James V. Hoffman

Oral Reading in the School Literacy Curriculum.

The report of the U.S. National Reading Panel identified oral reading as a method for developing reading skills and improving achievement. The authors explore the role of oral reading in instructional practice, primarily among young children who struggle in reading. They examine current research and theory in oral reading, and comment on implications for classroom practice.

Teachers' preparation to teach reading and their experiences and practices in the first three years of teaching

The study reported in this article focused on the preparation of elementary preservice teachers to teach reading and on their first 3 years of teaching in schools. Graduates of 8 programs judged as “excellent” by an expert review panel participated in this study. The research was guided by 2 questions: (1) What effects do participation in and completion of an excellent reading teacher education program have on the experiences of teachers as they enter schools? and (2) How does teachers’ preparation relate to their teaching practices? We used quantitative and qualitative research methods to explore these questions. The research design was quasi‐experimental, with the teacher education program considered as the intervening variable. Comparison groups for graduates of the excellent programs included same‐school, highly experienced teachers as well as same‐school, same‐years experienced teachers. Data were collected over 3 years. Results suggested that participation in a high‐quality teacher preparation program had a positive influence on the transition of teachers entering the profession and on the adoption of effective teaching practices by these teachers. Graduates of the excellent programs were more effective than teachers in the comparison groups in creating and engaging their students with a high‐quality literacy environment.

Rethinking the Role of Oral Reading in Basal Instruction.

This article reports findings from a study of reading instruction in low-ability basal reading groups. Through this study a procedure for effective use of oral reading was developed and validated. The study was carried out as a co-operative effort between a university-based reading educator and a second-grade classroom teacher. The students participating in the study were members of the lowest reading group in this teachers second-grade class. The procedure used initially in the study was derived from a historical review of oral reading practices in basal instruction and the literature on effective use of oral reading in clinical settings. Various aspects of the procedure were modified and refined repeatedly over the course of the investigation. The procedure that finally emerged as a result of this process is one that provides an alternative to classroom teachers in terms of how to guide the reading of basal stories. Use of this procedure, in contrast to the practices recommended by basal publishers, insures a focus on comprehension and encourages the development of fluent, expressive reading. Implications of this research are drawn for classroom teachers, basal publishers, and researchers.

Guided Oral Reading and Miscue Focused Verbal Feedback in Second-Grade Classrooms.

THIS STUDY investigated the nature and effects of teacher-pupil interaction patterns surrounding reading miscues occurring during guided oral reading lessons. The subjects were 22 second grade teachers and the students assigned to either highest (N = 152) or lowest (N = 157) reading groups. Audio tapes of reading group lessons were collected biweekly over a 10 week period. Verbal interactions were coded using the FORMAS (Feedback to Oral Reading Analysis System) taxonomy. In addition to the interaction patterns, data were also collected on student reading achievement levels (PRE/ POST), reading rate and reading accuracy. The findings point toward important relationships between miscue related behaviors and teacher verbal feedback patterns. Further, relationships between growth in reading achievement and such factors as error rate in practice materials and verbal feedback patterns are suggested. These findings are discussed in terms of instructional routines for teachers and pupils which are adapted into as a means of maintaining activity flow and maximizing content coverage. Some instructional implications are drawn which suggest ways in which these routines-in particular those which appear detrimental to the less skilled reader-might be modified.

Text Leveling and Little Books in First-Grade Reading.

In this study, we investigated the reliability of two current approaches for estimating text difficulty at the firstgrade level: the Scale for Text Accessibility and Support (STAS-1) and the Fountas/Pinnell system. We analyzed the performance of 105 first-grade students in texts leveled using these systems in the areas of rate, accuracy, and fluency. Students read these texts under three support conditions: sight reading, read-aloud (modeled), and previewed. The predictive validity of the two rating scales was supported by the performance data. Statistically significant effects were found for the various support conditions. Further, our analysis suggests potential benchmarks for first-grade performance: 95% accuracy; 80 words per minute; and a fluency rating of 3 (on a 1–5 scale).

The Effective Elementary Classroom Literacy Environment: Examining the Validity of the TEX-IN3 Observation System

We report on the development and validation of the TEX-IN3, a research tool and protocol designed to assess the quality of the classroom literacy environment. The TEX-IN3 is described in terms of its theoretical base as well as its practical applications. The TEX-IN3 includes three basic components: a text inventory, a text “in-use” observation, and a series of text interviews. The validation of the TEX-IN3 is first reported in terms of its content, development, and focus. Next, a validation study examining the relationship between the TEX-IN3 and student growth in reading comprehension is described. The findings from this study offer support for all three components of the instrument as associated with student achievement growth.

Decodable Texts for Beginning Reading Instruction: The Year 2000 Basals.

This study focuses on the features of the first grade texts included in basal readers used for beginning reading instruction in Texas during the year 2000 adoption period. The authors investigated the general features of student texts with respect to the instructional design of the text, the accessibility of the text for beginning readers, and the engaging qualities of the texts. The features of these basal readers were then compared to the programs previously adopted in Texas (1987 and 1993 adoption periods). Using a variety of analyses, findings suggest that the mandate by the state of Texas to include more “decodable” texts did in fact, heavily influence the materials presented to beginning readers. In addition, there was an apparent lock of attention to other features that support beginning readers, specifically, predictability and the engaging qualities of the texts. The findings suggest that policy mandates have a direct influence on the content and nature of reading programs placed in the hands of teachers and students.

Reading Assessments in Kindergarten through Third Grade: Findings from the Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement

Assessment of early reading development is important for all stakeholders. It can identify children who need special instruction and provide useful information to parents as well as summative accounts of early achievement in schools. Researchers at the Center for Improvement of Early Reading Achievement (CIERA) investigated early reading assessment in a variety of studies that employed diverse methods. One group of studies used survey methods to determine the kinds of assessments available to teachers and the teachers’ reactions to the assessments. A second group of studies focused on teachers’ use of informal reading inventories for formative and summative purposes. In a third group of studies, researchers designed innovative assessments of children’s early reading, including narrative comprehension, adult‐child interactive reading, the classroom environment, and instructional texts. The CIERA studies provide useful information about current reading assessments and identify promising new directions.

A Study of State-Mandated Beginning Teacher Programs.

Hoffman and his colleagues report the findings from a large scale investigation of two state-mandated beginning teacher programs. The primary goal of their research was to documentthe ways in which beginning teacher programs af fect the transition from student of teach ing to regular classroom teacher. Exten sive data were collected on 16 first year teachers in two states. Data analyses fo cused on the areas of program imple mentation and program effects. The findings are discussed in terms of the research literature on teacher induction and vis-a-vis trends in state policies for teacher certification.

Engaging the new basal readers

Abstract This article describes ratings and ranking by both researchers and children of the new and old basal text series and then describes categories of students’ responses to the texts. Using the perspective of engagement, the authors found that the 1993 basal reading series received higher ratings than thel986/87 series on scales measuring holistic qualities, content, language, and design. When kindergarten, first, and second graders ranked twenty of the basal stories, their rankings agreed with the researchers’ in seven of the ten pairings. Categories of students’ responses validated the researchers’ categories of content, language, and design and also extended into familiarity, personal experience, and realism. The findings identify some engaging qualities of text and extend previous research which was often limited to readability.