Digital Commons Network^™

Influences Of African American English On Cognitive Processing And Reading Comprehension For African American Adolescent Readers, Alma Renee Dawson

Theses and Dissertations

There has been a virtual wave of studies investigating influences of African American English on academic achievement. Many of these studies have taken a sociolinguistic stance citing language stratification and low perception of the language as causes for the success and failures of these students. Others have suggested that the language used in family and community settings are not congruent with the academic language in school. In this study, I investigated the influences of African American English on reading achievement from a psycholinguistic perspective. This study analyzed the oral language, linguistics, and the cognitive processing behaviors of African American students …

An Examination Of The Effectiveness Of Systematic And Engaging Early Literacy (Seel) With Children With Asd, Maren Hyatt Davis

Theses and Dissertations

One population with challenges in learning to read is children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of using Systematic and Engaging Early Literacy (SEEL) intervention activities to improve phonological awareness and phonics skills with three children with ASD. Previous studies have looked at the effectiveness of using SEEL with other young children with diverse backgrounds; however, this is the first study to focus on using SEEL intervention with children with ASD. The study used a single-subject, multiple-baseline-across-behaviors design to compare performance on phonic patterns before and after intervention. Three young, male …

Increases In Perspective Embedding Increase Reading Time Even With Typical Text Presentation: Implications For The Reading Of Literature, D. H. Whalen, Lisa Zunshine, Michael Holquist

English Faculty Publications

Reading fiction is a major component of intellectual life, yet it has proven difficult to study experimentally. One aspect of literature that has recently come to light is perspective embedding ("she thought I left" embedding her perspective on "I left"), which seems to be a defining feature of fiction. Previous work (Whalen et al., 2012) has shown that increasing levels of embedment affects the time that it takes readers to read and understand short vignettes in a moving window paradigm. With increasing levels of embedment from 1 to 5, reading times in a moving window paradigm rose almost linearly. However, …

Analysis Of Nominalization In Elementary And Middle School Science Textbooks, Breanna Marie Mueller

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research in this capstone examines the existence and implications of nominalizations through a text analysis of first through fifth grade and middle school science textbooks. This study utilizes various tools based on Systemic Functional Linguistics to determine the quantity and types of nominalizations found in various text levels, to reveal how frequently nominalizations are modified by a prepositional phrase that shows agency or force, to uncover how nominalization might affect the syntax and semantics of a text, and to deduce how nominalization might contribute to lexical density. The author also compares the results to address what nominalizations look like …

Increases In Perspective Embedding Increase Reading Time Even With Typical Text Presentation: Implications For The Reading Of Literature, D. H. Whalen, Lisa Zunshine, Michael Holquist

Publications and Research

Reading fiction is a major component of intellectual life, yet it has proven difficult to study experimentally. One aspect of literature that has recently come to light is perspective embedding (“she thought I left” embedding her perspective on “I left”), which seems to be a defining feature of fiction. Previous work (Whalen et al., 2012) has shown that increasing levels of embedment affects the time that it takes readers to read and understand short vignettes in a moving window paradigm. With increasing levels of embedment from 1 to 5, reading times in a moving window paradigm rose almost linearly. However, …

Transaction Circles With Digital Texts As A Foundation For Democratic Practices, Sally Brown

Democracy & Education

Transaction circles weave together elements of guided reading and literature circles in an open conversational structure that supports students as agentive learners. Discourse within these circles utilizing digital informational texts assist in the development of democratic practices even in a time when federal mandates limit curricula and prescribe programs. The findings of this study reveal the importance of aesthetic learning experiences in knowledge construction and the ways in which thinking through complex issues with others benefits social action.

Using Audiobooks To Promote Comprehension Of Cause-Effect Relationships In Social Studies Texts, Eric John Vernon

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

There are many challenges for secondary ELs in their mainstream classes. Social studies texts in particular can be very difficult for students to comprehend. The cause-effect relationships play a key role in students understanding the connection of historical events. This study looks at the use of audiobooks as a scaffolding tool to improve students’ comprehension of the cause-effect relationships in social studies texts. Specifically the concurrent reading of the text along with listening to the audiobook. It was conducted in a high school intermediate ESL class, students read sections of a text without the use of the audiobook, then with …

A Program Evaluation Of A Literacy Intervention For Reluctant Middle School Readers, James Allison

Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to determine if the literacy intervention program for reluctant readers in one middle school was effective as measured by an increase in student reading scores measured by the Student Reading Inventory Assessment. I investigated perceptions of 100 students and 28 teachers regarding the literacy intervention program through the use of district-administered surveys. I also interviewed eight teachers regarding their delivery of the literacy interventions in the classroom setting. The literacy intervention program targeted the population of students identified as reluctant readers who were not already receiving any reading intervention, but were reading below …

Effective Conversations Around Tough Text Within Middle School Literature Circles, Gretchen Elizabeth Enselein

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, how can I ensure that effective conversations around tough text are occurring within middle school literature circles? It explores the role of literature circles within middle school classrooms. The capstone outlines the scaffolding provided for student success. Defined is the term “tough text” and how text can successfully be implemented with the use of discussion to promote effective conversations. The author documents the related research to identify and define best practice strategies to implement and support existing curriculums in a middle school. Created to be implemented school-wide as a supplement to existing …

Mediation In Literacy : Language, Technology, And Modality., Hem Sharma Paudel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The issue of difference in writing, both in terms of language diversity and modalities, has received increasing attention in the context of new developments in technologies, increasing global migration, and intensified intersections of cultural and linguistic practices accompanying these changes. Theories of language and modality are trying separately to develop ways to best respond to the challenges and opportunities brought about by these changes. Responding to scholars’ recent calls for bridging the gap between studies of multilingualism and those of multimodality, this dissertation offers an approach that, instead of separating the study of modality and languages, questions such a tendency …

Academic Language In Book Clubs, Tanya Marie Schuh-Modelli

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Book clubs are increasingly used by teachers to help raise ELL literacy levels. Yet, there has been little research on whether this tool actually contributes to improved oral language proficiency. The research question is, after being taught the academic language needed to ask and answer higher order questions, how well are students able to ask and answer questions? This study examines to what extent students are able to engage in higher-order questioning after receiving direct instructional support through book clubs. The methods employ anecdotal notes, transcripts of student conversations, and student written work to assess how students can discuss text …

Literacy And Social Skill Development: A Technology-Focused Curriculum Design, Karissa Sue Wentzel

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The curriculum design created in this project was centered around the concept that the integration of technology into a 6th grade classroom can facilitate the advancement of both literacy and social skill development. It documents one teacher’s use of various technological applications and reading related activities to cultivate academic conversations and see growth amongst five pre-selected and targeted social skills. The author documents the details of the unit and provides researched literature to support the foundation for the curriculum design. The key influence for the study was the author’s personal experience at a one-to-one iPad school. The author concludes the …

Intertextual Connections In Text Sets: Creating Common Core Curriculum For Middle School Readers, Karissa Anne Finley

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question was, How can I design a curriculum unit that uses a text set to teach middle school English students to integrate knowledge and ideas as indicated by the Common Core State Standards? The capstone explores the challenges and steps to addressing the Common Core State Standards in reading, focusing especially on eighth grade standards of Integration of Knowledge and Ideas (standards seven through nine). Key influences for this capstone were Wiggins & McTighe (2005) and Cappiello & Dawes (2013). The author develops a multimedia text set unit for eighth grade students, using the short story “Flowers for …

Class 6 Girls And Boys In Afghanistan 2013 : Comparing Outcomes Of Girls And Boys From A Learning Assessment Of Mathematical, Reading And Writing Literacy, Alla Routitsky, Rachel Stanyon, Maurice Walker

Monitoring Trends in Educational Growth (MTEG)

This report presents the results of an assessment of reading, writing and mathematical literacy of Class 6 students in 13 provinces in Afghanistan in relation to the gender of students. The data were collected in late 2013. The purpose of Monitoring Trends in Educational Growth (MTEG) is to provide information to education policy makers on the quality of education outcomes in Afghanistan. In addition MTEG will inform educational practitioners by clearly demonstrating what students at Class 6 can and cannot do in an assessment situation. One of the policy areas that MTEG aims to inform is gender equality. It is …

Engaging Readers, Engaging Families : How Can Current Research And Thinking About Reading Engagement And Motivation Translate To The Family Context?, Erin Gordon

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This paper will provide a review of the research that pertains to reading engagement and motivation in general and offer some ways of considering the research through the lens of the family as a part of the larger educational community. The author also introduces readers to a website for families called "Engaging Readers." This website aims to empower families with resources, information, and opportunities for conversation and collaboration so that they can support their young readers with enthusiasm, confidence, and heart.

The Effect Of An Intensive Oral Reading Program On Discourse In Chronic Mild Aphasia, Marilyn Elizabeth Richard

Master's Theses

Background: There is limited research specific to deficits and interventions for people with mild aphasia (PWMA), although they have the greatest potential to return to work. Discourse and reading deficits for this population are well documented and negatively impact quality of life. Two treatment programs have used oral reading to target discourse with mixed success. Neither was designed specifically for PWMA.

Aims: The primary aim of the current study was to examine the effect of an intensive oral reading program on discourse in two participants with chronic mild aphasia. Outcome was also assessed on several other measures including oral reading, …

Reading Success Stories: Case Studies Of Somali Elementary Students, Julie Marie Weiss

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

A major challenge that elementary ESL teachers face is that of helping students achieve reading competency. There are many factors that play a part in learning to read in a first language. English Learners have additional challenges as they learn to read in a second language. These factors and challenges are investigated and reviewed within this study. The author was curious about a few Somali students in her school who achieve high levels of reading proficiency. The research question for this study was, what factors lead to reading success for Somali elementary students and how do we support these students? …

Connectionist Perspectives On Language Learning, Representation And Processing., Marc F Joanisse, James L Mcclelland

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

The field of formal linguistics was founded on the premise that language is mentally represented as a deterministic symbolic grammar. While this approach has captured many important characteristics of the world's languages, it has also led to a tendency to focus theoretical questions on the correct formalization of grammatical rules while also de-emphasizing the role of learning and statistics in language development and processing. In this review we present a different approach to language research that has emerged from the parallel distributed processing or 'connectionist' enterprise. In the connectionist framework, mental operations are studied by simulating learning and processing within …

Writing & Linguistics News, Georgia Southern University

Writing & Linguistics News (2012-2022)

• Writing & Linguistics annual senior reading

The Best Children's Books Of The Year [2016 Edition], Bank Street College Of Education. Children's Book Committee

The Center for Children's Literature

Includes more than 600 titles chosen by the Children’s Book Committee as the best of the best published in 2015. In choosing books for the annual list, committee members consider literary quality and excellence of presentation as well as the potential emotional impact of the books on young readers. Other criteria include credibility of characterization and plot, authenticity of time and place, age suitability, positive treatment of ethnic and religious differences, and the absence of stereotypes.

Writing & Linguistics News, Georgia Southern University

Writing & Linguistics News (2012-2022)

• Matthew Gavin Frank campus visit & reading

Writing & Linguistics News, Georgia Southern University

Writing & Linguistics News (2012-2022)

• David Levithan campus visit & reading

The Effects Of A Small-Group Direct Instruction Intervention On The Reading Achievement Of English Language Learners, Laurie Ottehenning

Theses and Dissertations

This study analyzes the effects of a Tier 2, small group intervention developed by the Exemplary Center for Reading Instruction (ECRI) that employs direct instruction strategies (including scripted sequenced lessons, teacher modeling, and repeated practice). The reading achievement of 15 English language learners (ELLs) in the ECRI intervention was compared to the reading achievement of 12 ELLs in a computer-based reading intervention. The reading achievement of 27 ELLs was also compared to the reading achievement of 48 non-ELLs in the interventions. Repeated measures ANOVAs and independent t-tests analyzed the results of the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement-II Brief, pre- and …

One For The Books: How Reading Improves Your Well-Being, Jessica Spears, Deyse Bravo-Rivera

Faculty Works

Article published in Vibrant Life, volume 31, issue 5 under the title "One for the Books: How Reading Improves Your Well-being."

Creating Opportunities For Learning: Play As A Scaffold For Format Based Informational Text Features, Susan Fisher Dandalides

Wayne State University Dissertations

Abstract

A play intervention was used with second grade students to help them develop a deeper understanding of format based informational text features. On Day 1 of the intervention, groups of students role played as reporters as they observed classmates at play. During Days 2 - 5 of the intervention, the same students wrote an informational book about the play they had observed. A pre-interview was used to determine which format based informational text features were noticed and/or explained by the students in an informational trade book. The text features that were included in the trade book were: table of …

The Relationship Among Esol Services, Vocabulary, And Reading Comprehension In Primary Grades, Cassandra Marie Arcila-Knortz

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

With the growing English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) population in the United States, English instruction is becoming vitally important in schools. Despite this growing need, many schools are eliminating ESOL support services that promote English learning, and some schools are eliminating ESOL support services in primary grades. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine whether providing ESOL support in kindergarten improved students' reading level, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. Vygotsky's social learning theory and theory of proximal development provided the theoretical framework of the study. The research questions concerned differences in comprehension scores, vocabulary scores, and reading …

The Impact Of Singing-Integrated Reading Instruction On The Oral Reading Fluency And Motivation Of Elementary Students In An Out-Of-School Time Program, Yvette M. Moorehead-Carter

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of singing-integrated reading instruction on the oral reading fluency and motivation of elementary students in an after school program. Participants were third graders (n = 29) who attended the singing-integrated oral reading fluency (SI ORF) intervention twice a week for eight weeks. Components of the intervention included teacher-modeling of fluent oral reading, oral support, repeated reading and singing activities from a variety of children’s literature, and individual free-time.

The adapted Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS; McKenna & Kear, 1990) measured recreational, academic, and composite reading attitudes. The Qualitative Reading …

The Contribution Of Phonological Knowledge, Memory, And Language Background To Reading Comprehension In Deaf Populations, Elizabeth A. Hirshorn, Matthew W G Dye, Peter Hauser, Ted R. Supalla

Articles

While reading is challenging for many deaf individuals, some become proficient readers. Little is known about the component processes that support reading comprehension in these individuals. Speech-based phonological knowledge is one of the strongest predictors of reading comprehension in hearing individuals, yet its role in deaf readers is controversial. This could reflect the highly varied language backgrounds among deaf readers as well as the difficulty of disentangling the relative contribution of phonological versus orthographic knowledge of spoken language, in our case ‘English,’ in this population. Here we assessed the impact of language experience on reading comprehension in deaf readers by …

First Graders As Sensitive Social Partners And Skilled Readers, Zaira R. Arvelo Alicea

Open Access Dissertations

This mixed methods dissertation is guided by a sociocultural framework and a pragmatist stance to contribute to early literacy scholarship about minority children. In particular, I explore the relationship between low socioeconomic status Puerto Rican children’s reading experience and their social cognition by: (1) assessing them through quantitative and qualitative measures that reveal their capacities in these areas at the end of their first grade year, and (2) documenting their reading experiences at home and at school through ethnographic qualitative methods. The analyses revealed significant positive correlations between the tests of reading and social understanding, a scarcity of conventional reading …

Eighth Grade Girls' Knowledge Building With Narrative Texts, Julie Smit

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This study focused on the knowledge building work of eighth grade female avid readers who were invited to discuss their experiences with reading narrative fiction. The study examined the kinds of knowledge these students drew on and constructed and the processes they used to do so. The following research questions were asked: What kinds of experiences do eighth grade female avid readers have with narrative works? What kinds of knowledge were being built? How do these avid readers arrive at new understandings? How do these eighth grade female avid readers transform their individual and collective understandings?