<p> The purpose of this study was to determine effective reading interventions for primary grade students, utilizing the Response to Intervention (RtI) model. The purpose of RtI is to enhance the quality of education for children, if appropriate levels of academic instruction are present (Hanover Research, 2015). The research questions were posed to garner perspectives of the Intervention Team (IT) leaders as to Tier II interventions that aided students who indicated difficulty with reading, and the duration of the intervention, prior to achieving progress toward the specified goal. Additionally, research questions were stated to determine which Tier II reading intervention yielded a significant gain, as measured by a Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM) in one elementary school. Perspectives were ascertained of literacy educators in regard to student success following the interventions. Intervention Team leaders from Missouri&rsquo;s 11 regional professional development centers were interviewed and asked specific questions in an effort to identify tiered reading interventions and progress measures present in their schools. Results of progress monitoring utilizing CBMs were collected from one Missouri elementary school and were analyzed utilizing a paired sample <i>t</i>-test comparing pre-test and post-test scores before and following a reading intervention. The data revealed Tier II reading interventions are effective for primary grade students. Literacy educators serving in the districts of the IT leaders were surveyed to garner insight into the positive attributes gained from receiving the tiered reading intervention. The results of the literacy educator survey attributed gains in student achievement and indicated positive outcomes for students in other subject areas</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to examine the existing research on early literacy and the types of approaches used in schools at the time of this writing. Although researchers could not agree on which types of reading programs are the most effective, there was a large amount of research supporting the work done in 2000 from the National Reading Panel, emphasizing the importance of the five components of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. The study site historically used a traditional Balanced Literacy program, and reported proficiency scores in the 30th percentile overall. This research study investigated phonemic awareness and phonics as important components of a total literacy program, focusing on one supplementary program, Systematic Instruction in Phonological Awareness, Phonics, and Sight Words (SIPPS). SIPPS, combined with a traditional Balanced Literacy program, was implemented over a period of five years in a suburban, Midwest elementary school. Results indicated that overall reading achievement improved over the five year implementation, with the most significant growth occurring in the first grade. Growth was slow and not significant from year-to-year, but did improve in all subgroups, including Black students and the free-and-reduced-lunch subgroup. Given the importance of early literacy acquisition, future studies should investigate other supplementary programs available to identify the most effective programs for student achievement.</p>

<p> Graphic novels use visual literacy and multimodal learning two methods of teaching. Graphic novels also have a history of being motivating to students. This study aims to quantify the degree of influence graphic novels have on secondary student comprehension and motivation. Students were recruited from two classrooms taught by one twelfth-grade teacher. Students who received a graphic novel supplement performed significantly higher on comprehension as measured by grades than students who did not receive a graphic novel supplement for that material. Before and after each unit, students completed a motivational survey. There were no significant differences between pre- and post-test motivation data. Results indicate that more research on the effect of graphic novels on comprehension is needed.</p>

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a difference between the reading achievement test scores of first graders who have had reading instruction using a combination of structured educational television and the basal reader approach and the test scored of first graders who have had reading instruction using a combination of non-structured educational television and the basal reader approach. Two groups of first graders, a control group and an experimental group, comprising of twenty-three students in each group, were used in this study. The control group and the experimental group were taught using the basal reader approach and were exposed to television. The experimental group had follow-up lessons. Both groups were tested after eight weeks with the use of the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Test (reading scores). Findings from the posttest data revealed that there was not a significant difference in the reading achievement of students in the two groups.

<p> Recent legislation such as No Child Left Behind and the Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA) increasingly pressure teachers and schools to be accountable for instructional time in the form of improved test scores. As a result, students are given an increasing variety of assessments in a given school year in an attempt to measure academic growth over time. These assessments frequently occur in the form of curriculum-based measures (CBM) of oral reading fluency, informal reading inventories (IRIs), computer adaptive tests (CATs) of reading, and annual high stakes assessments of reading ability. While a review of the literature reveals a well-established relationship between CBMs, IRIs, and high stakes assessments, less empirical evidence exists that illustrates the relationship between and technical adequacy of CBMs, IRIs, and CATs of reading ability. Specifically, the current study examined the concurrent and predictive validity of CBMs and IRIs on computer adaptive assessments in students in second through fifth grade. Further, given the increasing diversity of student populations, the current study sought to examine the extent to which one's status as an English Learner or student with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) moderates the relationships between oral reading fluency and CATs and IRIs and CATs.</p>

<p> The purpose of this research project was to determine the effects of literature categories on student engagement. The participants of this research project were selected from a third grade elementary class. They were selected at random. The class was heterogeneous containing twenty-one students. The dependent variable in this project was the student engagement while the independent variable was the literature category. Data was collected for two weeks in each category on student engagement and observational notes were also recorded. This research project determined that the literature category of nonfiction produced a high student engagement when texts were selected based on student&rsquo;s interests. This study was and is important because educators can use this information to help with classroom lessons and to reach students through literature. </p>

Presentation. Critical Librarianship & Pedagogy Symposium, February 25-26, 2016, The University of Arizona. / Academic instruction librarians often introduce students to the concept of evaluating information by having them compare “scholarly versus popular” sources--an approach that wrongly implies these two kinds of information are a binary, and that they are in competition with one another. This presentation will question the motivations behind presenting scholarly and popular information in this way, as well as offer recommendations for how librarians can adapt this activity into something which allows for critical discussions of context and authority in the classroom.

<p> This study measured the impact of targeted reading interventions on improving reading fluency for second-grade students as indicated by their performance on a statewide standardized assessment of reading fluency proficiency. Reading fluency scores for students who received intervention in second grade were measured again in their third-grade year to see if the intervention had a lasting impact on their overall reading fluency ability. Statistical analysis using a paired samples t-test revealed that reading fluency ability increases with the use of targeted intervention among second-grade students. A statistically significant relationship was discovered through the use of a paired samples t-test for students who receive targeted intervention in second grade and their third-grade IRI scores. This verifies that targeted reading fluency interventions are successful among students from high-poverty backgrounds. Individual and focus-group interviews were completed with teachers, para-professionals, and instructional coaches who provided reading fluency interventions to students. Themes emerged indicating a need for targeted intervention, meaningful practice, and instructional strategies in order for students to become fluent readers. Further analysis determined that schools that utilize classroom teachers rather than para-professionals to provide reading fluency intervention to struggling, high-poverty students achieved the most overall growth on the IRI. Another contributing factor to overall growth on the IRI was the amount of time students received intervention. Students that received at least forty-five minutes a day of additional intervention exhibited higher levels of growth. Lastly, several different reading curricula were used in the present study, revealing that instructional strategies and targeted intervention leads to greater acquisition of reading fluency skills regardless of the prescribed curriculum.</p>

A Thesis submitted to The University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Medicine. / Case based instruction (CBI) in medical education is a well established alternative to lecture format in the training of first and second year medical students. There have been previous documented attempts to include technology in CBI that have received positive feedback from students. Electronic health records are now being mandated by 2014 and historically there have been many barriers to adoption including lack of EHR technical skills by physicians. As a result, biomedical informatics education is being integrated into medical school curriculum with hope that better understanding of medical applications will prepare future physicians to utilize them. There has been no documented evidence of successful utilization of a commercial grade EHR within CBI despite many potential benefits in doing so. Previous attempts at accomplishing this task have been discovered but multiple challenges were encountered in developing a suitable educational EHR and as a result the attempt was unsuccessful. The following is a design project with the aim of highlighting specific design requirements, as well as, a theoretical usage scenario of a commercial grade EHR in CBI. Outlined as well is experimental design for future evaluation of such a system. There will be many 4 technological challenges that will need to be overcome and numerous resource requirements to get such a project functional. Despite this, all aspects of such a system are technologically feasible. Completion of such a system could result in potential commercial benefit and provide a platform for further investigation of early EHR training effect on physician-EHR acclimation.

The purpose of this study was to examine whether student motivation increased through participation in a technological enterprise that involved a decision making process. In addition, student empowerment was explored. The setting of the study was a fifth grade class of twenty-four students in an urban school in the southwest. Throughout the school there was a video and data distribution network. Data collection consisted of student sign-up, teacher observation, student surveys, teacher journal, and a case study. The sign-up sheet and student surveys were analyzed to yield a frequency count. The case study and journal were reported as a narrative of student response and teacher-researcher observation. In this study, students with motivational difficulty that led to academic problems seemed to be positively affected by the factors of choice and challenge in the enterprise. Students with social difficulties or a combination of academic and social difficulties were less likely to continue work on the enterprise. There was a difference in the effect of the enterprise on female and male students.