The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand teachers' experiences related to the implementation of Reading First in the classroom and more specifically, how Reading First has impacted curriculum, instruction, assessment, student achievement, and professional development. The participants for this study were five certified, kindergarten and first grade public school teachers. In depth interviews were conducted with each participant regarding her experiences with the implementation of Reading First. Once collected, the data was then analyzed according to a method advanced by Moustakas (1994) and reported. Findings and recommendations included, but were not limited to the following: 1. There are advantages and disadvantages for both students and teachers. The biggest disadvantage for teachers was the lack of flexibility and instructional decision-making imposed by Reading First. 2. Most of the teachers felt there needed to be more of a focus on comprehension, not just phoneme segmentation and oral reading fluency. 3. Some teachers felt that Reading First hurts some of the kids, especially the lowest kids and the above level kids. 4. All participants in this study reported collaboration with other teachers, interventionists, and reading coaches regarding curriculum, instruction, assessment and student achievement. 5. All of the teachers stated that they have received professional training as a result of Reading First which in turn has helped them to become more effective teachers. The researcher believes that the administrators of Reading First need to be more flexible and receptive to the input of those, namely teachers, who implement the directives. There needs to be a course of action allowing for a review to be done and modifications to be made to ensure that the premise of Reading First is upheld.

This study investigated the implementation and impact of Reading First programs in 8 elementary schools across the state of Mississippi. The study assessed how principals, literacy coaches, and kindergarten through third grade teachers perceived the implementation of the Reading First program at their respective schools. Data from these three groups of research participants were analyzed to determine if there were differences in perceptions regarding program implementation. This study also examined if there was a relationship between participants’ judgment about implementation and second and third grade students reading scores on the Mississippi Curriculum Test (MCT). This study employed descriptive, survey, causal-comparative, and correlational research. Descriptive data were used to describe research participants’ gender, years of professional experience, highest degree held, and type of license held. Survey data were used to determine the perceptions of principals, literacy coaches, and teachers regarding the implementation fidelity of the Reading First program at their respective schools. An analysis of variance was used to determine if there were differences in the perceptions of the groups. Correlational statistics were used to analyze the possible existence of a relationship between principals’, literacy coaches’, and teachers’ perceptions about implementation and second and third grade students’ MCT reading scores. The study found that principals and literacy coaches perceived that the Reading First program was being fully implemented, but teachers believed that the program was being moderately implemented. There were no significant differences between the perceptions of principals, literacy coaches, and teachers. However, the study did reveal that principals, literacy coaches, and teachers had similar ratings regarding the implementation of specific Reading First program components. There was no correlation between perceived implementation fidelity of the Reading First program and students reading test scores on the MCT. Survey results revealed that most schools had fully implemented: (a) the uninterrupted, 90 minute reading block, (b) the 5 core elements of reading, (c) instructional strategies, and (d) support for struggling readers. Additionally, survey results indicated that schools need to strive toward fully implementing: (a) appropriate assessment strategies, (b) professional development activities that focus on reading instructional content and (c) instructional support activities.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisor: Sharon Walpole, School of Education. Includes bibliographical references.

The creation of professional development that provides ongoing support to teachers so that they can continue to develop has been increasingly promoted in past years. With the onset of No Child Left Behind and Reading First, teacher professional development gained renewed interest in many school districts. One key component of professional development that received increased attention is professional development through instructional coaching. In a Reading First setting, coaches were supposed to provide teachers with ongoing support in implementing high quality reading instruction for teachers in grades K-3. However, little research on teacher perceptions in this setting has been undertaken. This study sought to discover teacher perceptions of the role, contribution, and value of coaching in grade levels K-3 by answering the following research questions: 1) How do teachers understand the role of instructional coaching? 2) What changes do teachers perceive in their practice as a result of instructional coaching? 3) Which components of instructional coaching do teachers believe they benefit from most? 4) Do teachers perceive a relationship between student learning and instructional coaching? A cross-case analysis was performed on two elementary schools. Data came from the perspective of eight teachers through personal interviews and focus group interviews. Coaching logs provided by instructional coaches were also used. Data collection and analysis was guided by Dewey’s (1938/1998) theory of experience, focusing on continuity and interaction. The results of this research revealed perceived diverse benefits of coaching on teacher practice in a Reading First setting, as well as issues and challenges within the coach-teacher relationship. Teachers’ views and attitudes regarding coaching were similar in some ways. Teacher interaction with coaches varied by experience and grade level. Most of the teacher participants wanted more interaction with the instructional coach assisting, modeling, and observing in the classroom. / text

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of North Texas, Dec., 2007. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, 1979. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2814.

The Early Reading First Program emphasizes that preschool classrooms provide services to better prepare children entering kindergarten with the necessary language, cognitive, and literacy skills that can avert reading difficulties. This study investigated two questions. The first addressed the effectiveness of the ERF program on students identified with a disability within control and experimental groups. The second addressed the effectiveness of the ERF program on subpopulations of students within the ERF program categorized with a severe language delay or a mild/moderate language delay. To address the first question, results showed a statistically significant difference between the control sample and experimental sample of posttest data in the area of language development. Addressing the second question, results showed a statistically significant difference in posttest scores between the mild/moderate sample of students versus the severe sample of students on the Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDI) Alliteration subtest and the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) Print-Word Awareness subtest. A major limitation of this study is the small number of children and, thus, it is difficult to draw any firm conclusions.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--West Virginia University, 2009. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 140 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 114-121).

The goal of the federally-funded Reading First program is to ensure that all students read well by the end of third grade (Georgia Department of Education, 2006). However, Reading First makes few (if any) provisions for writing in its required 135-minute reading block for literacy instruction. Is it possible to teach reading effectively to young children without involving them in writing? The purpose of this naturalistic study was to investigate how the Reading First framework affected the teaching of writing in primary classrooms in one elementary school that received Reading First funding for three years. Using a social constructivist theoretical lens, the researcher explored these issues in the context of a professional learning community—a voluntary teacher study group—focused on writing instruction. Guiding questions were (1) What are primary teachers’ perceptions of the reading-writing connection for students in kindergarten through third grade? (2) How does the context of a school wide Reading First grant affect primary teachers’ perceptions of the reading-writing connection for students in K-3? (3) In what ways does a voluntary teacher study group focused on the reading-writing connection influence primary teachers’ perceptions of the reading-writing connection and their literacy instruction? Fifteen primary teachers participated in the study during a six-month period. Data sources included an open-ended questionnaire, three in-depth interviews with each participant, audiotapes and selective transcription from ten teacher study group sessions, field notes from observations in 12 of the 15 participants’ classrooms, a final focus group interview, and a researcher’s journal. Data were analyzed inductively using the constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). Trustworthiness and rigor were established through methods that ensure credibility, confirmability, dependability, and transferability (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Findings revealed that the teachers viewed reading and writing as connected processes in literacy instruction. Although the Reading First parameters made them fearful of engaging children in writing during the 135-minute reading block, the teacher study group validated their beliefs and knowledge and empowered them to interweave limited writing activities across the curriculum. Overall, the Reading First requirements prevented teachers from involving children in extensive writing process instruction and writing workshop.

Early Reading First is a federal initiative that seeks to buffer against the detrimental effects of poverty on children‟s academic outcomes by incorporating all of the elements supported by scientifically-based reading research to address the present and future reading gaps of high-risk preschool children. The tenets of ERF are teacher professional development, high quality language and print-rich environments, the teaching of emergent instruction of emergent literacy skills based on scientifically based reading research (SBRR) and the early identification of reading problems through the informed use of appropriate assessment measures. The present study was designed to assess the effectiveness of ERF enriched preschool classrooms located in a small city in a Southwestern state on both short- and mid-term early literacy outcomes of high risk preschoolers in a treatment condition and a comparison group. A total of 239 children participated in the study; 110 children in the ERF treatment group and 129 children in the "practice as usual" contrast group. The longitudinal effect of the ERF intervention on participating students (from pre-kindergarten through the middle of first grade) was investigated via multilevel modeling. Four multilevel models were developed for two subtests of the Tejas Lee (Francis, Carlson, and Cardenas-Hagan, 2006): Spanish alphabet knowledge (i.e, identificación de las letras) and Spanish story comprehension (i.e., comprensión auditiva); and two subtests of the Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI; Center for Academic and Reading Skills, 2004): English Alphabet Knowledge and English Story Comprehension. Results of the present study support the findings reported by similar prior studies, indicating that while ERF effectively increases students' alphabet knowledge, greater effort is necessary toward programming for increasing student outcomes on story comprehension.