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Gjr Volume 41 Number 1 Spring 2018, Lina B. Soares

The Georgia Journal of Reading Archive

The Georgia Journal of Reading's Spring 2018 issue includes:

Letter from the Editor by Lina B. Soares (pg. 4)

President’s Page by Ron Reigner (pg. 5)

Give the Neurological Impress Method Another Chance for One-to-One Fluency Interventions by Melissa M. Mitchell and Dr. Vassiliki Zygouris-Coe (pg. 6)

Building Comprehension through Explicit and Organic Vocabulary Instruction for English Learners by Marisa Gonzalez and Dr. Robert A. Griffn (pg. 13)

Children’s Literature to Develop Awareness and Advocacy for Social Justice by Dr. Katie Kelly and Dr. Lindsay Yearta (pg. 22)

Maximizing Learning: Embedding Phonological Awareness throughout the Day by Dr. Shawnna Helf, …

Teaching For Deep Learning In A Second Grade Literacy Classroom, Treavor Bogard, Annamary Consalvo, Jo Worthy

Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

From a New Literacies Studies (NLS) perspective, deep learning involves the acquisition of social and cultural competencies valued within a disciplinary community, not merely propositional displays of what one knows. Drawn from a year-long qualitative inquiry, this case study examines how one exemplary second-grade literacy teacher taught toward deep learning, using a pedagogy of multiliteracies (New London Group, 1996). Selected episodes of instruction were analyzed in two phases. Initially, data were examined for evidence of three main competency sets of deep learning--cognitive, inter-personal, and intra-personal (National Research Council, 2012). In the latter phase, analysis focused on the teacher’s pedagogical stances …

The Effects Of Using Morphemic Analysis On Comprehension Of Unknown Academic Vocabulary, Jon Avery

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Despite the vast amount of research on morphemes and literacy, examination of how morphemic analysis affects secondary language learners is limited. Morphemic analysis is the process of using common Latin and Greek prefixes, roots and suffixes to hypothesize the meaning of unknown vocabulary. The primary purpose of the research is to determine how morphemic analysis affects English learners ability to determine the meaning of unknown academic vocabulary in their high school advanced placement geography class. The secondary purpose of the study is to provide secondary teachers a tool to do something about the vocabulary gap they observe between native speakers …

Home Literacy Of Dual-Language Learners In Kindergarten From Low-Ses Backgrounds, Carla Wood, Lisa Fitton, Estrella Rodriguez

Faculty Publications

This study aimed to describe home literacy (HL) activities of Spanish-/English-speaking children of low–socioeconomic status backgrounds and examine the relationship between HL and performance on standardized assessments. Parents of 65 dual-language learners (DLLs) in kindergarten completed an HL questionnaire. Parents reported an average of 17 books at home and engaged in active HL activities for 24 minutes a day on average. The relations between HL activities and performance were evaluated using correlations and regression. Analyses revealed a significant relation between HL and children’s language abilities, as measured by a bilingual measure of morphosyntax and semantics. Children’s reported interest in reading …

Critical Literacy And Engagement In Special Education, Sara Nelson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

This Capstone addresses the research question, what is the effect of critical literacy practices on engagement in secondary special education classrooms? Motivated by a desire to provide secondary special educators with tools to meet diverse learner needs in innovative, engaging and challenging ways, the author chronicles the key experiences that led to the topic choice and reviews the literature related to the research question. Additionally, the document includes an overview of educator professional development methodology and an outline for the design of the final Capstone project. The project derived from this research includes a year-long professional development plan for secondary …

The Impact Of Newsela On Disciplinary Content Area Literacy To Improve Vocabulary Instruction, Nicole Anderson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The research question addressed in this project was, what is the impact of Newsela on developing disciplinary content area literacies to improve vocabulary instruction? The author describes the process of researching and creating a literacy action plan developed for the purpose of providing secondary schools with the timeline and implementation tasks for engaging students in authentic literacy experiences in all content areas. Research around effective literacy plans, specifically by Irvin, Meltzer, and Dukes assisted in development of goals, implementation tasks, and criteria for success. The author defines the key components of this plan, detailing new learnings and struggles throughout the …

Thematic, Interdisciplinary Curricular Unit Developed For Fourth Grade On ‘The Science And Engineering Of Slime, Laura Johnston

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Teaching literacy units based on language arts standards alone can leave some students lacking background knowledge and vocabulary that is necessary to deeply comprehend what they read. This reality led to the asking of the research question What is the impact of thematic, interdisciplinary teaching on students’ reading engagement and achievement in a language immersion setting? A review of pertinent literature was conducted regarding thematic, interdisciplinary instructional methodology, content area literacy, research-based practices for multilingual learners, and student engagement. In response, a thematic, interdisciplinary curricular unit capstone project was developed to provide students a learning context for literacy tasks. The …

Lumos Literacy: Utilizing Harry Potter As A Guide For English Language Learners, Kayla Punt

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This research paper and project looks at teaching literacy in a 9^th grade Standard English classroom with accommodations for high-level English Language Learners through JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. It explores three schools of thought surrounding ESL education: transitional bilingual education, developmental bilingual education, and two-way immersion, and then uses this information to guide a full unit plan, complete with assessments, a lesson map for 20 days, and two appendixes of lesson plans. Drawing inspiration from Parker Palmer (1997), Lourdes Ortega (2013), and Kylene Beers (2003), the unit focuses on the engaging elements of Harry Potter …

Book Review: Duran, C. (2017). Language And Literacy In Refugee Families. United Kingdom, Uk: Palgrave Macmillan. 226 Pp. Isbn: 978-1-137-58754-1, Nguyen Dao

Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement

Book Review by Nguyen Dao: Duran, C. (2017). Language and Literacy in Refugee Families. United Kingdom, UK: Palgrave MacMillan.

Literacy Education Across Languages In Writing Centers., Lance M Gibson

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Literacy education in writing carried out through writing centers (WCs) is a practice that occurs beyond one individual language; rather, almost every developed country provides some extent of education regarding written communication in an alternate language, whether facilitated through a WC or a classroom. Many of these countries’ methods for writing education have been documented in either self-reported evaluation or surveys; however, this documentation of methods is only the beginning of a larger conversation about how these international writing methods have evolved into discussions on topics related to these methods. Writing education that occurs in multiples languages within the same …

Literacy Connection: An Examination Of The Instructional Practices Of Fourth Grade Reading Teachers In The Dougherty County School System For Struggling Readers, Jamaul Rashard Kennedy

Theses and Dissertations

Societal expectations center upon the belief that children in grade four should be competent in terms of literacy skills and having acquired the necessary foundational skills to be successful in grade four. Instructional practices, reading programs and resources are linked to reading achievement and literacy acquisition of students. In Southwest Georgia, teachers’ instructional practices from twelve schools in urban Dougherty County were examined. The researcher examined the instructional practices of fourth grade reading teachers in the Dougherty County School System to determine the perceived impact on reading achievement and literacy acquisition of struggling fourth grade readers. The fourth grade reading …

The Effects Of Social Media As Low-Stakes Writing Tasks, Roxanne Loving

MA in English Theses

nspired by a recognition of high school students’ frequent disengagement during reading and their lack of comfort and confidence with finding ways to engage with texts, the purpose of this research was to examine the impact of social-media formatted low-stakes writing tasks in the high school English classroom. Drawing from research on writing instruction, reading engagement, literacy, and social media practices, the study utilized social media as a familiar writing format for high school students, bridging out-of-school literacy practices with classroom-based literacy practices. During the six-week study in a 10th-grade English course, student participants used Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook …

Dialogic Reading With Adolescent Mothers, Diana L. Abarca

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of teaching dialogic reading (DR) strategies to adolescent mothers as measured by DR strategy use during shared book reading with their children. The secondary purpose was to determine the impact of adolescent mothers' implementation of DR strategies on their preschool children’s single word vocabulary. A single subject multiple baseline across behaviors research design was implemented with one adolescent mother and her twin boys. Based on visual analysis of graphical representation of the data, it was determined there was a moderate to strong functional relation between educating an adolescent mother on …

Second Grade Teachers' Perspectives On Differentiated Instruction, Alyssa Simmons

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite various instructional efforts, the second grade students in a mid-sized Southwestern school district failed to progress in reading. Although differentiated instruction has been shown to improve literacy skills for young readers, many teachers at the study site did not differentiate instruction for all students. Grounded in theories of social constructivism and differentiated instruction, the purpose of this study was to investigate second grade teachers' perspectives about using differentiated literacy instruction and the effect of their teaching experience and participation in professional development on those perspectives. Data for this nonexperimental, causal-comparative study were collected from 93 second grade teachers via …

Critical Coaching: Approaching Literacy Coaching Through A Critical Lens, Melissa Wells

Education Faculty Articles

Based in critical theory, this qualitative case study explored how a new genre of literacy coaching, called critical coaching, developed and what outcomes it produced. The researcher (a literacy coach) built a critical coaching partnership with an early childhood teacher, and two findings emerged: (1) self-reflection occurred through defining educators’ identities as cultural beings, as well as by naming and challenging assumptions; and (2) taking action occurred through critical networks, advocacy in public spaces, and planning culturally relevant pedagogy. Implications include seven essential conditions for building critical coaching partnerships.

Exploring Kindergartners' Understandings Of Gender : Responding To Picture Book Read Alouds With A Focus On Fairy Tales, Karen Marie Maher

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This dissertation explores four of my kindergartners’ understandings of gender across one academic year with an in-depth study of responses to a series of picture book read alouds including Cinderella variants. Critical literacy offered opportunities for these young students to critique inequities within social practices (Au & Raphael, 2000; Vasquez, 2014, 2017); whereas, poststructuralist feminism framed the inquiries into the locations of deeply ingrained gender identities (Blackburn, 2005, 2006; Blaise, 2005a, 2005b, 2014; Villaverde, 2008). This critical analysis of literature provided a means for the kindergartners to uncover underlying messages of power and inequity by interrogating whose voices were heard …

Perceptions And Experiences Of Teachers And Literacy Coaches' Literacy Instruction, April Jessup Giddens

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The literacy rate in Louisiana remains lower than the national average. This is especially true at Rosewood Elementary School (pseudonym), a D-rated school on a scale of A-F. The problem is that teachers are unsuccessful in trying to improve students' literacy test scores, despite several targeted efforts to give them tools to make these improvements. The purpose of this study is to explore the literacy practices, beliefs, and professional development of teachers at Rosewood Elementary. The conceptual framework of this study included Clark and Peterson's cognitive process teacher model, which focuses on teachers' thought processes and their behaviors in the …

Literacies Of The Disaster Zone: New Media Genres And Participatory Rhetorics After The 2010 Gulf Of Mexico Oil Spill, R. J. Lambert

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

On April 20, 2010, explosions at the British Petroleum (BP) Macondo Project in the Gulf of Mexico initiated what would become the world's largest accidental release of oil into the ocean. This ecological disaster, a unique combination of natural and human causes, is one of many significant traumas over approximately the last two decades that various stakeholders have documented, participated in, and responded to largely through the expanding and increasingly ubiquitous media of the internet, computers, cell phones, and other networked communicative technologies, which both enable and constrain the variety of responses to traumatic events.

This Dissertation improves our understanding …

Language, Literacy And Project Based Learning: An Ethnographic Case Study Of A New Tech Classroom In A High School On The Us/Mexico Border, Nora Lee Paugh

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This ethnographic case study sought to understand how English Language Learners used their language and literacy practices within a project based learning (PBL) classroom to complete their PBL tasks. Studies revealed the impact of how English language learners within a PBL learning environment were able to use their language and literacy as a social practices that led to successful student engagement (Call & Sotillo, 1995; Campbell, 2012). This study was conducted at Wilson High School, located along the US/Mexico border. The focus of the case study was a 9th grade combination English/World Geography class of the school's inaugural New Tech …

Playing And Learning Through Text And Images: Examining Features Of Adolescent Literacy And The Potential Of Graphic Novels As A Supportive Tool, Emily Ann Bushta

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Graphic novels have been making their way into the classroom steadily during the past two decades. Whether their use is for a pedagogical purpose or pleasure, graphic novels are grabbing the attention of adults and youth alike. As general interest arises surrounding graphic novels, increased scholarship discussing their purpose, structure, and use has appeared across a variety of disciplines. Educators, especially those with younger students, are drawn to the genre. Their interest has produced a growing body of literature; however, these publications often lack quantitative data and typically offer qualitative conclusions about the benefits of graphic novels in classroom contexts. …

European Alternative Preschool Philosophies, Styles, And Emergent Literacy Skill Development, Lynne M. Lawson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many American preschool children enter kindergarten without the emergent literacy skills needed to learn to read. To address this problem, this multicase qualitative study investigated the emergent literacy practices at Steiner Waldorf-inspired and Reggio Emilia-inspired schools. The research questions focused on how alternative preschool philosophies help staff cultivate emergent literacy skills in young children. The conceptual framework came from Piaget's cognitive development theory, and Vygotsky's sociocultural theory. The study included eight participants from two Reggio Emilia-inspired and two Steiner Waldorf-inspired preschools. Data were collected through open-ended interviews, observations, and analyses of de-identified student work, then subjected to thematic cross-case analysis. …

Using Multiliteracies To Engage And Empower Students With Complex Support Needs, Sudha Vaghul Krishnan

Doctoral Dissertations

Using Multiliteracies to Engage and Empower Students with Complex Support Needs This dissertation is comprised of two studies:

• Creating New Learning Spaces Using Multiliteracies with Students with Complex Support Needs

• Transforming Narrative Identity through Multiliteracies

Students with complex support needs (SCSN) are frequently denied access to meaningful and challenging literacy instruction. These studies explore how student- authored narratives in the individualized education plan (IEP), implemented during a multiliteracies curriculum, can simultaneously engage and empower SCSN. These studies are based on the qualitative research that I conducted from November 15, 2018 to February 11, 2018 at a special day …

Teachers’ Experiences In A Charter School With English Language Learners’ Acquisition Of Academic Literacy, Estella Stephens

Theses and Dissertations

Teachers’ Experiences in a Charter School With English Language Learners’ Acquisition of Academic Literacy. Estella Stephens, 2018: Applied Dissertation, Nova Southeastern University, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education. Keywords: charter schools, English language learners, literacy, phenomenon, qualitative research, teachers.

This qualitative applied dissertation was designed to investigate and give voice to the lived experiences of mainstream teachers at charter schools where the English language learner (ELL) population increased significantly. It replicated McCoy’s (2013) study. A phenomenological design was used to interview kindergarten-Grade 8 mainstream teachers in 3 charter schools. Interviews were conducted by a noninterested party due to the positionality …

Empowering Parents To Encourage Children To Read Beyond The Early Years, Margaret K. Merga, Saiyidi Mat Roni

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Enjoyment of reading books is related to reading proficiency, and fostering students’ enjoyment of reading is imperative to support continued reading engagement. However, not all students understand that reading is important, and not all students are regularly engaged in recreational reading. Children typically read for pleasure less often as they age, leading researchers to seek effective ways that social influences can support them to be lifelong readers beyond the early years. Parents can play an important role in communicating the continued importance of reading and fostering positive attitudes toward reading. However, after independent reading skill acquisition, parents may become a …

Unregulated Space: Text-Messaging Habits As A Predictor Of Punctuation Errors In The Academic Writing Of College Students, Robert Ryan Achuff

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Most college-aged students use text messaging to communicate with others (Smith, 2011). Text messaging, though it requires a writer to be concise, makes allowances for “textese,” an informal register of English. At the same time, college students and college graduates are expected to be proficient in writing. Using a theoretical framework influenced by self-regulation (Bandura, 1986), memory (Bartholomae, 1980; Flower & Hayes, 1981; Hayes, 1996; Hayes & Chenoweth, 2006; Kellogg, 2006), and transfer (Perkins & Salomon, 1992; Salomon & Perkins, 1989), a correlational study was conducted to compare the participants’ text messaging habits to participants’ frequency of punctuation errors in …

Friend Or Foe? A Case Study Of Ipad Usage During Small Group Reading Instruction, Terry Husband 7078260, Roland K. Schendel

The Qualitative Report

The purpose of this case study is to examine how two early childhood teachers in one university laboratory school utilize the iPad in their reading practices. Data collection involved: (a) observations, (b) audio recordings, and (c) researcher journal. Findings indicate that the teachers had a continuum of purposeful uses for the iPad and the associated applications during their small group reading instruction. In addition, the teachers had mixed overall perceptions toward using the iPad as an effective literacy tool. Implications for practice are presented.

2017 The Role Of Books And Reading In Stem: An Overview Of The Benefits For Children And The Opportunities To Enhance The Field, Vitaliy Popov, Tessa Tinkler

Youth, Education, and Literacy

In April 2017, STEM Next, in partnership with the Hoag Foundation and the Molina Foundation, commissioned the Institute for Entrepreneurship in Education (IEE) and the Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research at the University of San Diego to provide an overview of literacy learning within the disciplinary context of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). This overview includes (1) a literature review on the benefits of integrating literacy and STEM for elementary and middle-school-aged children, (2) an environmental scan of reading programs, organizations, and materials that focus on Literacy in STEM, and (3) a set of criteria for …

Neighbors Link's Parent-Child Together Program: Supporting Immigrant Parents' Integration To Promote School Readiness Among Their Emergent Bilingual Children, Carola Otero Bracco, Judie Eisenberg

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

The authors of this article describe Neighbors Link, a multi-service community and worker center in suburban Westchester County, NY. This organization created Parent-Child Together in the belief that supporting immigrant parents' integration and social inclusion, in activities that also engage long-term community residents, would improve school readiness outcomes for preschool children. A key assumption in the program design is that immigrant parents are best supported when teaching respects their home language and incorporates their home culture and customs. Among the program's positive results has been greater acceptance of the assets and strengths that immigrants bring to the community. The …

What Effect Does A Spanish Vocabulary-Through-Music Instructional Intervention Have On The Development Of Early Literacy Skills Of Preschool Students In A Bilingual Setting?, Natalie Ehalt-Bove

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This study measured the effects of a music-based Spanish instructional intervention on the Spanish vocabulary acquisition of four- and five-year-old students of varying language backgrounds who were enrolled together in a dual immersion preschool program. Research by Christ & Wang (2010), Schwartz (2014) and others concludes that young, pre-reading children with underdeveloped vocabulary can encounter difficulties achieving literacy. Thus, this project set out to determine the effectiveness of one specific vocabulary teaching strategy, in an effort to aid teachers in choosing effective instructional methods. Twenty participants were divided into two groups, including a control group receiving a nonmusical instructional intervention …

Transitioning From Teachers' Words To Students' Words: Strategies To Promote Comprehension During Literature Circles, Tiffany Tozke Brian

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Literature circles can be a powerful tool for motivating students to take part in discussions around text. The power of these literature circles lies in the success of the conversations students have. Those conversations are shaped by the words the teacher uses to facilitate them, and by the words students use within them. This capstone addresses how teachers can focus on words in a student-focused manner that supports students in having in conversations that deepen their understanding and connection to novels.