Browsing by Subject "reading"
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Item A two-study investigation of research on vocabulary strategies and their implementation in fourth grade social studies classrooms(2009-05-15) Hairrell, Angela R.Among the multiple dimensions of reading, vocabulary knowledge and strategies are essential to skilled reading. As a result, this two-part dissertation (a) systematically examines the vocabulary intervention research, in both content and methodology, published since 1999, and (b) documents the implementation of evidence-based vocabulary strategies in fourth grade social studies classrooms. Twenty-four studies were included in the systematic literature review. Results of this study corroborate findings of past studies that several vocabulary strategies have emerged that are effective for increasing students? vocabulary knowledge. Findings further reinforce the National Reading Panel?s recommendations regarding the context and magnitude of studies needed. Additionally, results of the analysis of the methodological characteristics of the 24 studies revealed mixed alignment of research methods with standards recommended by educational and research organizations. A study of 26 fourth grade social studies teachers? use of vocabulary strategies was conducted based on an existing data set acquired as part of a larger professional development study. In that study, teachers were randomly assigned to either a typical practice or professional development group. Analysis of teachers? instructional practice revealed that few of the vocabulary strategies identified in the literature are used in typical fourth grade social studies classrooms. Teachers who received professional development used a wider array of strategies. Controlling for teachers? preknowledge of vocabulary strategy instruction, results of a MANCOVA showed that the professional development group was statistically different from the typical practice group in terms of overall instructional quality, time allotted for vocabulary instruction, and variety of strategies. Additional analyses were conducted comparing the findings of Durkin?s study of comprehension in fourth grade social studies classrooms to the current practices of nine fourth grade social studies teachers. Findings showed little change in teachers? reading comprehension instruction even though the knowledge base of effective instruction has increased in the past 30 years.Item An analysis of informal reading inventories for english language learnersBoatright, Carmen Ramirez.Item Dual Coding Theory and Chinese: Recall of Concrete and Abstract Sentences in Chinese-English Bilinguals(2010-10-12) Chen, Tsuei-FenTheories of reading have seldom been examined across orthographies. In the present study, Dual Coding Theory (DCT), a general theory of cognition applied to literacy, was applied to Chinese sentences to investigate the effects of language concreteness and abstractness on immediate recall. Forty Chinese-English bilinguals read and recalled five concrete sentences and five matched abstract sentences. Of the ten sentences, five were English, and five were Chinese. Due to the characteristics of Chinese orthography, Chinese script may have a direct and more efficient access to meaning; hence, it is possible that concrete sentences in Chinese would not have the typical advantage over abstract sentences in recall found in other languages. However, the results showed that concrete Chinese sentences were recalled better than abstract Chinese sentences. A 2 (languages: Chinese vs. English) x 2 (sentence concreteness: concrete vs. abstract) analysis of variance with proportion of recall as the dependent variable showed that significant main effects were found for languages, F (1, 76) =11.68, p = .001, n2 = .13, and for concreteness, F (1, 76) = 38.12, p < .001, n2 = 33. That is, Chinese was overall recalled significantly better than English, and concrete sentences were overall recalled significantly better than abstract sentences. There was no significant interaction. Concrete Chinese sentences were recalled 1.32 times as much as abstract Chinese sentences, thus confirming the concreteness effects in Chinese. The results of the study are consistent with those of previous studies on DCT in alphabetic languages, and they also provide evidence of concreteness effects across orthographies.Item Engagement in Reading and Access to Print: The Relationship of Home and School to Overall Reading Achievement Among Fourth Grade English Speakers(2013-04-05) Allaith, Zainab A.The present study puts forward two models which examine the relationship between at home at school variables of (1) engagement in shared and independent reading and (2) access to print with reading achievement. Participants were fourth grade English speakers from Canada (Alberta, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia), New Zealand, England, and USA. Data from the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) questionnaires and reading achievement test were used to design the two models, and Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to analyze the data where students (Level-1) were nested within classrooms (Level-2). The results of the Engagement in Reading Model demonstrate that activities of shared reading at home and at school did not statistically significantly relate or related negatively with reading achievement. Parents helping their children with school readings emerged as the strongest negative predictor of reading achievement in the entire model. However, the relationship between how often participants talked with their families about what they read on their own and reading achievement was positive. Additionally, independent reading at school, reading for fun at home, and reading printed material (books and magazines) at home predicated reading achievement positively; reading for homework did not predict reading achievement; and reading for information and reading on the internet at home predicted reading achievement negatively. The results of the Access to Print Model demonstrate that while access to books and other reading material at home related positively with reading achievement, access to books and other reading material at school did not overall relate to students? reading achievement. Additionally, access to the library, generally, did not relate to reading achievement; and when statistical significance was found it was not replicated in all or even most of the countries. Based on the results of the present study, it is recommended that fourth graders be given ample opportunities to read books of their own choosing independently at school, and to develop students? habits and motivation to read for leisure during their free after school time. Additionally, children should be provided with ample access to reading material at home which is geared towards their interests.Item Facilitating Reading through a Theme-Driven Approach(2010-01-15) Deng, JieReaders often encounter the need to explore a document only for a specific point of interest. We call the phenomena of approaching a narrative not for its entirety, but for a thread of a particular topic, thematic reading. Present reading tools and information retrieval techniques provide only limited assistance to readers in such a situation. Our research centers on this phenomenon. We conducted investigations on both human behavior and machine automation, with a goal of better meeting the requirements of thematic reading. To observe readers? behavior and understand their expectations, we implemented a reader?s interface with designs targeting the predicted needs of thematic readers. We conducted user studies using both the system and Microsoft Word. We proved that thematic reading is capable of achieving the goal of understanding a specific topic, at least to a degree that succeeds in topic-wise tasks. We also reached guidelines for designing future reading platforms in major aspects such as view, navigation, and contextual awareness. As for machine automation, we investigated the potential to automatically locate thematically relevant excerpts. This investigation was inspired by the editorial compilation of a textbook index. To increase the search performance, we proposed a two-step methodology which first expands the query with expansion and then filters the intermediate results by checking the term-occurrence proximity. For query expansion, we compared the query expansion with WordNet, morphological inflections, and both processes together. Our results show that in the context of our study, WordNet made almost no contribution to the enhancement of recall, while expansion with the inflectional variants turned out to be a successful and essential scheme. For the refinement section, the results show that the proximity check on the alternative phrases formed after inflectional expansion can effectively increase the precision of the previously acquired return results. We further tested a different scheme ? using sliding window ? of defining target and verification units in the methodology. Our findings show that the structural delimitations (sentences and chapters) outperformed sliding windows. The first scheme was able to achieve consistently desirable results, while the results from the second were inconclusive.Item Fostering success in reading: a survey of teaching methods and collaboration practices of high performing elementary schools in Texas(Texas A&M University, 2006-08-16) Evans Jr., Richard AustinThis study examined reading programs in 68 Texas elementary schools that were identified as successful by their scores on TAAS assessment results in the 1999-2000 school year. These schools?? student populations had a high proportion of culturally diverse and low-SES students. The purposes of this study were: (1) to determine if and how teaching methods and collaboration (intervention/support teams) were used by effective schools to foster reading success in all students; (2) to identify cohesive patterns (clusters) or models in schools?? use of collaboration and teaching methods; (3) to examine these clusters of similar schools and see if the patterns differed based on the school/community demography (urban, suburban, or rural). The study was conducted in 68 schools in 33 school districts that represented various demographic settings from 12 different Education Service Centers across Texas. From these original 332 variables, 26 variables were selected that were of medium frequency and strongly correlated with high TAAS scores over a 4- year period. These 26 variables were used to examine the 68 high-performing Texas elementary schools for clusters. K-means analysis and HCA were both applied to the 26 response variables, using them as complementary techniques to arrive at a five cluster solution. Results from correlations of individual characteristics and from identifying school clusters suggested that school community type could possibly be moderately predictive of student performance on the TAAS/TAKS over time.Item Looking for comfort: heroines, readers, and Jane Austen's novels(Texas A&M University, 2007-04-25) Himes, Amanda E.Comfort??????with its various connotations of physical ease, wealth, independence, and service??????is an important concept to Jane Austen, who uses comfort in her novels to both affirm and challenge accepted women??????s roles and status in her culture. In the late eighteenth century, new ideas of physical comfort emerged out of luxury along with a growing middle class, to become something both English people and foreigners identified with English culture. The perceived ability of the English to comfort well gave them a reason for national pride during a time of great anxieties about France??????s cultural and military might, and Austen participates in her culture??????s struggle to define itself against France. Austen??????s ??????comfort?????? is the term she frequently associates with women, home, and Englishness in her works. Austen??????s depiction of female protagonists engaged in the work of comforting solaces modern readers, who often long for the comfort, good manners, and leisure presented in the novels. Surveys of two sample groups, 139 members of the Jane Austen Society of North America and 40 members of the online Republic of Pemberley, elicit data confirming how current readers of Austen turn to her works for comfort during times of stress or depression. Although some readers describe using Austen??????s novels as a form of escapism, others view their reading as instructive for dealing with human failings, for gaining perspective on personal difficulties, and for stimulating their intellects. Austen??????s fiction grapples with disturbing possibilities, such as the liminal position of powerless single women at the mercy of the marriage market and fickle family wishes, as much as it provides comforting answers. Comforts (decent housing, love in marriage, social interaction) are such a powerful draw in Austen??????s works because women??????s discomfort is so visible, and for many, so likely. Thus, Austen??????s comfort challenges as much as it reassures her audience.Item Perceptions on what Influences Writing in Agricultural Journalism(2011-02-22) Wilburn, Misty B.Over the years, multiple studies have been conducted to determine what influences writing. Through the studies, few concrete conclusions have been reached on why individuals write the way they do. Research on children has shown that reading does influence writing; however, there has been little research done on adults. Some research has been conducted on how emotions influence writing, but no solid consensus has been reached. This study asked a select group of agricultural journalism and communications student writers what they perceived influenced their writing. The results of this study have implications for the way agricultural journalism and communications students learn and are taught. The study may serve as a model for further research. The purposive sample was agricultural journalism and communications students who were selected by the lead instructor at their school. The instructors served as gatekeepers. Each U.S. university with an agricultural journalism and communications program was asked to participate. The study showed that respondents believe many things influence their writing, and the factor mentioned most was surroundings. Respondents also mentioned the things they read and the things they had written in the past as influencers of their writing. The following recommendations were made based on the findings and conclusions of this study. Researchers should continue to look at what writers believe influences their writing as a way to develop better writers. Instructors should focus on teaching students in various surroundings. Students should not be allowed to write only in the surrounding in which they feel the most comfortable. Research should be conducted to determine if what respondents perceive influences their writing truly does.Item SHSU Recreational Reading Survey(2014-04-02) Landry Mueller, Kat; Meyer, Linda; Martinez, Michelle; Hanson, MichaelThis online survey was sent to Sam Houston State University students, faculty, and staff on April 2, 2014 on behalf of several SHSU librarians. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into recreational reading habits and preferences of the University communityItem The Effects of Behavioral Monitoring Programs on Reading Acquisition of Elementary Students with or At-Risk for Emotional or Behavioral Disorder(2010-07-14) Morgan, Stacy W.The Behavior Education Program was implemented with four students at a large sub-urban elementary school in central Texas. The elementary school has a diverse population of 750 students and was implementing Tier 1 interventions with 81% fidelity as measured by the School-wide Evaluation Tool. The BEP was implemented in a multiple-baseline design. All students? behavioral improvement was measured through daily behavior rating scales, office discipline referrals and time sampling data. Academic engagement was measured through direct observation, DIBELS progress-monitoring and nine-week grades. Progress on BEP goals was then compared to direct observation data of on-task behavior and DIBELS data. All three students? improvement on BEP goals correlated with an improvement in academic engagement and increased scoring on DIBELS progress monitoring indicating that progress in the area of behavior is linked to academic achievement.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.Item The impact of parental involvement: a study of the relationship between homework and kindergarten Texas Primary Reading Inventory scores(Texas A&M University, 2004-09-30) Davis, Jill MarieThe purpose of this study was to examine the impact of School Home Links activity guide homework on kindergarten Texas Primary Reading Inventory scores. Student Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) scores were obtained and analyzed for gains in score from the Middle of Year (MOY) and End of Year (EOY) administration. Parents were provided School Home Links Activity Guide Homework to use with their child on a weekly basis for twelve weeks. This group formed an experimental group. A control group did not receive SHL activity guide homework. For the control and experimental group each student's letter/sound score was entered into SPSS for the MOY and EOY TPRI, and average gains were calculated. Groups of students were isolated and analyzed for gain based upon participation in a district reading program, and/or high or low parental involvement in SHL activity guide homework. Research in the upper grades shows that homework completion and parent involvement positively affect student achievement. Students whose parents are involved in their education reap many benefits. These benefits include higher academic achievement (Davies, 1991). Fuller & Olsen (1998), Davies (1991), and Epstein (1995) believe parent involvement is a stronger indicator of student achievement than socioeconomic status, parent education, ethnicity, or any other indicator. The research supports the use of homework for upper grades. The results of this study remain inconclusive for kindergarten age students. This study shows that there is no statistically significant difference between experimental and control group kindergarten TPRI scores when homework is an independent variable.