Differences were investigated between two methods of teaching English in a community college setting-~one method emphasizing reading/writing skills and one emphasizing writing skills. A pre-test/post~test design was used for the study. The criterion evaluated were reading skills (vocabulary and comprehension) and writing skills. The multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was the Statistical treatment applied to the data. The null hypothesis that there were no differences between the two methods of teaching English was not rejected. There were significant differences, however, among the three participating teachers and group/teacher interaction. While there were those who indicated the English class as the appropriate place to integrate the skills of reading and writing, the study did not support this idea. However, it was recommended that the study be made in other community colleges with modification of the design to include a longer period of time between pre- and post-testing. / Ed. D.

Integrated writing tasks that combine reading, listening, and writing have become increasingly popular in assessing academic writing. These tasks are seen to offer more authenticity, improve fairness, and provide positive washback effects of the test on learning and teaching of English around the globe. However, the integrated nature of these tasks can pose some issues, such as construct-related validity and verbatim source use. Given that the inferences made from test scores depend upon the construct of the measure, it is important to have a working knowledge of how strategies are used on integrated writing tests as part of the process of construct validation. This study investigates the relationship between second language writers’ strategy use and performance on an integrated reading-listening-writing test using structural equation modeling and qualitative approaches. Data were collected from 161 non-native English-speaking students. The students first took an integrated reading-listening-writing test and followed by a strategy inventory on how they thought while completing the test. Twenty students, ten in the high-performance group and ten in the low-performance group, participated in a retrospective interview. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to identify the clusters of items based on three hypothetical factors: Rhetorical, Self-Regulatory, and Test-Wiseness Strategy Use. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was then utilized to test the hypothetical relations between observed and latent variables. Subsequently, structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to model the relationship between students’ self-reported strategy use and their test performance. The data collected from retrospective interviews, an open-ended questionnaire, and planning sheets were analyzed to triangulate quantitative results and provide supplementary information in interpreting the quantitative data. The study illuminates the nature of integrated writing strategy use, the nature of integrated writing performance, and the relationship between strategy use and performance on an integrated reading-listening-writing test. The results of the study have implications for second language writing assessment and instruction as well as theory in second language academic writing. / text

The purpose of this study was to explore elementary teachers' self-reporting of: a) work with a reading coach and b) attitudes, perceptions, and practices in teaching reading. The five point ratings and open-ended responses on the survey were the sources of data. Surveys were returned by 85% of teachers in five elementary schools in Collier County, Florida. Correlations of survey items were analyzed on the basis of the aggregated data and the following subgroups: certification, years of experience, school demographics, and grade levels. The survey in this study was excerpted and adapted from a survey, which was tested for validity and reliability, used with teachers in a research study, and published by the National Staff Development Council (NSDC) in Evaluating professional development: An approach to verifying program impact on teachers and students (Shaha, Lewis, O'Donnell, & Brown, 2004). Permission to use the survey was granted by Performance Learning Systems, Inc. and the National Staff Development Council (see Acknowledgements). The primary question for this study was: Are teachers' self-reports of their attitudes, perceptions, and instructional practices on the Reading Instruction Survey correlated with the amount of coaching they indicated they had received? Secondary questions pertained to how the results changed for the subgroups. The literature review contained information about resources and research in reading that led to the provision of reading coaches. High-stakes for the improvement of reading instruction from federal, state, and local levels provided a rationale for the study. The results of this study indicated that coaching made a difference for these teachers. The aggregated and disaggregated data revealed small to large, significant correlations to coaching. The items with the greatest number and magnitude of correlations to coaching were isolated skills instruction and intervention plans. The evidence of positive relationships of attitudes, perceptions, and practices to work with a coach is an important finding. The limited correlations of skilled, balanced, and integrated strategies led to questions about the content of the coaching. Further research is needed to determine whether the content of the professional development offered by coaches is comprehensive enough to impact reading proficiency levels of all students.

I denna studie undersöks ett läsprojekt som en svensk gymnasieskola genomfört. Under projektet har man arbetat med integrerat läsande som handlar om att inleda varje lektion, oavsett ämne, med en kort stund läsning av skönlitteratur i syfte att väcka läslust och förbättra elevernas läs- och språkförmåga. Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilket värde metoden integrerat läsande har för elevernas lärande och utveckling av språkliga och emotionella förmågor enligt de lärare som varit inblandade i projektet. Studien siktar in sig på lärarnas tankar och mål med integrerat läsande samt deras uppfattningar om vilka effekter det har på elever och den egna lärarrollen. Metoden och lärarnas åsikter diskuteras utifrån teorier om läsning och didaktisk forskning. Det svenska projektets utförande och effekterna av det jämförs även med ett liknande projekt som genomförts i USA. Metoden som används i studien kombinerar kvantitativa och kvalitativa element men med fokus på det kvalitativa. För insamling av empiri har en enkät använts som har besvarats av 12 lärare och den innehåller öppna frågor där respondenterna kan ge utförliga svar och skriva med egna ord. Detta gör att undersökningen å ena sidan blir av ett kvalitativt slag. Å andra sidan, kan en mer kvantitativt orienterad summering av lärarnas åsikter åstadkommas på detta sätt, vilket är relevant i en jämförelse av lärarnas uppfattningar om integrerat läsande. Studien visar på flera positiva effekter av integrerat läsande, bland annat har det skapat en gemenskap på skolan, det har haft en rogivande effekt på både lärare och elever, eleverna har blivit mer fokuserade och det har ökat intresset för läsning. Även det amerikanska projektet lyfter fram liknande positiva effekter. Lärarna lyfter förvisso även fram negativa effekter varav en är den tidsbrist och stress som uppstått till följd av integrerat läsande. Lärarna upplever att vissa elever blir stressade och att läsningen tar tid från den ordinarie undervisningen. Det finns mycket forskning som lyfter fram läsningens positiva effekter, så som förbättrad läsförståelse och språkförmåga, utveckling av empatiförmågan och dess roll i utvecklingen av goda samhällsmedborgare, vilket är aspekter de undersökta lärarna betraktar som syften med integrerat läsande. Teorier lyfter även fram viktiga faktorer för givande läsning så som att ge tid, stöd och relevant litteratur; faktorer som kan vägas in i det integrerade läsandet. I och med lärarnas rekommendationer och det stöd som går att finna i lästeorier drar denna studie slutsatsen att integrerat läsande kan vara en givande metod att arbeta med i skolan. / This study examines a reading project conducted by a Swedish high school. The project was about integrated reading which is starting each lesson, regardless of subject, with a short period of fiction reading. The purpose with integrated reading is to invoke the student’s interest in reading and improve the reading and language understanding. This study is intended to evaluate what impact integrated reading has on the students’ learning ability and how linguistic and emotional skills have improved according to teachers involved in the project. The study examines the thoughts and goals regarding integrated reading among the teachers and their opinions on how students as well as themselves as teachers have been affected by integrated reading. The method and the teachers are evaluated based on theories about reading and didactical research. How the Swedish project was conducted and its effects are compared with a similar project in the United States. The method used in this study is combining both quantative and qualitative elements but with focus on the qualative. A survey answered by 12 teachers has been used to collect empirical data. In this survey open ended questions have been used where the respondents can elaborate using their own words. This makes the survey qualitive in its approach. On the other hand, a quantative summary of the teacher response can also be made which is relevant when comparing the different teachers' view on integrated reading. The study shows several positive effects that integrated reading have had on sense of community in the school, a calming effect on both students and teachers, increased focus from the students and hightened interest of reading overall. Also the American project points on several different positive effects. On the other side the teachers also tells about negative effects like lack of time with stress that have followed from intergrated reading. The teachers feel that some students become stressed and that the reading takes time from the regular teaching. There are a lot of research showing positive effects on reading such as increased reading comprehension and language ability, development of empathic feelings and its role in developing good citizens. These are aspects that the answering teachers regard as purpose with deploying integrated reading. Theories point at important factors for fruitful and rewarding reading such as time, support and good litterature which can be incorporated in the integrated reading process. Given recommendations by the teachers and the support that can be found in theories about reading the conclusion of this summary is that integrated reading can be a rewarding method to use in schools.