Although the importance of reading comprehension is generally recognized, a better understanding of the factors influencing measurement of reading comprehension may impact the ability to assess strengths and deficits. The current study examined the effects of text type and time limits on the rate of students' performance across four common assessments of reading comprehension. Results showed similarities between performance with narrative and expository texts and across time limit conditions for all of the assessments. In terms of comparing across reading comprehension assessments, the findings are limited by the differences in the response channels and stimulus conditions of each assessment. The results have implications for the development of measurement systems and the assessment of reading comprehension.

The overall aim of this study is to analyse and describe reading ability from the second to sixth year of schooling in Sweden (ages 8–13). An intro­ductory study presents the pupils’ reading profiles and also the extent to which teaching in reading comprehension is given at their schools. In a second study, the results and effects of the national test in Swedish in grade three (age 9) are studied and compared with other recognised test data on the development of children’s reading. A total of 428 pupils at four schools participated in the study. Each child was tested once a year during two consecutive school years. In addition to collecting results on the national test for all the pupils in their third year, standardised tests of word decoding ability and reading comprehension were administered to all students in the study. A questionnaire dealing with teaching reading and skills development was answered by 23 teachers. The study reveals that there are stronger links between phonological tasks and reading comprehension for pupils in their first three years than for those in years 4–6. The study also shows that the national test identifies some pupils with reading difficulties but not all of them. A number of pupils who have problems with word decoding nevertheless attain the national test threshold for reading comprehension tasks in the third year. There are also pupils who cannot manage the age-adapted reading comprehension tasks but who still pass the national test in their third year. The findings reveal that teachers work with reading comprehension exercises to only a small extent in both the first three years and second three years of schooling. The study indicates the importance of using a diagnostic approach, so that early and effective measures can be adopted to prevent the emergence of reading comprehension problems.

Syftet med denna studie har varit att undersöka hur verksamma lärare i årskurs F-3 beskriver att de använder sig av högläsning av skönlitteratur och om den används för att främja elevers utveckling av läsförståelse. Materialet har samlats in genom kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer och det har varit fyra verksamma lärare som jobbar i årskurs F-3 som deltagit i undersökningen. Studien har varit inspirerad av fenomenografisk ansats, då undersökningen vill försöka återge hur dessa lärare upplever fenomenet högläsning av skönlitteratur. Studiens resultat indikerar att verksamma lärare planerar och genomför högläsning där elever ges möjlighet till att utveckla läsförståelse men också många fler förmågor. Genom resultatet dras slutsatsen att verksamma lärare använder högläsning av skönlitteratur för många olika syften och lärarna är väl medvetna om högläsningens möjligheter. / The purpose of this study was to investigate whether reading fiction aloud will promote students' development of reading comprehension. The material was collected through qualitative semi-structured interviews with four teachers who work in grade F-3. The study was inspired by phenomenographic approach, as the study attempted to reproduce how these teachers experience the phenomenon of reading of fiction aloud. The study's results indicate that when teachers have a plan and execute reading fiction aloud, students can develop reading comprehension as well as many more abilities. These results conclude that teachers use reading fiction aloud for many different purposes and the teachers are well aware of the benefits of reading aloud.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur fem verksamma lärare i årskurs 1-3 använder läsförståelsestrategier i sin undervisning för att utveckla elevers läsförståelse. Utifrån syftet formulerades tre frågeställningar: Vilka läs-förståelsestrategier används av lärarna? I vilka undervisningskontexter används läsförståelse-strategier? Vad anser lärarna vara särskilt viktigt i arbetet med läsförståelsestrategier? Studien är av kvalitativ metod där semistrukturerade intervjuer har genomförts. Informanterna i studien är fem behöriga lärare, verksamma i minst tre år i årskurs 1-3. Det insamlade materialet har transkriberats och analyserats noggrant. Resultatet i studien visar att lärarna använder sig av Läsfixarna som är hämtade ur materialet En läsande klass. Lärarna arbetar varierat med läsförståelsestrategier i undervisningen. De arbetar med högläsning, läsläxa, boksamtal, läsgrupper och ämnesintegrerad läsförståelse. Lärarna anser att diskussion och samtal, stöttning och vägledning, varierade arbetsformer, börja i tid, motivation och repetition är viktiga faktorer i arbetet med läsförståelsestrategier. / The aim of the study is to examine how five active teachers in grades 1-3 use reading comprehension strategies in their teaching to develop students’ reading comprehension. Based on the aim, three questions were formulated: What different reading comprehension strategies are used by the teachers? In which teaching context are reading comprehension strategies used? What do the teachers regard as important in the work on reading comprehension strategies? The study is based on a qualitative method where semi-structured interviews have been conducted. The informants in the study are five qualified teachers, active for at least three years in grades 1-3. The collected material has been transcribed and analyzed from a sociocultural perspective. The result of the study shows that teachers use ”Läsfixarna” which is a part of the material ”En läsande klass”. The teachers work in various ways with reading comprehension strategies. They use reading aloud, homework focusing on reading comprehension and reading, book discussions, reading groups and reading comprehension in various school subjects. The teachers believe that discussion and dialogue, scaffolding and guidance, varied working methods, starting in time, motivation and repetition are important factors while working with reading comprehension strategies.

Syftet med arbetet är att undersöka hur språk- och skrivsvårigheter kan påverka ett ämne som SO då detta ämne lägger stor fokus på innehållet. Det är svårt att lära sig och förstå ett innehåll i en text om du måste lägga största fokuset på att ens kunna läsa texten. För att komma fram till ett resultat har vi valt ut artiklar och använt oss av äldre forskning utifrån dem. Vi har valt ut 8 forskningsartiklar samt avhandlingar och böcker som vi arbetat med. Vi har använt oss av både internationell forskning samt svensk forskning i våra valda artiklar.

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The purpose of the study is to investigate how four teachers are working with literature by reading aloud and by booktalk. When it comes to reading out loud, i’m curious of how and why the teachers choose to use books for reading aloud and how these books can be connected to the discussions of literature. I also want to find out how the teachers use the discussions of literature and which various discussions of literature that are used in teaching. The study involved four teachers from different schools who worked in third grade. I went about it methodically and chose four educators that I observed and interviewed. I observed four different reading aloud moments and booktalks made by each teacher. During the observations, I assumed four different booktalks, the teaching hearing, the text interpretive booktalk, the culture and norm- oriented booktalk and the informal booktalk (Hultin 2006). I also took from the models Reciprocal Teaching (RT) and Questioning the Author (QtA) (Reichenberg och Emanuelsson 2014). In the survey, I assumed from the socio-cultural perspective that is advocated by Lev Vygotsky, and had a focus on zone of proximal development. The investigation has shown that all four teachers choose books based on what is current in their class, i.e. books that students can connect to their experience and reflect and discuss the plot. Half of the teachers are interested to venture out into the new world of literature, i.e. read aloud new fictions for the students. While the remaining two believes that classical literature are the favorites. The study has also shown that the teachers, most of the time, use the teaching hearing, the text interpretive booktalk and the cultural norms and orientation booktalk to check the students understanding of the text , reflect, discuss and analyze what they hear and to connect with their experiences with the book. The teachers use the Reading class in their teaching, which is based on the models RT and QtA, as help to get the discussion started during the discussion of literature .

Internationella studier, PIRLS 2011 och PISA 2012, visar svenska elevers försämrade kunskapsnivåer i läsförståelse. Skolan styrdokument från 2011, Lgr 11, uttrycker explicit undervisning av läsförståelsestrategier i ämnet svenska i grundskolans alla stadier. Den nedåtgående trenden har medfört att diskussionerna kring utvecklingen av läsförståelseundervisning har ökat. Läsforskare varnar för att lärarna lämnas att ensamma tolka hur de ska undervisa i lässtrategier som påverkar läsförståelsen. Våren 2014 lanserades läromedlet En läsande klass som är en privat satsning med ett långsiktigt mål att öka elevers läsförståelse och syftet att lyfta vikten av läsförståelse. Omfattande svensk forskning saknas dock på området. Syftet med denna studie var därför att undersöka hur undervisande lärare på låg- och mellanstadiet ser på sin läsförståelseundervisning och användandet av metoder och strategier för elever med god läsförståelse men även för elever som upplever hinder i sin läsförståelse. Undersökningen genomfördes med en kvalitativ metod med intervjuer som hade halvstrukturerad form. Fyra lärare, som alla undervisar i svenska och arbetar med läsförståelse i sin undervisning, intervjuades. Resultatet visade att samtliga lärare arbetar med läsförståelsestrategier på olika nivåer och att de använder materialet En läsande klass i olika utsträckning i sin undervisning. I resultatet kan man även utläsa att det finns ett behov hos lärare att få direktiv hur explicit läsförståelseundervisning ska bedrivas i skolan för att säkerställa kvalitet i sitt arbete med läsförståelse. / <p>Svenska</p>

This measurement study examined the construct validity of the retell component of the Texas Middle School Fluency Assessment (Texas Education Agency, University of Houston, & The University of Texas System, 2008a) within a confirmatory factor analysis framework. The role of retell, provided after a one-minute oral reading fluency measure, was investigated by comparing the fit of a three-factor model of reading competence to the data collected on a diverse sample of seventh- and eighth-grade students (N=394). The final model demonstrated adequate to mediocre fit (χ2 = 97.316 {32}; CFI = 0.958; TLI = 0.941; RMSEA = .081). Results suggest that retell was a significant contributor to comprehension (Δχ2=16.652{1}, p < .001), fluency (Δχ2=10.882{1}, p = .001), and word identification (Δχ2=7.84{1}, p = .005). However, the χ2 difference was greater for comprehension, as was the factor loading for comprehension (.250, p < .001) compared to fluency (.194, p < .001) and word identification .167, p < .001). Retell did, however, have a large residual variance (.938), suggesting it did not function well as a measure of comprehension in its current state with low inter-rater reliability (K = .37). Narrative retell scores (.352, p< .001) were better predictors of comprehension than expository retell scores (from .2221 to .264, p < .001) or the combination of all three scores (Δχ2=134.261{19}; p < .001), but average retell scores produced a more parsimonious model than narrative retell scores alone (ΔAIC = 58.275; ΔBIC = 58.275). Average retell was only weakly correlated to other measures of comprehension (from r = .155 to r = .257, p < .01). However, the relationship was stronger than the relationship between retell and other measures of fluency (from r = .158 to r = .183, p < .01) or word identification (r = .132, p < .05). In addition, retell did not demonstrate differential item functioning when student characteristics (e.g., primary language, socioeconomic status, ability level) were entered as covariates, even though there were overall latent differences. / text

Reading comprehension of students with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD) typically falls below their decoding skills. The present study explored the effectiveness of visual-cued facilitation, in forms of activation of prior knowledge and inducing comprehension monitoring behaviours, and inference bridging facilitation on reading comprehension. Twenty-eight primary students with HFASD and their typically-developing peers completed four comprehension exercises with a practical-writing text and three narrative passages with conditions: answering pre-reading questions with illustrations, within-text picture selection tasks, and control. Results indicated that challenges of students with HFASD in Chinese reading comprehension were similar to previous findings. Their performances were no longer statistically differentiable from their peers with visual-cued facilitations. Implication for practice and future direction were discussed. / published_or_final_version / Educational Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences