Browsing by Subject "Struggling readers"
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Item Listening comprehension and language as scaffolds for reading comprehension with secondary struggling readers(2015-05) McCulley, Elisabeth Vanessa; Vaughn, Sharon, 1952-; Bryant, Diane P.; Barnes, Marcia; Beretvas, Susan N.; Toste, Jessica R.; Cable, Amory L.This experimental study examined the effects of a reading intervention using listening comprehension and oral language as scaffolds to improve reading comprehension of middle school students with reading difficulties. The study included students in 6th-8th grade randomly assigned to a reading intervention treatment or a no treatment comparison condition. Treatment students received 45-minute sessions daily for a total of 33 sessions. Reading comprehension measures included the Woodcock Johnson Passage Comprehension subtest, State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness reading, and an unstandardized curriculum-based measure of summarization. Measures of inference-making included the Test of Language Competence Listening Comprehension: Making Inferences subtest and an unstandardized curriculum-based measure of inference skills. Language abilities were assessed using the Woodcock Johnston Oral Comprehension subtest, and the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals Formulated Sentences and Recalling Sentences subtests. An unstandardized vocabulary measure assessed student recall of vocabulary words. ANCOVAs were used to estimate the treatment effects for each dependent variable using pretest scores as a covariate. The Kauffman Brief Intelligence Test II Verbal Knowledge subtest served as covariate for the unstandardized vocabulary measure. Results yielded no statistically significant effects on reading comprehension, language, or inference measures. Effects, which were calculated with Cohen’s d, ranged from .00 to .78, with eight of nine measures favoring treatment. Findings from an unstandardized vocabulary measure indicated a statistically significant difference in favor of the treatment group. Results suggest that using oral language and listening comprehension to support reading practices of middle school students with reading comprehension difficulties may be a viable treatment for improving reading comprehension and improving content-specific vocabulary knowledge.Item Opportunities gained and lost: Perceptions and experiences of sixth grade students enrolled in a Title I reading class(Texas Tech University, 2008-08) Donalson, Kathleen; Watson, Patricia; Halsey, Pamela; Duemer, Lee S.; Fehr, DennisThe purpose of this dissertation was to explore the perceptions and experiences of one class of sixth grade students enrolled in a Title I supplemental reading class. Qualitative research methods included observations, interviews, archived data, and Miscue Analysis. I examined the data through a Vygotsky constructivist perspective to provide insight to the manner in which readers could be supported in their literacy development. Based on the analysis of individual data collected, the curriculum was dissected to determine whether the students’ unique strengths and needs were addressed within the Title I reading class. I explored the emotional and educational consequences of students enrolled in a supplemental reading program implemented for readers identified as below proficiency by the state’s standardized reading assessment. I examined the contrast between the Title I instructional curriculum provided first semester and the beginning of second semester during a school year. The findings of the study revealed the negative consequences of high stakes standardized testing, educational decisions based on a single measure, a mandated scripted commercial reading program, and loss of certain educational classes. The findings disclosed the positive outcomes of a supportive curriculum through an engaging reading curriculum and the opportunity to keep certain educational classes. The implications of the study provided educators constructs for supporting readers through appropriate developmental text and supportive social contexts to help these students succeed.Item Struggling readers at the middle level: A cross-cultural study of the social aspect of their reading(2006-08) Chen, Xiufang; Johnson, Holly; Watson, Patricia; Price, Margaret A.; Halsey, PamelaStruggling readers at the middle level (4-8) face complex challenges when compared to students in the primary grades (K-3). However, less attention has been paid to this group of students. Reading is not only a cognitive and/or motivational process, but also a social one. Researchers have found that students who discuss reading frequently with peers have higher scores on standardized reading achievement tests. Besides, collaborative social activities in meaningful literacy contexts also promote higher level thinking skills and the intrinsic desire to read and write, as well as helping to develop literacy skills. During social interactions, researchers have found differences in amount of talk, initiation patterns, volume of talk, and the use of questions among students from different cultural backgrounds. The purpose of this study was to explore the social aspects of reading among struggling middle level readers from different cultural backgrounds. The research participants were four struggling middle level readers from differing cultural backgrounds from a private school. A qualitative comparative case study was implemented. This study’s data set included detailed field notes from the reading sessions in the classroom throughout a semester, transcripts of interviews with each of the four participants, and various documents including participants' portfolios. The findings from this research study indicated that none of the participants had many social interactions associated with reading and text in their previous school learning experiences. Among the different types of social interactions in the class, homogeneous/literature circle grouping most encouraged their participation in discussion. These literature circles proved to be a very effective teaching approach to help struggling readers. Participants' social interactions reflected gender and cultural differences in terms of level of participation, content and function of talk as well. The participants' social interactions about reading and texts in class helped them better understand and remember the texts. These social interactions also impacted the participants' experiences with reading, more specifically, their views of reading, the frequency and breadth of their reading, their views of self as reader, and their reading processes.Item Teacher change within a reading improvement model : a case study of a first grade teacher's changing reading instruction with struggling readers(2007-05) Simon, Erica Cecelia; Bryant, Diane PedrottyThis study examined a first grade, general education teacher's changing practices related to reading intervention for struggling readers as she worked with a group of university researchers to develop and implement a first grade reading instruction model. This study also investigated the following research questions: What changes in a first grade, general education teacher’s reading instructional practices occurred because of a year long university-teacher collaborative relationship in implementing evidence-based reading instruction for struggling students? What were the facilitators and barriers for implementing evidence-based reading practices for struggling readers? Analyses of classroom observations, teacher interviews, intervention validity checklists (IVC's), observations, support team meeting notes, research team meeting notes, field notes, and other forms of documentation provided a view into the process of change of one teacher.Item The effects of an inference instruction intervention on the inference generation and reading comprehension of struggling readers in grades 6 and 7(2016-08) Hall, Colby S.; Vaughn, Sharon, 1952-; Barnes, Marcia; Berets, Natasha; Church-Lang, Jessica; Toste, JessicaThere is ample evidence that inference generation skill directly contributes to reading comprehension, as well as evidence that struggling readers make fewer inferences than proficient readers. This experimental study examined the effectiveness of a small-group inference instruction intervention on the inference generation and reading comprehension of struggling readers in Grades 6 and 7. The sample comprised 78 students randomly assigned to a small-group inference instruction intervention condition (n = 39) or a business-as-usual comparison condition in which students received computer-delivered English language arts instruction via individualized learning software (n = 39). In the intervention condition, small groups of 3 to 6 students participated in 24, 40-minute sessions. Instruction focused on both text-connecting inferences (e.g., pronoun reference, inferring word meaning from context) and gap-filling inferences (i.e., inferences that require students to integrate their knowledge about the world with information in text). Treatment effects were estimated using multiple regression analyses. Results indicate that membership in the Making Inferences treatment condition statistically significantly predicted higher outcome score for the standardized measure of general reading comprehension skill, the GMRT Reading Comprehension subtest (d = 0.60), but not for any of the three measures of inference skill. Phonemic decoding at pretest was a statistically significant moderator of intervention effects on the GMRT-RC, with treatment effects increasing as students’ levels of phonemic decoding skill increased. The same pattern of effects was evident for the depth of vocabulary knowledge moderator variables, although interaction terms were not statistically significant, p < .05: as student depth of vocabulary knowledge at pretest increased, the effects of inference instruction on the GMRT-RC were greater. Overall, students’ perceptions of the Making Inferences instructional treatment were positive.