This thesis presents an argument for a reconceptualisation of how literature is read in secondary urban English classrooms and of what is accomplished through the activities of reading. In the discourse of policy and in theorised accounts of practice, the reading that is undertaken in classrooms has tended to be construed as either a poor substitute or merely a preparation for other reading, particularly for that paradigmatic literacy event, the absorbed and simultaneously discriminating consumption of the literary text by the independent, private reader. This thesis argues for a broader - historically, ethnographically, psychologically and theoretically informed - understanding of what constitutes reading, for a fully social conception of the sign and of sign-making and for a social model of learning. It draws on data gathered through classroom observation and digital videotape of English lessons taught over the course of a year by two teachers in a secondary comprehensive school in East London. It situates such data, and the interpretation of such data, in culture and history, in the culture and history of the researcher as well as of the participants in the research, school students and their teachers. Attention is paid to the pedagogy of the two teachers, to the constraints that operate on them and to the choices that they make. The thesis presents an interpretation of school students' engagement with literary texts as an active, collaborative process of meaning-making. Literature, instantiated in multiple forms in these classrooms, functions not as a valorised heritage to be transmitted so much as a resource for the students' work of cultural production and contestation.

The importance of reading skills to academic achievement, job acquisition and future success is well documented. Most of the research on reading interventions focuses on children in primary schools but many children start secondary school with very poor reading skills and schools require evidence-based interventions to support these children. The aims of this study were two-fold (i) to explore the efficacy of a phonics-based reading intervention programme, Toe By Toe, among a group of 30 secondary age students with severe reading difficulties from 2 large schools in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham; and (ii) to examine perceived key barriers to implementing this intervention programme in secondary schools with a view to better understanding how these barriers could be overcome in practice. A quasi-experimental mixed methods design was used to evaluate the efficacy of Toe By Toe: 15 students allocated to an Experimental group and 15 allocated to a Waiting Control Group (matched at baseline for single word reading accuracy). Quantitative semi-structured interviews were also carried out ascertain the views of the students and teaching staff on the intervention programme and its implementation. Results showed the intervention brought about a statistically significant improvement in the student's phonic decoding accuracy, single word reading accuracy and phonic decoding fluency skills. The intervention did not improve sight word reading fluency, passage reading fluency or comprehension. Interviews with staff and students indicated a wide range of positive responses to the intervention and some key barriers to implementation including cost and logistics. In conclusion, the intervention can be used with secondary-age English-speaking students to raise their reading skills in the areas indicated but care should be taken that users are aware of its limitations and potential barriers to implementation. Educational Psychologists can support schools in implementing an intervention of this nature. This study adds to the evidence base for the use of reading interventions in secondary schools to support students with severe reading difficulties.

This research was designed to investigate issues of quality in the reading of fiction of 11 – 16 year olds in school; this included the reading of fiction as part of the curriculum and private reading for pleasure. It is research which found its roots in the surveys of children’s reading habits carried out by Jenkinson (1946), Whitehead, Capey, and Maddren, (1977), Hall and Coles (1999) and Clark, Osborne and Akerman (2008). These surveys, over sixty years, show how attitudes to reading for 11 – 16 year olds, their reading habits and their preferred texts have changed. Judgements of quality in children’s chosen reading are implied in those studies but criteria for these judgments of quality are not defined. The National Curriculum (NC) for England (2008) explicitly refers to texts considered to be of high quality and lists prescribed texts and authors, but does not define what is meant by quality. The study was designed to investigate how teachers and students in secondary schools (11 – 16 year olds) in England conceptualised quality in the fiction used in class and for private reading. Individual teachers and groups of 11 – 16 year olds from four schools in the South-West of England were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. The interview data were analysed using a Cultural and Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) framework. The findings indicate that interpretations of quality are complex and often linked to examination syllabus requirements; the iterations of the NC for English in England; and discrete individual school and departmental needs. This can cause professional tension amongst teachers relating to the imposed rules, to external expectations and to the lack of teacher autonomy. The study offers new insights into how fiction for 11 – 16 year olds is used and conceptualised in school. This is represented theoretically through the framework of CHAT and in terms of the confusion at the intersection of boundary objects. The outcomes of the research will also contribute to clarifying how texts written for young adults may be judged and to the conceptualisation of a pedagogy to support the use of fiction with 11 – 16 year olds in school.

In the secondary school situation, a pupil needs to read to learn, therefore it is imperative to comprehend what is read. Reading comprehension is one of the two functions of reading and it is dependent on the abilities of the reader, the reader's interpretation of the text and the context in which the text is read. In examining reader characteristics, it is evident that it is very difficult for learning disabled pupils with a reading comprehension deficit to comprehend successfully. Their · unique problems can be exacerbated by such external factors as text components and the context in which the reading takes place. Reading comprehension has been instructed to learning disabled secondary school pupils using reading methods and strategies, to facilitate reading comprehension. From this practical experience and the literature studied, guidelines have been formulated for teachers to use to improve the reading comprehension skills of learning disabled secondary school pupils. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Orthopedagogics)

In the secondary school situation, a pupil needs to read to learn, therefore it is imperative to comprehend what is read. Reading comprehension is one of the two functions of reading and it is dependent on the abilities of the reader, the reader's interpretation of the text and the context in which the text is read. In examining reader characteristics, it is evident that it is very difficult for learning disabled pupils with a reading comprehension deficit to comprehend successfully. Their · unique problems can be exacerbated by such external factors as text components and the context in which the reading takes place. Reading comprehension has been instructed to learning disabled secondary school pupils using reading methods and strategies, to facilitate reading comprehension. From this practical experience and the literature studied, guidelines have been formulated for teachers to use to improve the reading comprehension skills of learning disabled secondary school pupils. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Orthopedagogics)