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The APL (Module 1), previously submitted for examination, includes a contribution to the Scottish educational psychologists’ professional development programme, illustrating how particular instructional practices and approaches support the aims and objectives of the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence, by analysing how they exemplify models of learning compatible with the CfE philosophy. It also includes the evaluation of a comprehensive literacy programme and a number of evaluation studies of early literacy initiatives the author undertook within the local authority. Module 2, the literature review, explores and extends my understanding of early literacy development, and studies various influences and core skills underpinning it. I also discuss some models of reading development, with a particular focus on the development of early reading. I discuss how these relate to instructional and intervention practices, especially in relation to pupils with weak early skills. The main research focus of Modules 3 and 4 is an evaluation of the use and usefulness of developmentally based screening tools for early reading I had developed, the degree to which they help identify children with poor skills, and the degree to which and conditions within which they support the development of these skills. By using a retrospective approach to gathering test data and investigating test use I identified a number of implementation factors which it is important to identify in order to understand how to promote and embed consistent practice across schools within real-world settings. The limitations I discovered in the mixed results from test use alone and my subsequent exploration of whole school factors led me to a deeper understanding about the many influences and factors that come together to develop literacy in children. The conceptual model and assessment/planning tool I developed in Module 5 thus aims to bring these broader elements within an ecological framework that could be useful for assessment and planning for practitioners. Results of the small feedback study in this module suggest this model and assessment/planning framework would be welcomed by educational practitioners working not only with pupils with ASN, but with a broad range of pupils.

The present study is a novel investigation of neural mechanisms underlying reading development in bilingual children compared to monolinguals. We asked how do bilingual children learn to read when faced with phonological processing across two languages? Both behavioral measures and functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) were used to observe any similarities or differences in brain activity between bilingual and monolingual readers. The behavioral findings corroborate a bilingual reading advantage; bilinguals were faster and more accurate than monolinguals when reading words. fNIRS data showed bilinguals demonstrated greater activation in classic language areas as compared to monolinguals. Taken together, this research advances contemporary scientific controversy concerning types of processing underlying reading and its maturational development over time. Ultimately, this research may have translational significance in education to situate normative developmental reading milestones in bilingual children, which is vitally important in developing effective therapies for bilingual children at risk for reading disorders.

The present study is a novel investigation of neural mechanisms underlying reading development in bilingual children compared to monolinguals. We asked how do bilingual children learn to read when faced with phonological processing across two languages? Both behavioral measures and functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) were used to observe any similarities or differences in brain activity between bilingual and monolingual readers. The behavioral findings corroborate a bilingual reading advantage; bilinguals were faster and more accurate than monolinguals when reading words. fNIRS data showed bilinguals demonstrated greater activation in classic language areas as compared to monolinguals. Taken together, this research advances contemporary scientific controversy concerning types of processing underlying reading and its maturational development over time. Ultimately, this research may have translational significance in education to situate normative developmental reading milestones in bilingual children, which is vitally important in developing effective therapies for bilingual children at risk for reading disorders.

Little is known about writing development among English as a second language (ESL) and monolingual children. The “simple view of reading” (Gough & Tunmer, 1986; Juel 1988) and “component” models (Joshi & Aaron, 2000) were used as theoretical frameworks in this investigation of story writing development of ESL and monolingual children from grades 4 to 6. This longitudinal study (a) compared the narratives composed by ESLs and monolinguals and (b) examined the nature of the language, cognitive, and reading variables that predict writing in these groups. Reading and writing skills were conceptualized in terms of lower order, word-level components, and higher order, text-level components. The study involved 57 monolinguals and 121 ESLs from various language backgrounds, who had attended English speaking schools since grade 1. Based on the Test of Written Language (TOWL, Hammill & Larsen, 1996) three aspects of narrative writing were analyzed: writing mechanics, writing syntax, and overall story quality. Monolinguals and ESLs were similar on the cognitive, linguistic, word- and text-level reading and writing measures, but ESL performance was lower on vocabulary and reading comprehension across all three grades. Narrative writing in monolinguals and ESLs alike was predicted by syntactic skills, word-level skills (decoding and spelling) and text-comprehension. Nonverbal reasoning and phonological processing significantly predicted writing performance for monolinguals only. Overall, writing mechanics, writing syntax, and story quality all grew significantly across grades. However, only story quality demonstrated significantly different patterns of growth across students, but this difference was not explained by any of the predictors. Importantly, despite having weaker vocabulary and reading comprehension skills, ESLs’ narratives did not differ from monolinguals on mechanics, syntax, and overall story quality. The findings have implications for assessment and instruction of writing in both groups, provide additional evidence that reading comprehension and writing skills share common underlying processes, and suggest that skills that determine reading success can be used to flag possible writing weaknesses in both groups. Despite the effect of L2 status on vocabulary and reading comprehension, ESLs demonstrated similar narrative writing skills to monolingual peers.

Little is known about writing development among English as a second language (ESL) and monolingual children. The “simple view of reading” (Gough & Tunmer, 1986; Juel 1988) and “component” models (Joshi & Aaron, 2000) were used as theoretical frameworks in this investigation of story writing development of ESL and monolingual children from grades 4 to 6. This longitudinal study (a) compared the narratives composed by ESLs and monolinguals and (b) examined the nature of the language, cognitive, and reading variables that predict writing in these groups. Reading and writing skills were conceptualized in terms of lower order, word-level components, and higher order, text-level components. The study involved 57 monolinguals and 121 ESLs from various language backgrounds, who had attended English speaking schools since grade 1. Based on the Test of Written Language (TOWL, Hammill & Larsen, 1996) three aspects of narrative writing were analyzed: writing mechanics, writing syntax, and overall story quality. Monolinguals and ESLs were similar on the cognitive, linguistic, word- and text-level reading and writing measures, but ESL performance was lower on vocabulary and reading comprehension across all three grades. Narrative writing in monolinguals and ESLs alike was predicted by syntactic skills, word-level skills (decoding and spelling) and text-comprehension. Nonverbal reasoning and phonological processing significantly predicted writing performance for monolinguals only. Overall, writing mechanics, writing syntax, and story quality all grew significantly across grades. However, only story quality demonstrated significantly different patterns of growth across students, but this difference was not explained by any of the predictors. Importantly, despite having weaker vocabulary and reading comprehension skills, ESLs’ narratives did not differ from monolinguals on mechanics, syntax, and overall story quality. The findings have implications for assessment and instruction of writing in both groups, provide additional evidence that reading comprehension and writing skills share common underlying processes, and suggest that skills that determine reading success can be used to flag possible writing weaknesses in both groups. Despite the effect of L2 status on vocabulary and reading comprehension, ESLs demonstrated similar narrative writing skills to monolingual peers.

abstract: This longitudinal study examined the relations between self-regulation and reading achievement from kindergarten through second grade. In addition to the broader concept of effortful control, this study looked at various sub-components, including attention focusing and inhibitory control. A series of unconditional latent growth curve models were estimated to assess the initial level and growth of children’s parent- and teacher-reported effortful control and reading skills. In addition, parallel-process latent-growth curve models were estimated to examine the relations between the growth parameters (e.g., how the initial level and growth in self-regulation relates to the initial level and growth in reading). Parent-reported inhibitory control and effortful control displayed linear growth over this time period. Teacher-reported self-regulation did not change significantly. Reading achievement increased across all three time points, but the rate of growth was steeper from kindergarten through first grade than from first to second grade. Results from the parallel-process models showed that the kindergarten scores for parent-reported attention focusing and inhibitory control were negatively related to growth in Letter Word abilities from first through second grade, whereas initial teacher-reported attention focusing, inhibitory control, and effortful control were negatively related to growth in Passage Comprehension abilities from first to second grade. This study illustrates important relations between self-regulation and reading abilities throughout the first few years of elementary school. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Family and Human Development 2015

This study represents findings of a case study focused on the connections between balanced literacy and the reading development of African American students in first and second grade. Utilizing a conceptual framework of culturally relevant pedagogy, this study investigated: (a) the ways in which teachers understood and implemented balanced literacy; (b) the role culturally relevant pedagogy played in balanced literacy instruction; and (c) how teachers utilized balanced literacy to support the reading development of African American students. Data from multiple observations of instruction and interviews resulted in the identification of three factors that contributed to the implementation of balanced literacy and the reading development of African American students – a sense of community, emphasis on reading strategies to decipher unknown words, and assessment as a tool to guide instruction and gain a deeper understanding of students’ reading ability. The findings of this study build on current literature and also contribute to new knowledge of the factors that play a role in developing the reading abilities of African American children.

The purpose of this mixed-method study was to explore the instructional changes in first grade classrooms and reading progress of first grade students in relation to implementation of standards-based report cards (SBRC). The goal of this study, conducted in a suburban Texas school district, was to determine whether there was a statistically significant difference in reading progress between students enrolled in first grade classrooms in which traditional report cards were used in comparison to comparable classrooms in which SBRCs were used. Additionally, the instructional practices of teachers were examined to determine the types of changes that took place as the district moved from traditional report cards to SBRCs. A total of 709 students and 15 teachers were involved in the study. The study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between the reading growth of students assessed in SBRC classrooms and those assessed with traditional report cards. There were, however, significant differences in instructional practices employed by teachers in SBRC classrooms. These changes in practice included instructing with a greater degree of focus on specific objectives to be taught, more closely following the district’s scope and sequence, greater communication regarding the grading criteria and methods used for reporting progress, use of the most recent achievement data when determining grades (in comparison to averaging of grades during a reporting period), and a greater awareness of students’ specific abilities.