Thesis (M.Ed.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2003. / Bibliography: leaves 95-106.

M.A. (Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This study critically examines my classroom practice in teaching young learners aged four-and-a-half to six years old. It focuses on the following research question: How can I create a stimulating environment in my classroom to promote awareness of and a love for reading? My classroom-based action research methodology places me, the practitioner, at the centre of the investigation. The work examines closely my professional values and my strong belief in the capacity of learners to be curious, absorb and make sense of what they encounter and experience in a stimulating environment. It investigates how such an environment develops the potential of learners to love and embrace reading. The process of engaging reflectively and analytically in practitioner research has helped me to gain a better understanding of my learners’ needs and to improve the ways in which I promote reading in the reception year of formal schooling. I claim that the creating of a stimulating environment in my classroom is grounded in my ability to motivate, model and scaffold the learners to engage in reading confidently. Together, the learners and I have created a living theory of education, one that is open to further reflection and development. Ongoing interaction between theoretical discourse and practical experiences enable me to develop my professional knowledge and to synthesize my values and practice. The investigation continuously confirms the advantages of a print-rich environment and how it can be used to promote a love for reading amongst young learners. The claims and knowledge generated in this study are personal and true for me, while the living transformational process demonstrates how I have developed professionally.

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This study was conducted for the purpose of determining whether there is a significant difference in the reading and arithmetic achievement of boys and girls in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades in the Lodi Elementary School District. To put the purpose in question form: Is there a significant difference in the reading and arithmetic achievement of boys and girls in grades four, five, and six in the Lodi Elementary Schools? In formulating plans for the study, similar studies were examined. Literature concerning reading and arithmetic differences between boys and girls was read.

This study was selected to determine the relation of reading readiness to the mental, physical, personal, and social factors of a group of low first-grade pupils of the Plano Elementary School, Plano, Texas during the first five months of the school year 1949-1950. This study involves consideration of (1) mental readiness, (2) physical readiness, and (3) personal and social readiness as factors of child development.

The problem of this investigation was to determine the apparent significance of an enriched and concentrated reading-readiness program on first-grade pupils' progress in learning to read. The purpose of the study was twofold: first, to increase the evidence of the need for readiness to read; and second, to formulate and administer an enriched and concentrated program that would contribute to the development of readiness.

The purpose of this study is to develop a readiness program which will be an aid in eliminating many failures in reading and to help the children be happy while learning to read.