be able to comprehend written material in content-area textbooks. However, a large number of high school students struggle to comprehend science content. Research findings have demonstrated that students make measurable gains in comprehending content-area textbooks when provided quality reading comprehension instruction. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how high school science teachers perceived their responsibility to provide content-related comprehension instruction and 10 high school science teachers were interviewed for this study. Data analysis consisted of open, axial, and selective coding. The findings revealed that 8 out of …

Predicting Second Grade Listening Comprehension Using Prekindergarten Measures, Crystle N. Alonzo, Gloria Yeomans-Maldonado, Kimberly A. Murphy, Beau Bevens, Language And Reading Research Consortium (Larrc)

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine prekindergarten predictors of listening comprehension in second grade. Methods: Within a large, 5-year longitudinal study, children progressing from prekindergarten to second grade were administered a comprehensive set of prekindergarten measures of foundational language skills (vocabulary and grammar), higher-level language skills (inferencing, comprehension monitoring, and text structure knowledge), listening comprehension, working memory, and nonverbal processing, as well as second grade measures of listening comprehension. Results: A prekindergarten measure of listening comprehension-the Test of Narrative Language-and a prekindergarten measure of foundational language skills and working memory-the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-4 Recalling …

The Impact Of The Sra Corrective Reading Program On Standardized Testing, Tony Oyola

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The implementation of effective reading programs for special education students is paramount for school success due to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the reauthorization of Individual with Disabilities Education Act. One local school implemented the Science Research Associates Corrective Reading Program (SRACRP) because their special education students did not meet the required proficient or advanced reading scores on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA). The purpose of this quantitative within-group study was to determine if special and regular education students demonstrated growth in reading comprehension after the implementation of the SRACRP. The theoretical foundation …

Learning To Retell Stories Through Comparative Teaching: Writing And Drawing, Rachel L. Lindle

Theses and Dissertations--Art and Visual Studies

Students who are emergent readers and writers are often difficult to assess, as they are unable to communicate understanding in writing. From my observations, these students communicate ideas best through concrete forms of expression, rather than the abstract formation of letters and writing that is unfamiliar to them. Drawing provides an alternate form of expression from writing. Based on information found in literature review and personal experiences from working with students who are emergent readers and writers, pictures and drawings are a bridge to communicate ideas with these students. This form of expression and communication may be a useful assessment …

Design Strategy For The Development Of Applications For Autism Instruction, Nancy Jean Rasche

Open Access Theses

This paper explains my journey of exploration into the development of a mobile application for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) based on researching an area of instructional need. The direction spread to creating a tool to encourage collaboration between designers and educators to generate more mobile application educational opportunities for children with ASD. These two paths of development of touch screen mobile computer (TSMC) applications are explored in this paper. The first path of application development, based on a researched instructional need into improving the comprehension skills of children with ASD by teaching the emergent literacy skill of vocabulary …

An Examination Of Reading Assignments In The Secondary Classroom, Rachel Elizabeth Leer

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this research study is to examine reading assignments given in the secondary classroom of a rural secondary school. The intention is to analyze student readiness to handle complex text found in post-secondary education and/or the workforce, based on current reading trends within the school. The research questions guiding this study focus on the average amount of reading students are expected to complete in a week, what strategic support is being provided to students to enhance comprehension of text, the methodology behind how teachers select both reading assignments and reading strategies, and finally the methodology behind how teachers …

Using Poetry To Improve Fluency And Comprehension In Third-Grade Students, Karen E. Newsome

Georgia Educational Researcher

This study examined the effects of repeated choral reading of poetry on fluency and comprehension of third-grade students (N = 76) in the southeastern United States. Student attitudes toward poetry were also measured. Students served in regular, remedial, and special education were taught reading using the school’s basal series for four weeks. Choral repeated reading of poetry was then added to the curriculum. The DIBELS ORF test, STAR reading assessment, and an attitude survey were used to assess student performance. Statistically significant gains were made during the poetry intervention in fluency (M = 18.78, p < .01) and comprehension (M = 0.33, p < .05). Slight improvements in students’ attitudes toward poetry were also observed.

Storytelling And Story Reading: A Comparison Of Effects On Children's Memory And Story Comprehension., Matthew P. Gallets

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For years, storytellers have been going to schools to share stories with children. However, to date only limited research has been done on the effects of storytelling on children’s learning. This project was part of an ongoing study involving several researchers. In this portion of the project, the effects of storytelling and story reading were compared. The population studied consisted of kindergarten, first, and second grade students. Half the students were read stories aloud, the other half were told the same stories by a storyteller. Data were collected regarding students ability to recall facts they had heard, as well as …

Building A Better Reading-Writing Assessment: Bridging Cognitive Theory, Instruction, And Assessment, Roxanne Greitz Miller, Robert C. Calfee

Education Faculty Articles and Research

"Based upon our work at the district, state, and national levels, we address the following issues: how to improve large-scale writing assessments, and how to create bridges between effective reading and writing instruction and writing assessment."

A Case Study Of Twelve Japanese Esl Students' Use Of Interaction Modifications, Darin Dooley

Dissertations and Theses

This case study examines Japanese ESL students' use of interaction modifications in a content based course. Twelve female subjects were observed and recorded during a nine week period. Their use of interaction modifications (clarification requests, confirmation checks, and comprehension checks) and responses to interaction modifications (single word, full or partial repetition, or reformulation), during teacher-fronted and small group situations, were recorded and coded using the COLT observation instrument.

The study found that the subjects used clarification requests over four times more often in small group or pair-work situations than in teacher-fronted classes. Also, the subjects used confirmation checks over five …