Browsing by Subject "literacy"
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Item Teacher Knowledge of Basic Language Concepts and Dyslexia: Are Teachers Prepared to Teach Struggling Readers?(2011-02-22) Washburn, Erin KuhlThe National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) has declared reading failure a national public health issue. Approximately 15-20 % of the US population displays one or more symptoms of dyslexia: a specific learning disability that affects an individual's ability to process language. Consequently, elementary school teachers are teaching students who struggle with inaccurate or slow reading, poor spelling, poor writing, and other language processing difficulties. However, studies have indicated both preservice and inservice teachers lack essential knowledge needed to teach struggling readers, particularly children with dyslexia. Few studies have sought to assess teachers', either preservice or inservice, knowledge and perceptions about dyslexia in conjunction with knowledge of basic language concepts related to reading instruction. Thus, the purpose of this dissertation was to examine elementary school preservice and inservice teachers' knowledge of basic language concepts and their knowledge and perceptions about dyslexia. Three separate studies were conducted, all addressing the overarching question: Are elementary teachers (K-5) prepared to teach struggling readers? In study one, research that has addressed teacher knowledge of basic language concepts was reviewed systematically. In studies two and three, a basic language constructs survey was used to assess the self-perceptions/knowledge of basic language concepts and knowledge/perceptions about the nature of dyslexia of preservice, first year, and more experienced teachers involved in teaching reading in grades K-5.Item The efficacy of systematic, explicit literacy instruction in kindergarten and first grade(2009-05-15) Dean, Emily OckerThis investigation examined the extent to which teacher implemented systematic, explicit instruction affected the literacy achievement of kindergarten and first grade students. Two cohorts of students in a southwestern United States school district were utilized for this study. Cohort 1 (n=94) received classroom literacy instruction from the state adopted basal reading series. Cohort 2 (n=96) received literacy instruction from the basal series and an additional reading program designed to systematically and explicitly teach phonological awareness, letter name identification, and the alphabetic principle. Each cohort was followed from the middle of kindergarten through the end of first grade. Kindergarten measures included the Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) tests of phonological awareness, letter naming, letter sound knowledge, and listening comprehension, and were administered at the middle and end of kindergarten. At the beginning of first grade, TPRI phonological awareness, word reading, reading comprehension, and fluency were measured. Middle of year first grade variables were TPRI reading comprehension and fluency. End of the year first grade measures were TPRI word reading, fluency, reading comprehension, and Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) word analysis, reading comprehension, listening comprehension, vocabulary, and spelling. A MANCOVA was conducted at each interval using English language learner status as the covariate. Hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to determine which variables best predicted end of first grade reading comprehension, word reading, and fluency. Results from the MANCOVA indicated that Cohort 2 outperformed Cohort 1 on kindergarten TPRI measures of phonological awareness, letter naming, and letter sound correspondences. Cohort 2 also performed better than Cohort 1 on first grade TPRI reading comprehension, fluency, and end of year word reading, however, there were no statistically significant differences on the ITBS measures. Conclusions and recommendations for further research and for practice are also discussed.