The gap in reading achievement continues to be consistent, despite No Child Left Behind goals to narrow these gaps among minority and other subgroup populations. This gap is especially profound for students with disabilities, and any evidence to support progress monitoring of oral reading fluency (ORF) and comprehension will inform educational policy and practice. The theory of automaticity explains that a reader can focus more attention on the meaning of a reading passage when less attention is needed for word and sound recognition. The literature has suggested that reading comprehension can be improved through efforts to improve ORF. The central purpose of this quantitative, correlation study was to determine the relationship between gains in ORF and gains in reading comprehension of both informational and literary texts among 46 students in Grades 3 through 6 with reading difficulties and specific learning disabilities in a rural southern U.S. school district. A second purpose was to determine whether repeated readings or cold reads is the better predictor of reading comprehension. Gains in ORF rates over a 10-week period, determined by the difference in pre- and postmeasurements on two curriculum-based measures of ORF, were regressed on reading comprehension scores on the Measures of Academic Procedures test. There was not a statistically significant relationship between ORF and reading comprehension gains, and neither repeated readings nor cold reads was statistically a better predictor of reading gains. The findings offer several suggestions for the continuation of support for students who struggle with the reading process. Implications for social change included improved reading levels for those with reading and other specific learning disabilities.

English language learners (ELLs) spend a majority of their instructional time in mainstream classrooms with mainstream teachers. Reading is an area with which many ELLs are challenged when placed within mainstream classrooms. Scaffolding has been identified as one of the best teaching practices for helping students read. ELL students in a local elementary school were struggling, and school personnel implemented scaffolding in an effort to address student needs. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine how personnel in one diversely populated school employed scaffolding to accommodate ELLs. Vygotsky's social constructivist theory informed the study. Research questions were designed to elicit the teachers' perceptions related to the use of scaffolding for ELLs and to examine the impact scaffolding had on ELLs reading performance. The perceptions of 14 out of 15 participating teachers were investigated via focus group interviews that were transcribed. Observation data were gathered to determine teachers' use of particular strategies. Hatch's method for coding and categorical analysis was used. Emerging themes included background knowledge, comprehension and evaluation. Participating teachers felt scaffolding strategies were crucial for building a solid foundation for ELL academic success. Pre and posttest scores in reading of 105 ELLs were analyzed using a paired samples t test. There were statistically significant gains in 13 of 15 performance indicators over the 3-month cycle of instruction. Implications for social change include strategies for classroom teachers and their administrators concerning scaffolding reading instruction with ELLs in order to help these students increase their reading performance levels.

Writing is an essential skill that students need in order to become successful in school and beyond. Within a school district in the southwestern United States, student writing scores were not at proficient levels, and students were not prepared for graduation or employment. The purpose of this quasi-experimental research study was to compare the distribution of student writing achievement scores for 5th grade teachers who used 7 or more of the 11 components of effective writing instruction outlined by Graham and Perin to those teachers who implemented 6 or fewer of these components. In this study, a survey was given to 35 teachers from the lowest and highest performing schools in each performance zone or geographic cluster of schools across the school district, to discover how many of the components from Graham and Perin's model were used. The results of this project study were insignificant and indicated that the number and frequency of strategies were not related to student proficiency as measured by the state's writing proficiency exam. Results from this study will be shared with district leaders in a white paper report. The report includes recommendations to create a district-based writing framework with research-based instructional strategies. Although the results from this study were insignificant, the results have added to the body of knowledge in writing instruction. The white paper report can be used as a foundation for teachers, principals, and curriculum developers to improve writing instruction and achievement in this and other school districts.

There is a pervasive reading crisis in the United States. Critics, including policymakers, educators, literacy scholars, and professional educational organizations have openly accused university teacher preparation programs of not preparing candidates to deliver effective reading instruction. This qualitative study used narrative inquiry to explore ways in which teacher candidates' participation in a research-based university clinical practicum contributed to their pedagogical understanding of literacy instruction. Conceptually this study was based on constructivism and the ideas of Dewey, Freire, Vygotsky, and Schon. Data collection included multiple interviews and observations to determine how teacher candidates' participation in clinical practicum affects their assumptions about literacy instruction. Interpretive initially emanated from inductive analysis involving a typological framework, and proceeded to an in-depth level of interpretation and data transformation and member-checking to verify participants' evolving stories. Results of the study indicated that the clinical experience imbued teacher candidates with the confidence, skills, and knowledge to affect the literate lives of all children. Further, interpretation of findings revealed that teaching a child to read gave preservice teachers opportunities to explore multiple teaching approaches for ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse learners, while working through paradigmatic barriers and preconceived beliefs. Ultimately, this study helped the teacher candidate realize that the work of an emissary for social change begins with a commitment to increase the quality of life for the children they teach through masterful and responsive teaching.

School districts struggle to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in reading in first grade. Nine percent of first grade students at the study site were not meeting state performance standards in the area of language arts. Specifically in the area of fluency, 38% of first grade students were not achieving AYP. Because of the close connection between oral fluency and early reading achievement, first grade students need to be more fluent to attain state standards. Based on LaBerge and Samuels theory of automaticity within reading fluency, the purpose of this study was to identify the impact of the Scholastic Guided Reading Program and Harcourt Trophies basal reading program on students reading fluency, as measured by the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills Oral Reading Fluency (DIBELS). Over eight months, the fluency levels of 129 first grade students were assessed three times. Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a significant increase in the DIBELS gain scores between the pretest Fall Y2 Word Fluency (WF) scores in relation to the posttest Winter Y2 Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) scores for those students who received Scholastic Guided Reading instruction. Students who received Harcourt basal reading instruction gain scores showed a slight regression in fluency between the pretest Fall Y2 WF and the posttest Winter Y2 ORF. These results suggest that individual leveled reading instruction increases students' fluency skills. Improving reading fluency early is essential; students who become proficient readers have the ability to contribute and participatee in all areas of societal change.

Middle-school male students currently face a disadvantage in reading comprehension compared to female students. Research suggests the problem is that more male students score below grade level in reading comprehension because they require more cognitive scaffolding. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of text-to-self reading instruction and to compare the comprehension achievement of male and female students in 6th-grade reading and language-arts classes using guided reading of text-to-self instruction and guided reading using novels. The foundation of this study was based on constructivist theories including Dewey's pragmatist philosophy, Piaget's developmental theory, and Vygotsky's theory of zone of proximal development. Research questions focused on differences in reading comprehension scores between male and female students, using guided reading with text-to-self reading connections, and using guided reading using novels. The study involved a quantitative methodology using a pretest--posttest, quasiexperimental design. Two-way factorial analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to compute the differences between the means of the experimental and control group students. The 2 independent variables were reading strategies and gender. The dependent variable was the 6th-grade WESTEST reading scores (converted to z--scores), and the covariate was the 5th-grade WESTEST reading scores (also converted to z-scores). Results indicated that 6th-grade male and female students in the text-to-self reading program had higher levels of reading comprehension, however only the females' gains were statistically significant suggesting that the problem of male literacy achievement is multifaceted. This study offers implications for positive social change by offering 1 strategy for parents, teachers, and policymakers to cognitively scaffold student reading comprehension while also offering a step toward better understanding male literacy underachievement.

With the demands of the No Child Left Behind legislation to utilize research-based instructional practices and teach all children to read by the end of third grade, teachers find themselves going beyond teachers' editions and curriculum guides to the research on best reading practices. The purpose of this quantitative nonexperimental cross-sectional correlational study was to examine the strength and direction of the relationship between motivation to read, oral reading fluency, and demographics for third-grade elementary students (N=112). An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to quantitatively analyze archival data to assess the relationship between motivation to read, oral reading fluency, and demographics. Motivation to read, which was reported as MRP scores, includes the dimensions of self-concept as a reader and value of reading, and was measured using the Motivation to Read Profile (MRP) Reading Survey. Oral reading fluency, which was reported as Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) rates, was measured using the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS). Results showed a significant relationship between motivation to read, oral reading fluency, and demographics for all three dimensions of motivation. Findings from the study may contribute to social change by influencing educators' uses of oral reading fluency data and interventions that employ improving motivation to read in an attempt to improve reading achievement for third-grade elementary students. Suggestions for further research include examining the relationship between motivation to read and oral reading fluency.

Despite the current emphasis on differentiating instruction to accommodate individual student learning needs, most reading instruction is taught primarily in static small groups or whole group settings. However, the use of flexible reading groups for reading instruction allows students to be appropriately challenged and avoids labeling a student's reading readiness as stagnant. This study examines the relationship between flexible reading groups and reading achievement of 130 fifth grade students in one elementary school. The theoretical base for the research is grounded in the constructivist theory as supported by Vygotsky and Bruner. In this quasi-experimental quantitative research study, the effect of flexible reading groups on reading achievement was examined using a within-subject pretest and posttest single group design to compare gain scores using the Standardized Test of Achievement in Reading. The scores compared an eight week period of whole group instruction to an eight week period of flexible group instruction on the reading assessment. Data from the gain scores of the groups were statistically analyzed using a paired samples t test to determine whether or not the flexible reading groups had a positive effect on reading achievement. Statistical analysis yielded a statistically significant difference t(129) = 3.82, p < .05 which was interpreted to mean that flexible reading groups significantly enhanced student learning. This study will contribute to the most recent research on flexible grouping and reading instruction by focusing on the implementation of flexible reading groups and establishing data to support the research on flexible group instruction. This study contributes to social change by providing educators with knowledge on differentiated instruction through the implementation of flexible groups as it relates to reading achievement.

Effective teaching strategies that improve the development of phonemic awareness are important to ensure students are fluent readers by third grade. The use of handheld devices to improve phonemic awareness with kindergarten students may be such a strategy, but no research exists that evaluates the use of these devices. This study explored the effectiveness of Bee-Bot handheld devices in kindergarten classrooms to teach phonemic awareness. A 4-month sequential mixed-methods study was conducted in four classrooms: two that used Bee-Bot handheld devices in phonemic awareness lessons and two that never used the devices. The score gain (Fall 2009 to Winter 2010) for initial sound fluency (ISF) on the DIBELS assessment was analyzed for between-group effects using ANCOVA, controlling for Fall 2009 letter naming fluency (LNF) scores. No significant difference was found between ISF scores of students using the Bee-Bots and those not using them. Interviews of the 4 classroom teachers determined their perceptions of the ways handheld devices supported phonemic awareness. Interviews were coded for (a) assessments, (b) engagement, (c) strategies, (d) social growth and (e) technology standards. Teachers reported that students using Bee-Bot handheld devices remained on task longer, increased motivation, developed leadership skills, and students enjoyed learning with the devices. Findings suggest that handheld devices used to enhance phonemic awareness in kindergarten may offer an engaging way to enhance social skills while providing technology integration. This study contributes to social change by improving teacher knowledge of technology-assisted strategies for social and literacy skills among less advantaged populations.

Previous research has shown that because remediation and support replace required and career-defining courses, exceptional students fall behind, ill equipped to act in society as autonomous adults. No Child Left Behind requires reading proficiency, so students failing standardized tests must take remedial courses. Individualized education plans often require support courses. However, there remains an important gap in the literature regarding the usefulness of reading, standardized testing, and leadership research to solve this problem. A class combining reading and support for students with exceptionalities exists at 1 high school. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the combined program to determine whether a specific program intended to meet federal and state performance-based standards affected test scores. This study used a single-group pretest-posttest design to analyze the 2007 and 2008 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test Reading scale scores of 25 of the 30 students with exceptionalities enrolled in the combined course to determine whether a significant difference existed between these test scores. The paired-sample t test identified a significant difference between pretest and posttest scores, supporting the hypothesis that combining remediation and support increases progress. This study would be an important contribution to the existing literature by providing a viable solution to this problem by offering more opportunities for exceptional students to enroll in courses available to their mainstream peers. It also would enhance social change initiatives by facilitating the graduation and entry into productive adulthood of students with exceptionalities, allowing them to define career interests and remediate deficiencies simultaneously.