Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition In Middle School: An Examination Of Three Instructional Conditions, David B. Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The importance of vocabulary knowledge gained through incidental learning is well documented. The growth of incidental vocabulary knowledge is especially crucial for middle school students due to the complex words encountered in their studies. However, research on incidental vocabulary acquisition for middle school students is lacking. The purpose of this study was to compare the relative effectiveness of three instructional conditions (reading, writing, and reading and writing) on incidental vocabulary acquisition and retention with middle school students in an English as a first language (L1) environment.

In this within subjects repeated measure study, 263 eighth-grade participants received treatment in three …

Do Spellings Of Words And Phonemic Awareness Training Facilitate Vocabulary Learning In Preschoolers?, Robin O'Leary

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine the contribution of phoneme awareness training and orthography to the learning of new vocabulary words by partial alphabetic phase readers. We hypothesized that four and five year old children taught to segment words with letters would outperform those trained with shape markers and those that received no segmentation training on an invented spelling task. We also hypothesized that students seeing the spellings of new vocabulary words (names) would learn the words in fewer trials, remember the names and features better and would be able to better recognize letter labels when presented alone. …

Revolutionizing Reading: Discovering The Power Of A Reading Workshop Model In The High School English Classroom, Kaitlyn De Wild

Master of Education Program Theses

This action research study investigated the effects of a Reading Workshop model in a high school English classroom in a private school in the Midwest. The participants were sixty-six juniors in a general education classroom. Students in the study took a pre-survey at the beginning of the year and a post-survey at the end of February to determine any changes in independent reading habits. Throughout the course of the study, students had choice in independent reading, which they kept track of and reflected on. In addition to analyzing these reflections, the researcher also interviewed eight of the students on their …

Book Review - Teaching African American Learners To Read, Tiffany A. Flowers

Journal of Research Initiatives

No abstract provided.

Middle-Grades Students' Understandings Of What It Means To Read In A High-Stakes Environment, Mary Beth Schaefer

Curriculum & Instruction Faculty Publications

In this practitioner inquiry, the teacher researcher found that a culture of high-stakes testing had pervaded her diverse, urban seventh-grade students' conceptions of reading; students associated reading with tests and skills-based worksheets rather than pleasure. Using students' voices, passions, and interests, the teacher researcher broadened students' reading conceptions and abilities by introducing them to Langer's reading theory. Students used the theory to develop deep understandings of their own and others' reading needs, skills, and desires. Students constructed understandings of self as reader, found pleasure in constructing personalized reading skills and strategies, and reconstructed notions of reading to assert authority and …

Employing Cueing Systems To Decode Text And Negotiate Text-Meaning In A Second Language, Timothy A. Rodriquez, Laureen Fregeau, Mary Kay Moskal, Robert Leier

ECTESOL Review

Many educators state that teaching English-Language Learners (ELLs) is just a matter of good teaching. While effective teaching is something that all children deserve, there are some differences between the approach a teacher may have to take with ELLs and with other students. One aspect of this difference is the fact that, while children go through the same stages of language development, ELLs may be at stages typically not found in other students. Based on a case study of an EL and his teacher, this article explains cueing systems and their role in literacy for ELs.

Ssr— Silent Sustained Reading Activity, Maureen Miller, Hope Bragg, Christy Keefer

Integrated Math & Social Studies Lessons

The SSR lesson outlines a strategy to incorporate literacy development in a Science or Social Studies classroom. There are short answer questions based on readings from the Hidden Figures Young Readers’ Edition, as well as open-ended journal questions. Questions are available for each chapter, so students can complete them at their own pace.

The Impact Of A Close Reading Approach On The Comprehension Level Of English I Students At Wavers High School, Tina Marie Janus

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact a close reading approach had on the reading comprehension levels of twelve English I students. Studies in literacy theory have suggested that students’ reading comprehension levels improve with the use of reading strategies. As part of a larger body of research concerning reading instruction for secondary students, there is a need for older readers to learn comprehension strategies specific to reading content subject matter (Shanahan & Shanahan, 2015; Duke & Martin, 2015; Ness, 2007). Using a mixed-methods approach, the data collection consisted of pretest/posttest instruments, field observations, existing records, surveys, …

The Effects Of A Summer Reading Program On Reading Achievement And Reading Motivation, Marcia Seawright

Theses and Dissertations

Research shows that children who read books often, both in and out of school, are likely to develop better reading skills than children who have fewer opportunities to read. (Allington, 2012). While many school districts are successfully implementing various opportunities to support students’ reading development during the academic year, problems arise when students are away from school during the summer months. Studies also show that students who read below grade level at the end of third grade are six times more likely to eventually leave school without a high school diploma (National Research Council, 1998). The purpose of this combined …

Reading The World, John M. Winslade

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

This is a review of: Ajayi, Lasisi & Collins-Parks, Tamara (2016). Teaching literacy across content areas: Effective strategies that reach all K-12 students in the era of the common core state standards. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Press.

The Influence Of Grade Level Flexible Grouping On Reading Achievement, Jeanna Czerniecki Velechko

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study examined the influence of grouping formation on the scores on the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (NJASK 3) in Grade 3 English Language Arts. Grouping within the general education classroom was compared to grouping between the same grade level. The analysis included a multiple regression model for student variables gender, race/ethnicity, prior ability and grouping status. All data explored in this study pertained to 155 third graders in one New Jersey suburban district during the 2012-2013 academic school year. The results of the study revealed prior ability in reading influenced the scores on the NJASK 3 …

Creating Spaces For Literacy, Creating Spaces For Learning, Christy M. Howard

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

This study represents the practices of a middle school social studies teacher as she focuses on integrating questioning, reading, and writing in her content area. This teacher uses literacy strategies to engage students in practices of reading multiple texts and writing to showcase learning. She creates opportunities for students to make connections to their learning, posing questions to enhance critical thinking and the use of multiple sources to support responses. Through these actions, she creates spaces for student reading, writing, and learning to occur.

Moving To A District Balanced Literacy Program: A Change Leadership Plan, Cynthia A. Marks, Carol A. Benda

Dissertations

Based upon the requirements of the No Child Left Behind mandate, schools that failed to achieve the Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) designation for two consecutive years were required to implement a comprehensive school reform model. This change plan examined the movement from the comprehensive school reform model Success For All (SFA) to a balanced literacy framework within Harmony District 841. The framework advocated for balanced literacy instruction that supported the integration of authentic reading and writing experiences, application of literacy strategies and skills, implementation of a culturally relevant text, focus on professional development for teachers, and provision for effective instructional …

Audience Response And From Film Adaptation To Reading Literature, Klaudia H.Y. Lee

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In her article "Audience Response and from Film Adaptation to Reading Literature" Klaudia H.Y. Lee analyses results from 3000-plus interview conducted across university campuses in Hong Kong in order to investigate the roles of screen adaptations and their intertextual relationship for developing students' critical textual practice. Lee combines reader-response theory (Iser and Rosenblatt) with empirical data to explore students' actual encounters and experience with texts. While the data suggests an influence of screen adaptations on students' choice and motivation of reading, this interest can potentially be developed into a critical awareness of the various intertextual possibilities that exist in different …

The Experience Of Reading: What Elementary Children Think Of Reading, Francesca Simpson

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

As students with disabilities prepare to move from high school to vocations or post-secondary schooling it is essential they be able to self-advocate for their needed services. During their public school years, school psychologists, counselors, and other school administrative personnel are responsible for ensuring they are provided with an “appropriate,” barrier-free education under federal law. But upon graduation from high school, that responsibility shifts entirely onto the individual. In order to self-advocate successfully a student with a disability must know about their cognitive strengths and weaknesses. In regards to learning the student must be able to describe them to others …

Exploring Effective Reading Strategies That Promote Higher Level Thinking And Comprehension For A Chinese-Speaking College Student, Panyang Wu

Masters Theses/Capstone Projects

The purpose of the case study was to explore some effective literacy strategies that prompt higher-level thinking abilities to help one Chinese English as Foreign Language (EFL) student who struggles with academic reading in college classes at a small, liberal arts college. Only one participant named Cathy was involved in the study. Cathy is a Chinese student who studied at college as a regular undergraduate student and had poor performance in her college level literacy class, as indicated by her professors and Cathy herself. Cathy was expected to improve reading comprehension by receiving an intensive one-month reading development intervention, which …

The Effect Of A Self-Regulated Vocabulary Intervention On Word Knowledge, Reading Comprehension, And Self-Regulated Learning For Elementary English Language Learners, Qizhen Deng

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

English language learners (ELLs) represent an increasing population in U.S. public schools. Research reports from the past two decades suggest a persistent reading underachievement for ELLs. Academic vocabulary knowledge, due to its frequent use in academic texts, contributes significantly to ELL children’s English language development, reading comprehension, and general academic achievement. However, a gap of vocabulary knowledge exists between ELLs and their mainstream peers. One potential approach to address this issue is to help ELLs become mastery independent and proactive word learners. This study examined the effect of a researcher-led self-regulated vocabulary intervention on word knowledge, reading comprehension, and self-regulated …

Reading As A Necessity: Best Practices For Incorporating Reading Into One English Course, Kristin M. Janssen

Master of Education Program Theses

This action research project investigated the best practices of teaching reading in a middle school curriculum requiring reading and writing to be combined in one English course. A private middle school in the suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri, was evaluated on its use of the best practices. The participants were 24 teachers of 13 different subjects taught to students in seventh and eighth grade. All middle school teachers were sent a survey including questions about the best practices of reading across the curriculum, integrated instruction, and cooperative learning. The results of this study suggested that best practices of reading instruction …

The Efficacy Of Structured Repeated Reading As A Method To Increase Reading Fluency, Ryan Capriotti

All Capstone Projects

Since reading is such a significant component of student success, it is important to perform research to determine which reading strategies and approaches are most effective. The purpose of this study was to explore Structured Repeated Reading as a beneficial reading strategy, in particular with students diagnosed with a reading disorder. There were eight students that participated in the study, all with similar reading difficulties and all that have been diagnosed with a Specific Learning Disability (SLD) in the area of Reading. Specifically, four of the students were educated in an instructional, resource room setting (I), and four of the …

Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics: Audit Of Curricula, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

Assessment and Reporting

An early step in developing an assessment framework for the Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) was determining how to design and construct a single assessment program across all ASEAN member countries. This step needed to take account of the similarities and differences in the curriculum frameworks in each country for the four domains to be assessed through SEA-PLM: Mathematics, Reading, Writing and Global Citizenship. This account was achieved through an audit of the curriculum materials from 11 ASEAN countries, comprising those countries already participating in the SEA-PLM field trial, and others likely to join SEAPLM in the future. The …

The Value Of Re-Reading...Again And Again, Bernice M. Wilson

Thought and Practice: (1987-1991) the Journal of the Graduate School of Bank Street College of Education

Describes the importance of allowing children to re-read their favorite books.

Critical Literacy: An Innovative Approach To Learning Among Students With Reading Disabilities, Karyn Marie Chiapella

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

CRITICAL LITERACY: AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO LEARNING AMONG STUDENTS WITH READING DISABILITIES

by

KARYN M. CHIAPELLA

DECEMBER 2015

Co-Advisors: Dr. Marshall Zumberg; Dr. Gerald Oglan

Major: Special Education

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Many students, particularly those with learning disabilities do not read and/ or write at levels sufficient for meeting the demands of the 21st century. Successfully reading to learn requires the ability to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information from multiple texts. Critical literacy provides a framework for students to engage in dialogue with texts to become more aware of the relationships of power communicated within texts. This study …

A Literacy Photostory: Improving Classroom Literacy Instruction, Melanie Goeddel

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

In rapidly changing times, students need to understand and utilize various types of literacies in order to be productive citizens and communicate with each other in a fast-paced world. Literacy is often simplified to the ability to read and write, only on some occasions including other topics such as speaking and listening skills, or computer literacies. The need for improved literacy instruction is apparent in high schools, and this study seeks to inform educators of different needs and hopes that students may have in the broad field of literacy. This study seeks to expand the definition of literacy while simultaneously …

Developing Differentiated Reading Instruction Online For Gifted Third Graders: A Design Experiment, Beth E. Jordan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The high stakes on standardized testing in the United States of America’s education system pressures teachers to ensure every child meets minimum standards. Teachers report this pressure motivates them to focus the majority of their time on struggling students. Combined with lack of training and resources, intellectually gifted students may remain under-challenged in a regular elementary classroom. To address the problem, the researcher continued the development of an online instructional environment, which teachers may use to extend and enrich the regular language arts curriculum for intellectually gifted students. The researcher conducted a formative design experiment “to create a viable theory-driven …

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.

Fifth Graders Blog With Preservice Teachers To Discuss Literature, Lindsay Yearta, Katie Stover, Rachel Sease

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

In this study, fifth grade students participated in a pen pal project with pre-service teachers where they blogged for eight weeks about the book, A Long Walk to Water, by Linda Sue Park. Partnerships were established to provide fifth grade students with an authentic audience in an effort to increase engagement in reading and writing. The authors posit that individualized instruction, access to an authentic audience, and the utilization of technology contributed to students' growth as readers, writers, and global citizens.

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 …

Imparting Practical Wisdom And Resilience To Our Students, Charles (Derrick) Lawson

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

The powerful impact of communicating a teacher’s belief in a student is presented. By sharing trade books and novels with metaphoric messages, teachers can impart practical wisdom and enable students to develop resilience when facing challenges.

The Value Of Student Choice In Reading. A Book Review Of Keep Them Reading: An Anti-Censorship Handbook For Educators, Christi R. Keelen

Democracy & Education

Keep Them Reading: An Anti-Censorship Handbooks for Educators is a must-have for elementary and secondary English and reading teachers, administrators, and librarians or media specialists. While the focus for this text is how to handle and avoid challenges on books, how to create an environment where reading is important and the students' ability to choose what they want to read is part of the classroom culture is also addressed.

Reading And Math Strategies For Struggling Students, Tonya Hiers, Arlene Berry, Kim Trepanier

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

This presentation will provide Common Core based strategies for teachers to use with students at risk of failure. Participants will engage in tasks that will allow them to experience Close reading, constructed response, and math problem solving. These cross curricular strategies will address literary, informational, and problem solving standards.