Improving Literacy Instruction With Classroom Research

"Filled with reflective questions, keen insights, and helpful resources, this engaging book supports both novice and veteran classroom researchers. At the heart of all of the research is how best to support, engage, and extend learners. As teachers read the clearly delineated steps, they will be energized to confidently engage in their own classroom research." —Cheryl L. Dozier, Assistant Professor University at Albany, State University of New York Implement classroom research to develop effective practices in literacy instruction! Teaching reading skills effectively can be a complex and challenging process for many educators. Theresa A. Deeney provides a detailed primer that illustrates how to create and implement classroom research projects focused on assessing and strengthening literacy instruction. Improving Literacy With Classroom Research presents a comprehensive overview of the classroom research cycle, which involves noticing a problem, initiating an inquiry, planning for and implementing change, analyzing and reflecting on the results, and developing an action plan. The author includes: Guidelines, charts, tables, and information to help educators initiate their own projects Recommendations for collecting and analyzing data Research about five core areas of reading instruction—phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension Examples of authentic teacher research projects focused on literacy skills and instructional practices This guide shows how to use teacher inquiry and reflection to bring about significant improvements in literacy instruction.

divAn alarmingly high number of American students continue to lack proficiency in reading, math, and science. The various attempts to address this problem have all too often resulted in “silver bullet” solutions such as reducing class size or implementing voucher programs. But as the authors of this critically important book show, improving literacy also requires an understanding of complex and interrelated social issues that shape a child’s learning. More than twenty years of research demonstrate that literacy success is determined by a combination of sociocultural forces including parenting, preschool, classroom instruction, and other factors that have a direct impact on a child’s development. Here, Frederick J. Morrison, Heather J. Bachman, and Carol McDonald Connor present the most up-to-date research on the diverse factors that relate to a child’s literacy development from preschool through early elementary school. Urging greater emphasis on the immediate sources of influence on children, the authors warn against simple, single solutions that ignore other pivotal aspects of the problem. In a concluding chapter, the authors propose seven specific recommendations for improving literacy—recommendations that can make a real difference in American education./DIV

This manual has been developed to enhance the professional capacity of educators in the area of Action Research. Filled with practical information, examples, and worksheets, the manual is based on training modules developed by the Professional Development program of USAID/ESRA in cooperation with the International Reading Association. The manual will serve as a starting point for enhancing the literacy instruction capacity of teachers around the world to improve the quality of education.

A high level of literacy in both print and digital media is required for negotiating most aspects of 21st-century life, including supporting a family, education, health, civic participation, and competitiveness in the global economy. Yet, more than 90 million U.S. adults lack adequate literacy. Furthermore, only 38 percent of U.S. 12th graders are at or above proficient in reading. Improving Adult Literacy Instruction synthesizes the research on literacy and learning to improve literacy instruction in the United States and to recommend a more systemic approach to research, practice, and policy. The book focuses on individuals ages 16 and older who are not in K-12 education. It identifies factors that affect literacy development in adolescence and adulthood in general, and examines their implications for strengthening literacy instruction for this population. It also discusses technologies for learning that can assist with multiple aspects of teaching, assessment,and accommodations for learning. There is inadequate knowledge about effective instructional practices and a need for better assessment and ongoing monitoring of adult students' proficiencies, weaknesses, instructional environments, and progress, which might guide instructional planning. Improving Adult Literacy Instruction recommends a program of research and innovation to validate, identify the boundaries of, and extend current knowledge to improve instruction for adults and adolescents outside school. The book is a valuable resource for curriculum developers, federal agencies such as the Department of Education, administrators, educators, and funding agencies.

Reading fluency has been identified as a key component of proficient reading. Research has consistently demonstrated significant and substantial correlations between reading fluency and overall reading achievement. Despite the great potential for fluency to have a significant outcome on students’ reading achievement, it continues to be not well understood by teachers, school administrators and policy makers. The chapters in this volume examine reading fluency from a variety of perspectives. The initial chapter sketches the history of fluency as a literacy instruction component. Following chapters examine recent studies and approaches to reading fluency, followed by chapters that explore actual fluency instruction models and the impact of fluency instruction. Assessment of reading fluency is critical for monitoring progress and identifying students in need of intervention. Two articles on assessment, one focused on word recognition and the other on prosody, expand our understanding of fluency measurement. Finally, a study from Turkey explores the relationship of various reading competencies, including fluency, in an integrated model of reading. Our hope for this volume is that it may spark a renewed interest in research into reading fluency and fluency instruction and move toward making fluency instruction an even more integral part of all literacy instruction.

One of the most important challenges teachers face is making sure children can read. It is an absolutely crucial skill, and current educational policy is giving it a very high priority. Based on one of the largest studies ever undertaken of what primary schools do to improve literacy, this book reports what Professor Ted Wragg and his research team found. The importance placed on literacy has never been greater. When children learn to read, they are laying the foundations for their entire educational future. Effective teachers can make a huge difference, as a poor start can hinder children throughout their schooling and beyond. By looking at what actually goes on in classrooms, this volume provides an invaluable insight into what happens to children and how their reading progresses. It shows how particular teachers manage the improvement of their pupils' reading levels, and also follows individual pupils through a school year. This is a very readbale account of a fascinating and crucial area of research that is highly topical. Every class teacher should read it.

After observing over 300 classrooms, authors Valerie Hastings Gregory and M. Jan Rozzelle provide the framework, knowledge, and tools necessary to help create a community of literacy coaches, leaders, and teachers to improve reading across schools. Demonstrating the critical link between adult learning and student learning that makes professional learning communities our best hope for improving reading and comprehension for today's students, this developmental resource provides information, research findings, and strategies that teachers can apply immediately in the classroom.

Preparing students to be active, informed, literate citizens is one of the primary functions of public schools. But how can students become engaged citizens if they can't read, let alone understand, their social studies texts? What can educators—and social studies teachers in particular—do to help students develop the knowledge, skills, and motivation to become engaged in civic life? Building Literacy in Social Studies addresses this question by presenting both the underlying concepts and the research-based techniques that teachers can use to engage students and build the skills they need to become successful readers, critical thinkers, and active citizens. The authors provide targeted strategies—including teaching models, graphic organizers, and step-by-step instructions—for activities such as * Building vocabulary, * Developing textbook literacy skills, * Interpreting primary and secondary sources, * Applying critical thinking skills to newspapers and magazines, and * Evaluating Internet sources. Readers will also learn how to organize classrooms into models of democracy by creating learning communities that support literacy instruction, distribute authority, encourage cooperation, and increase accountability among students. Realistic scenarios depict a typical social studies teacher's experience before and after implementing the strategies in the classroom, showing their potential to make a significant difference in how students respond to instruction. By making literacy strategies a vital part of content-area instruction, teachers not only help students better understand their schoolwork but also open students' eyes to the power that informed and engaged people have to change the world.