Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2008. / Additional advisors: Nataliya Ivankova, Martha Barber, Margaret Rice, J. Foster Watkins. Description based on contents viewed Oct. 7, 2008; title from PDF t.p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 178-183).

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in the effectiveness of two graduate teacher education programs in reading assessment, one group using the Reading Miscue Inventory and the other using one of its simplified forms, the Reading Appraisal Guide. The main question that is answered in this study is whether it is more effective for teachers to be given training in the Reading Miscue Inventory, or is training in the Reading Appraisal Guide sufficient to enable teachers to carry out competent assessments of children's reading ability? In the six months of the study's duration, different types of data were collected. These consisted of assessments of children's taped readings of a story by two groups of teachers before (the pretest) and after (the posttest) their respective training programs; anecdotal records of the teachers' views of the programs and the assessment instruments they were using, and observations of the teachers' reading assessments of children selected by them for their practicum. Quantitative analyses of the pretest and posttest were made; these were based on criteria drawn from the Reading Miscue Inventory manual and the investigator's own miscue analysis of the children's taped readings. They showed that the teachers trained in miscue analysis, as reflected in the Reading Miscue Inventory, were able to make significantly better assessments of children's reading ability than the teachers trained in the Reading Appraisal Guide. In addition to the quantitative analysis, written and oral statements made by the teachers during the pretest, posttest and training programs were subjected to qualitative analysis and comparisons. These indicated that both groups' programs had strengthened the teachers' adherence to the Goodman model of reading, but those trained in the use of the Reading Miscue Inventory developed more effective assessment abilities and were more approving of the instruments they used, than were those trained in the use of the Reading Appraisal Guide. It was concluded that the Reading Miscue Inventory is an appropriate assessment instrument for use in college graduate reading programs. It proved complex and time-consuming to use, but at the same time it enabled teachers to make more accurate, in-depth assessments of children's reading than did the Reading Appraisal Guide. The latter was found to have some serious drawbacks, mostly arising from attempts to make it quicker and easier to use.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / This cross-case study investigated the relationship between professional development program in Reading Workshop, the instructional practices of selected urban high school teachers, and their understandings of how to teach reading. The objective of the study was to glean insight into how a professional development program might influence high school teachers to change their practices and/or their understandings about reading instruction. Four teachers in one underperforming, urban high school were identified to participate over the course of one academic year. Data sources included field notes from classroom observations; recorded and transcribed interviews with teachers, students, and an administrator; recorded transcripts of professional development meetings; samples of students' work; and documents from professional development sessions. Through an iterative process, data codes were developed to conduct within-case analyses; data matrices were constructed to find patterns in a cross-case analysis. A one-factor, within-subjects ANOVA was conducted on students' pre- and post-test scores for the Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI). Results indicated that when teachers participated in a professional development program in Reading Workshop, they changed their instructional practices and their understandings of teaching reading; evidence linked teachers' changes in reading instruction with their participation in professional development activities. Students' post-test scores showed significant improvement on the second administration of the SRI. Additional findings included evidence for improvement in teachers:: instructional practices, distinct variations in teachers' implementation of Reading Workshop, a reciprocal relationship between teachers' conceptual understandings and their teaching, an increased emphasis on what and how students learn, acknowledgement that students were more enthusiastic about reading, and positive endorsements for certain aspects of the professional development program. However, there was a prevalent concern that Reading Workshop would not adequately prepare high school students for the demands of higher education. Findings are discussed in relation to the effectiveness of the professional development program, how understanding and practice are connected for teachers, and effective literacy instruction for urban adolescents. Connections to the research literature and implications for continued study are considered. / 2031-01-01

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 purpose of this study was to design a model through which categories and characteristics of reading programs and organizational models could be integrated to form a decision-making base for interrelating the functions of a public school reading department into the overall organizational structure of a school district. No experimental design was used for this study, nor was there any use of human subjects. This study was not stated to statistical terms. Models were used to inform or establish some of the relationships that were judged to exist between data collected and the conclusions reached. The scope of this study was both theoretical and structural in nature. The limitations were identified in the scarcity of available research on the bases for organizational models and on the absence of comparative integrating models for placing reading departments into an organizational structure. This study was directed toward the development of a model that could be utilized for the creation of a school district organizational composite to facilitate more effective planning, development and implementation for reading department programs within the composite. Parameters and guidelines to be used in the examination of organizational ideas and reading department functions were established. The procedures used included library research of literature on models and model building, a basis for model structure, distinctions regarding criteria for models, and a way of classifying models. Criteria were set for identifying a school district model that could be used as exemplary where each organizational function was identified. Six randomly selected school districts were chosen and analyzed for the place of a reading department in their district organizational structure. To gather the necessary data, four procedures were employed: (1)site visitations to three of the six school districts and interviewing the person(s) responsible for the reading department operation; (2)telephone interviews; information from two school districts was secured in this fashion; (3)collection of all available written materials, from each of the six school districts, concerning personnel involved in the reading department through organizational formats showing lines of authority, administrative responsibilities of reading personnel through job descriptions leveled under the generic categories of policy/planning, developing/interrelating, implementing/supervising, as well as reading department responsibilities by administrative divisions using the generic categories mentioned heretofore; and (4) charting data collected to provide information on personnel responsibilities and lines of authority. No significant differences were found between the goals of the different school districts. The sets of parameters for the reading programs within the total organizational support systems of these districts were basically uniform for the districts. However, a comprehensive model for a district reading program with an organizational support design should emerge from a reading department design that is interwoven throughout the programmatic offerings in a district. The most generic conclusion of this study was that the model used by the reading department should either be a microcosm of the overall district model or it should provide an illustrative example of how a generic or unifying model can function.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--Bowling Green State University, 2009. / Document formatted into pages; contains viii, 123 p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2008. / Additional advisors: Lois M. Christensen, Lynn D. Kirkland, Maryann Manning, Deborah Strevy. Description based on contents viewed May 29, 2008; title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references (p. 86-92).

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Liberty University, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2009. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 150-161).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.