Reading is one of the most important skills (although a complex cognitive activity) a learner has to master during the early years of schooling. The reading process involves elements of a learner’s psychological, physical, linguistic, cognitive, emotional and social worlds. Despite the fact that all learners have to be able to read, there is an increasing awareness among professionals of the developmental and educational implications of reading difficulties with school-going learners world wide. Reading is a critical tool for the mastery of all other subjects a learner will meet and one of the best predictors of long-term learning achievement. Therefore, the need for support must be considered a priority area. After a thorough investigation and literary study, it is evident that the effective identification of learning difficulties needs a thorough understanding. Educators must realise that a given learner, who responds favourably to one instructional system, may respond very unfavourably to another, because learners are all unique individuals. To be able to combine speech sounds in a way that recipients can understand the message, learners have to be ready to develop an understanding of phonology, morphology and syntax, therefore maturation must always precede learning and, in the context of this study, emergent literacy must precede reading. Maturation is characterised by a fixed order of progression wherein the pace may vary, but not the sequence. The creative use of language is entirely dependent on the ability to assemble simple building blocks of sound into the complex structure we call sentences.It is widely accepted that music may be used to promote language development and the most crucial aspect in both music and language development is the perception of sound and the core in music and language are the ability to listen. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of music and related activities as part of an intervention strategy to improve reading skills, such as phonics, of learners who have reading difficulties. The researcher proved that a wellplanned intervention method and learning strategy through music activities may be used to develop the reading skills in learners who have reading difficulties. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Inclusive Education)

This study investigated the factors affecting the teaching of English reading skills in a second language of Grade 3 learners in three primary schools, in Ongwediva town of Oshana Regional Education Directorate in Northern Namibia. It also investigated methods and approaches that were used to promote the teaching of reading in English as a second language and the linguistic environment of the classroom in which the teaching of reading occurs. Classroom environments were observed and telephonic interview was conducted with the circuit inspector of the three schools selected. Individual interviews were also done with the principals, Grade 3 teachers and Grade 3 learners of the three chosen schools. Focus group interview was also done with the same Grade 3 teachers. This study found out that insufficient reading books, poor teaching methods, insufficient teachers’ and learners’ interactions and overcrowded classrooms were some of the factors that made the teaching of reading unsuccessful. From the interviews of the circuit inspector, principals and teachers it was revealed that inadequate teacher training workshops for teachers teaching English reading, lack of parental involvement, low budget allocation to Primary Education and lack of reading capacity in vernacular affected the teaching of reading negatively. The outcome of learners’ interviews indicated that phonemic awareness and lack of comprehension created reading problems. Given the factors referred above, it is recommended that more interesting readers should be purchased to solve the shortage of reading materials. In addition, more effective teachers’ workshops should be given to strengthen the teachers’ approaches to reading skills development for Grade 3 learners. / M. Ed. (with specialisation in Early Childhood Development) / Educational Studies

This research is concerned with an investigation into the factors relating to the reading habits of Indian secondary school pupils in the Phoenix area. It is important to acknowledge that among our youth there are both avid and reluctant readers during and after the period of formal education. It is the group of reluctant readers that has to be lured by the magic of reading. There is a remarkable variation in the reading habits of pupils from the same school. A self-designed questionnaire was administered to 544 boys and girls from standards 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. The descriptive data available were then analysed and interpreted. The study revealed that the amount of time spent on reading and the number of books read (which together determined reading habits) by pupils was influenced by such factors as home, school, social environment, socioeconomic status, the influence of other media and the personal aspect / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

Text in Afrikaans / Learners who struggle to read from the start, will stay behind. But the earlier intervention can start, the greater the chances of success. But what type of intervention is needed? Nowadays researchers overseas use phonemic awareness as a criteria to predict reading success. About 80% of pre-school children will have no trouble grasping the phonological structure of their home language, provided that they are thoroughly immersed in literacy. It is these same 80% who will not have any trouble learning to read. But literacy is a continuous process that starts at birth and there is no magical moment in a child's life that he will all of a sudden be ready to receive literacy instruction. Experience and practice will ensure that the hierarchy of phonemic awareness skills will develop. Those preschoolers who do not have that advantage, must develop phonemic awareness skills while learning to read or else face reading problems. / Educational Studies / M. Ed.(Special Needs Education)

Thesis (PhD (General Linguistics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / Bibliography / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The attainment of literacy is crucial for survival in a modern industrialised, knowledge-driven society. Children with poor language skills are at risk for academic failure because of the differences between oral language used in daily interactions and the language skills needed to succeed in a formal school environment. The impact of poorly developed oral language skills on the successful acquisition of reading skills, particularly reading comprehension, is often underestimated in the education of young learners in South Africa. Narrative skills form the bridge between oral language and literacy by providing experience in using the extended and decontextualized discourse units that children will encounter in written language. This study investigated the relationship between narrative skills and reading comprehension skills in young learners who are developing literacy. Specific linguistic markers of literacy in the narratives of a group of Grade 3 learners from communities with low socio-economic status were examined. The main research questions this study attempted to answer were: “How do linguistic deficits of learners with poor reading comprehension and specific reading comprehension deficits manifest in their oral narratives?” and “Are there linguistic markers that decisively distinguish between learners with specific reading comprehension deficits and learners with general poor reading skills as compared to learners with normal reading comprehension?” In a quasi-experimental research design, the Grade 3 participants in this study were assigned to three groups: Readers who are competent at word level and comprehension (good reading comprehension group), readers who are competent at word level but poor at comprehension (specific comprehension disorder group) and readers who are poor at both word level and comprehension (poor reading comprehension group). Measurement protocols were used to assess the linguistic variables of interest, namely vocabulary, narrative micro- and macrostructure structure, cohesion, coherence and other aspects of oral language. The results of this study confirmed the relationships between language skills and reading comprehension. It was found that readers with general poor reading skills performed significantly poorer on a variety of linguistic measures than readers with good reading comprehension. The group identified as readers with specific reading comprehension disorders were, in general, not significantly different from the other two groups. This study therefore did not provide clear evidence that readers with specific reading comprehension disorders presented with linguistic markers that could differentiate them from the other groups. The clinical implications for speech-language therapists and educators with regards to assessment and intervention were highlighted. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die behaling van geletterdheid is noodsaaklik om te oorleef in ‘n moderne, geïndustrialiseerde en kennisgedrewe samelewing. Kinders met swak taalvaardighede loop die risiko om akademies te faal weens die verskille tussen die orale taal wat alledaags gebruik word en die taalvaardighede wat vereis word om sukses in formele skoolomgewings te behaal. Die impak van swak orale taalvaardighede op die suksesvolle aanleer van leesvaardighede, spesifiek leesbegrip, word dikwels onderskat in die onderrig van jong Suid-Afrikaanse leerders. Narratiefvaardighede vorm die oorgang tussen orale taal en geletterdheid omdat narratiewe ondervinding verskaf in die gebruik van uitgebreide en gedekontekstualiseerde diskoerseenhede wat kinders in skryftaal teëkom. Hierdie studie het die verband tussen narratiefvaardighede en leesbegrip in jong kinders wat besig is om gelettedheid te ontwikkel, ondersoek. Spesifieke linguistiese merkers vir geletterdheid in die narratiewe van ‘n groep Graad 3 leerders van lae sosio-ekonomiese status, is ondersoek. Die hoof navorsingsvrae van die studie was: “Hoe manifesteer die linguistiese gebreke van leerders met swak leesbegrip en spesifieke leesbegripsprobleme in hul orale narratiewe?” en “Is daar linguistiese merkers wat afdoende onderskei tussen leerders met spesifieke leesbegripsprobleme en leerders met algemene swak leesvaardighede?” In ‘n kwasieksperimentele ontwerp is die deelnemers aan hierdie studie toegeken aan drie groepe: Lesers wat bevoeg is op woordvlak en begripsvlak (groep met goeie leesbegrip), lesers wat bevoeg is op woordvlak, maar met swak begrip (groep met spesifieke leesbegripsprobleme) en lesers wat onbevoeg is op woordvlak en begripsvlak (groep met algemene swak leesvaardighede). Protokolle is gebruik om die linguistiese veranderlikes, naamlik woordeskat, narratief mikro- en makrostruktuur, kohesie, koherensie en ander aspekte van verbale taal, te meet. Die resultate van hierdie studie het die verband tussen taalvaardighede en leesbegrip bevestig. Daar is gevind dat lesers met algemene swak leesvaardighede, in vergelyking met lesers met goeie leesbegrip, beduidend swakker presteer het op verskeie linguistiese metings. Die groep wat geïdentifiseer is as lesers met spesifieke leesbegripsprobleme het, oor die algemeen, nie beduidend van die ander twee groepe verskil nie. Hierdie studie het dus nie duidelike bewyse gevind dat lesers met spesifieke leesbegripsprobleme linguistiese merkers vertoon het wat hulle van die ander twee groepe kon onderskei nie. Die kliniese implikasies vir spraak-taalterapeute en opvoeders met betrekking tot assessering en intervensie is toegelig.

This thesis deals with the before-, during- and after- reading activities when working with text in teaching literature in grades 6-9. The first part describes results from testing the critical literacy of Czech students in the PISA 2009 international comparison, as well as levels of critical literacy and its place in the Framework Education Programme for Elementary Education. The reasons for using these activities and examples of them are also discussed. In the practical part, I carried out research using questionnaires to find out if and how often teachers use these types of activities and I have provided examples of those used. Next I wanted to find out which types of readers the teachers use and how these readers contribute to a student's reading literacy development.

This thesis deals with the use of innovative teaching methods and instructional strategies to support and develop literacy at the first grade of primary school. The theoretical part describes the changes in education related to curricular reform, also the change the objectives and the content of education towards the formation and development of key competencies, to prepare students for real life. This paper introduces the concept of contemporary Czech language and literature, its inclusion in the National Curriculum for Basic Education. The theoretical part focuses on the concept of literacy, reading literacy defined criteria. It also discusses the methods of critical thinking, which contribute to the development of reading skills. It also describes the course "Promoting literacy", which the author of the thesis completed in 2011. Research section presents action research, where the author verifies the theoretical knowledge of new specific methods and instructional strategies to promote literacy in practice. Research validates the effectiveness of innovative methods in terms of the development of key competencies for learning in terms of reading literacy criteria. It also examines whether these methods contribute to the education of students, whether helping to meet the objectives of cognitive...

The master thesis is focused on the reading and reading literacy of studentes with specific reading difficulty - with Dyslexia. The target group are students of the second level of primary school. The theoretical part focuses on the definition of the specific learning difficulty, expecially on Dyslexia. It follows not only a general definition and an etiology but also diagnostics in school practice. The center of interest is mainly the support of this group of pupils at school. This text presents the charakteristics of the reading skills and reading and reading literacy that contribute to school success. The thesis is to investigace the support of the reading at primary school. The empirical part is based on the analysis of the quantitative research data. The research focuses on the concept of reading, which is aimed at students of the second level of primary school, while the actual analysis follows possible nuances in the self-assessment component of the students representing the norm and students with Dyslexia. The aim of the research is to capture the current relationship of students to reading with regard to the nature of the support provided. The results of the survey correspond to theoretical findings from professional sources - pupils with dyslexia often consider themselves as weaker...

The aim of the study is to investigate what pupils in grade 1 think about reading aloud, reading alone, the selection of books, and the significance of reading. A subsidiary aimwas to examine the relation between the pupils’ experiences of reading in the home andtheir ability to discuss a text they have read. A sidetrack in the study aimed to see whether the pupils’ experiences of reading in the home affected their outlook on readingin general. The empirical material is linked in the discussion to earlier research on topics such as learning to read and the significance of reading aloud. The discussion also establishes a parallel to theories of literary envisionment. The methods for thestudy were observation of a book conversation and group interviews with four pupils who had taken part in that conversation. The selection of informants was based on their actions during the book conversation, which led to the selection of two pupils who wereperceived as being more active and two who were less active. The study shows that the informants have a positive attitude both to reading aloud and to reading alone, and three of four prefer reading on their own. In the choice of books it is clear that the pictures are very significant for the pupils. All the pupils say that reading is important and three of the interviewed pupils link the significance of reading to jobs and school, while the fourth drew a parallel to the importance of reading in everyday life.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T16:57:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_emilio_celso_oliveira.pdf: 1056287 bytes, checksum: 957e5a68e10ea6577ac379df79efd7da (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-05-09 / The objective of this dissertation is to investigate conceptions, beliefs and skills relevant to reading that are revealed by Mathematics teachers, plus the development of reading practices in their classes, having in view that text reading & writing has started to figure as a task that should be shared by teachers from different areas of knowledge. Initially I have sought to bring theoretical contributions by reviewing the bibliography in order to place the question of reading under both individual and collective perspectives, as well as to define the notion of reading competence and skills, and to clarify what is understood by beliefs and conceptions in educational literature. Through such desk research I have identified, in documents produced by state and municipal educational systems, the main methodological recommendations regarding the development of reading competence. The field research outlined the reading profile of groups of Maths teachers in state and municipal school systems, identified their conceptions and beliefs in regard to reading competences, and highlighted reading practices in their classes. The research confirms the importance of a commitment shared by all areas of knowledge as regards the learning of how to read and write, and it underlines that Mathematics knowledge acquisition passes through specific genres of text, and it falls to the teacher to teach students how to read them. One result is that the methodology of problem resolution designed by Polya allows for a Mathematics teacher to explore reading and writing skills preconized by Solé. I have concluded that in state and municipal public school systems, because there is a great number of schools it is possible to detect a difficulty for official texts to circulate, the implication of which is a fragmented reception of information about educational policies and methodological recommendations. Our research suggests the relevance in both initial and continued education of Mathematics teachers, of the introduction of studies on text reading & writing, so that teachers will in the future develop reading & writing practices in their classes / Esta dissertação tem como objetivos investigar concepções, crenças e competências referentes à leitura, reveladas por professores(as) de matemática e o desenvolvimento de práticas de leitura em suas aulas, tendo em vista que a leitura e a produção de textos vêm se configurando como uma tarefa a ser compartilhada pelos professores(as) das diferentes áreas do conhecimento. Inicialmente, com a finalidade de buscar aportes teóricos, realizamos uma revisão bibliográfica, para situar a questão da leitura na perspectiva individual e coletiva, definir a noção de competência e habilidades de leitura, esclarecer o que se entende por crenças e concepções na literatura educacional. Pela pesquisa documental identificamos, nos documentos produzidos pela rede estadual e municipal de educação, as principais recomendações metodológicas acerca do desenvolvimento da competência leitora. A pesquisa de campo traçou o perfil de leitura de grupos de professores(as) de matemática da rede estadual e municipal, identificou suas concepções e crenças acerca das competências leitoras e destacou as práticas de leituras desenvolvidas, para atingir esse objetivo. Nossa pesquisa ratifica a importância do compromisso de todas as áreas do conhecimento na aprendizagem de ler e escrever e que o conhecimento de matemática transita por gêneros específicos de texto que cabe ao professor(a) ensinar o aluno a ler. Indica uma metodologia baseada em Polya, que desenvolveu uma abordagem na resolução de problemas, da qual se podem derivar perspectivas sobre o desenvolvimento das competências leitoras e escritoras. Observa que na rede pública estadual e municipal, pelo grande número de escolas, ocorre a dificuldade de circulação de textos oficiais, cuja implicação é a recepção fragmentada de informações da política educacional e de recomendações metodológicas. Nossa pesquisa sugere, na formação inicial e continuada de professores(as) de matemática, a pertinência da introdução do estudo da leitura e produção de textos, para que os futuros professores(as) desenvolvam práticas de leitura e escrita em suas aulas