Education Commons^™

Using Literature Circles To Strengthen The Overall Literacy Skills And Reading Performance Of Emergent Bilingual Students, Shannon A. Pruett

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of literature circles on strengthening the literacy skills and reading performance of two emergent bilingual students. As guided reading groups help reinforce students’ ability to read, it is key to implement additional instructional strategies that will assist in improving emergent bilingual students’ reading, writing, and language skills. Harvey Daniels (2002) described literature circles as an effective classroom tool in supporting the overall literacy skills of emergent bilingual students: “Young bilingual children, no matter what their linguistic background, are able to have rich discussions if they have regular opportunities to engage …

School Voices: An Exploration Of Early Career Teachers’ Narratives On Student Voice And Dialogic Practices, Rachel Ada Meiklejohn

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

Classrooms are typically organized around the expectation that students’ voices should be used primarily for reciting answers elicited by teachers. Numerous studies show that moving away from this recitation model towards more dialogic practices has the potential to make literacy learning more effective and inclusive. Yet, dialogic classrooms in which students’ voices work together to create knowledge and make meaning of texts remain rare, especially in classrooms serving students of low-income and minority backgrounds. In order to understand how teachers develop their thinking about student voice and dialogic practices in literacy learning, I completed a qualitative case study of ten …

Bringing Women's Literature Into The Secondary Classroom: A Comprehensive Unit Plan, Mairead Stotz

Honors Theses

Included in this applied knowledge project are details regarding how I developed a six-week unit on women’s literature using backward design, rationale behind my process and text selections, learning targets and Illinois Learning Standards for English Language Arts that are met through the instruction, and a complete set of 30 lesson plans, including assessments, handouts, and additional instructional materials. My goal is to demonstrate what I have learned during my time as an education student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and to emphasize the importance of women’s literature in the secondary classroom.

Key Words: English education, women’s literature, literature circles, …

Ungifted: Teacher Candidates’ Understanding Of Giftedness Through Literature Circles, Sharryn Larsen Walker, Wendie Lappin Castillo

Literacy Practice and Research

The purpose of this qualitative study was to analyze the reflective comments made by teacher candidates (TCs) after they participated in weekly discussions about the tween novel Ungifted by Korman (2012). The TCs attended at a regional Pacific Northwest university, majoring or minoring in various educational fields. After reading and discussing the topic of giftedness as it related to their engagement with the novel, the TCs wrote a reflective essay about their new understandings of teaching the gifted. Using the constant-comparative method, the essays from three sections of the course over a three-year period were read and reread for identifiable …

Preservice Teacher Efficacy To Teach Informational Text Comprehension Through Literature Circles, Amy J. Clark

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Preservice teachers in an elementary education teacher preparation program are tasked with teaching informational text comprehension through literature circles during a literacy field experience. The problem addressed is that even after receiving explicit classroom instruction on this topic, preservice teachers expressed apprehension and self-doubt and may not have the self-efficacy to effectively teach informational text comprehension. The purpose of this project study was to explore preservice teachers' perceived self-efficacy to teach informational text comprehension. This study was grounded in a constructivist paradigm centered on Bandura’s concept of self-efficacy. The research questions concerned preservice teachers perceived self-efficacy to teach informational text …

Supporting Students' Choice And Voice In Discovering Empathy, Imagination, And Why Literature Matters More Than Ever, Kimberly Hill Campbell

Democracy and Education

This article explores why we need to be intentional about the literature we explore in our English language arts classrooms. It explores the question of what literature should be considered and strategies for using democratic practices in support of literature circles. It also reinforces the importance of collaborative practitioner research to explore curriculum decisions and classroom practice to ensure we are meeting the needs of the diverse students with whom we work.

Creating Real-World Readers: Literacy Circles In Third Grade, Dejanee Gregory

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

This study addresses the topic of literature circles in an elementary classroom and their implications on students’ attitudes toward reading and their self-perceptions as readers. The author was a preservice teacher placed in a yearlong clinical teaching internship in a third-grade English Language Arts departmentalized classroom. The goal of the study was to implement literature circles in hopes to better understand students’ attitudes and self-perceptions as readers. For this study, the author collected data in the form of student interviews, survey data, a personal reflective journal, observations, and students’ reflections. Utilizing the constant comparative method, the author analyzed data for …

A Case Study For Improving Reading Comprehension In Third Grade Using Literature Circles, Joy Hinds

Master of Education Program Theses

This action research study investigated whether or not literature circles help increase reading comprehension, especially for young readers who are relatively new to interacting with chapter books. The participants were ten third grade students in a general education classroom. All students completed a Differentiated Reading Assessment (DRA) before beginning literature circles. These groups were created with three or four students each, according to their interest and book choice. With the teacher helping to facilitate group discussion, these literature circles met regularly during class. After about four weeks, all students were again assessed using the DRA benchmark assessment to compare comprehension …

Last Year's Choice Is This Year's Voice: Valuing Democratic Practices In The Classroom Through Student-Selected Literature, Michael D. Boatright, Amelia Allman

Democracy and Education

The authors of this article explore democratic practices in the classroom by using student-selected literature. After multiple class sets of student-selected young adult novels were purchased using grant money, the authors set out to see what happens in a classroom when student choice is at the forefront of pedagogical decision-making and how students resonated with and voiced their experiences reading about those chosen novels. Because canonical texts are often used to help students understand allusions in contemporary texts, one adolescent novel and one canonical novel became the focal points for this project. With democratic practices undergirding this project, the authors …

Utilizing Series Books As A Vehicle To Cultivate Motivation And Reading Development In Literature Circles, Heather E. Guerci

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to document the changes in student achievement, motivation, and engagement. The specific aim is to see what happens when series books are discussed in literature circles. Engagement during literature circles, growth in reading level, and behaviors exhibited during the literature circle discussions are analyzed. The focus group of students demonstrated changes in their reading preferences and level of motivation to read texts. Implications for utilizing series books in literature circles are discussed.

Using Literature Circles To Increase Reading Comprehension And Student Motivation, Michelle Jacobs

Theses and Dissertations

Many educators arrange students in guided reading groups based on their reading lexile. Usually the books selected for guided reading are from a basal reading series and are used to teach different reading components and strategies. However, the books don’t always reflect student cultures, making it difficult for students to hold discussions and make connections. Oftentimes, students are unmotivated to read the assigned books and rarely engage in discussions. Based on research conducted by Daniels (2006), when kids are engaged in well-structured book clubs their comprehension and their attitude towards reading both improve. With ongoing changes in education, educators must …

Increasing Boys Engagement In Literature Through Supplementary Texts, Jessica Spindler

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

The purpose of this paper is to describe the findings of a study on the effects of implementing a literature circle with adolescent boys disengaged with texts studied in their language arts class. The literature circle presented supplementary texts which supported the understanding of the primary text studied in the students’ class. The research was conducted with a group of four 10th grade boys who showed signs of disengagement in the traditional language arts classroom setting. The data collection methods used included teacher interviews, student surveys, observational tally sheets, attitude scales, and student journal entries. The results of the research …

Capitalizing On Social And Transactional Learning To Challenge First-Grade Readers, Amanda Meyer, Roland K. Schendel

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

A classroom teacher capitalizes on social learning and reader response theories to challenge her accelerated first-grade readers by implementing literature circles. The aim of this action research was to identify a clear view of how to use literature circles with first-graders and what might be accomplished. Three constructs emerged from the interviews and observations that support the potential for using literature circles with primary students including: engagement and independence, reading benefits, and writing improvement. With respect to social learning and reader response theories, literature circles were found to be possible, practical, and beneficial for supporting the literacy perceptions and practices …

Biliterate Literature Circles: Talks As Tickets To Ride, Claudia Peralta

Claudia Peralta

This study aimed to explore the impact of Literature Circles in a fourth grade bilingual classroom (Spanish and English) and investigate how classroom literary practices were framed and shaped by the classroom teacher. Further study revealed that community building, and shifts in questions affected the type of narratives constructed. During this five-month study, the researcher conducted weekly participant observations of instruction in the classroom, primarily during the language arts blocks. The researcher gave specific attention to observing a classroom practice: Literature Circles. Data was collected through the use of fieldnotes, informal and formal interviews, video- and/or audiotaping, and artifact collection. …

Biliterate Literature Circles: Talks As Tickets To Ride, Claudia Peralta

Claudia Peralta

This study aimed to explore the impact of Literature Circles in a fourth grade bilingual classroom (Spanish and English) and investigate how classroom literary practices were framed and shaped by the classroom teacher. Further study revealed that community building, and shifts in questions affected the type of narratives constructed. During this five-month study, the researcher conducted weekly participant observations of instruction in the classroom, primarily during the language arts blocks. The researcher gave specific attention to observing a classroom practice: Literature Circles. Data was collected through the use of fieldnotes, informal and formal interviews, video- and/or audiotaping, and artifact collection. …

Biliterate Literature Circles: Talks As Tickets To Ride, Claudia Peralta

Literacy, Language, and Culture Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study aimed to explore the impact of Literature Circles in a fourth grade bilingual classroom (Spanish and English) and investigate how classroom literary practices were framed and shaped by the classroom teacher. Further study revealed that community building, and shifts in questions affected the type of narratives constructed. During this five-month study, the researcher conducted weekly participant observations of instruction in the classroom, primarily during the language arts blocks. The researcher gave specific attention to observing a classroom practice: Literature Circles. Data was collected through the use of fieldnotes, informal and formal interviews, video- and/or audiotaping, and artifact collection. …

Powerful Print: Identifying The Influence Of Narrative Reading Over Student's Opinion Formation, Sarah A. Lord

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the ways in which reading works of fiction affects the formation of student’s opinions and attitudes by using literature circles discussions and journal writing. It uses Louise Rosenblatt’s (1938) Reader Response Theory supported by Lev Vygotsky’s (1962) writings about the social dynamics of language development. Methodologically I followed the example of literature circles set forth by Janice Almasi and Linda Gambrell (1994, 1995).

Participants were fifth grade students in a rural South Georgia elementary school who participated during the 2010-2011 school year. The students participated in small peer-led discussion groups. The students chose the books they would …

The Impact Of Transactional Strategies Instruction On The Reading Comprehension Of A Diverse Group Of Second Graders, Sunjoo Shawn Kim

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of TSI in teaching reading comprehension to a diverse group of second graders. The diversity included various levels of readiness in reading, language status such as English learners and native speakers of English, and various levels of participation by children in a whole-class setting. Part One of this study used teacher action research as its methodology to address reading comprehension and student autonomy. Part Two of this study used participatory action research, involving children as co-researchers, to investigate how second graders perceived Literature Circles as their reading comprehension instruction and …

Students With Reading Disabilities Participating In Literature Discussions: A Case Study, Elysha Patino O’Brien

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This qualitative case study addressed a lack of research concerning literature discussions for students with learning disabilities in reading. Fourth and fifth grade students with reading disabilities participated in twice-weekly literature discussions, 30- to-60 minutes each, for 12 weeks. The students attended a Title I school and most were Hispanic males. Together, they read and discussed five postmodern picturebooks. The purpose of the study was to understand (a) reader responses to the illustrations, text, and postmodern features of the books, and (b) the individual reader’s response habits. Situated within a sociocultural frame, the theories guiding this study pertained to language …

Reading In-Between The Lines: Exploring The Experience Of Cultivating Cultural Awareness With White Teacher Candidates In A Liberal Arts University In Georgia, Holley Morris Roberts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was to explore the use of critical literacy (Freire, 1998) to assist predominately White teacher candidates in their preparation to teach diverse groups of students. Seven White females, who were born and reared in Georgia, participated in the study. These participants were encouraged to critically examine their personal, racial, and cultural roots through autobiographical papers, literature circles using African American children's books, critical reflective papers responding to the literature circles, conversations, and interviews. Three bodies of research provided the theoretical framework for the study: White identity theory (Kunjufu, 2002, McIntyre, 1997, Wise, 2008), critical literacy theory (Freire, 1974, …

Examination Of Interactions Among Eighth-Grade Language Arts Students During Literature Circles, Rachel Marie Smith

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the nature of interactions that took place among eighth-graders as they participated in literature circles. The teacher/researcher organized students into literature circles based on the students' novel selection. Students completed a different role assignment each week. The role assignments included word wizard, passage picker, connector, summarizer, and question asker. As the students participated in literature circles, the teacher/researcher tape recorded their conversations and took observational field notes. Analysis of the data four weeks later showed that some students' voices were silenced and students went through the motions of completing and talking about their role assignments with little …

Using Literature Circles To Engage Students With Informational Texts, Theresa Marie Anderson

All Graduate Projects

The focus of this project was to review the available research on literature circles as a method of engaging students with informational texts and to create an implementation guide for teachers. The results of the research show that there is a need for effective nonfiction instruction and that including this instruction at the elementary level provides tremendous benefits for students. Literature circles are an effective way to engage students with these informational texts, because they offer an authentic literacy experience and provide students with the kinds of informational text interactions they will encounter in the real world. The project includes …

Transactional Literature Circles And The Reading Comprehension Of At-Risk English Learners In The Mainstream Classroom, Cheryl Mcelvain

Master's Theses

Digitized thesis