Jill Fitzgerald

Enhancing Children's Reading Comprehension through Instruction in Narrative Structure

Twenty average and below average fourth grade readers identified as lacking a keen sense of narrative structure were randomly assigned to one of two treatments: special instruction designed to develop knowledge of story structure or instruction in dictionary usage and word study. There were two phases of instruction, a short-term intensive phase and a long-term intermittent phase. The instruction in narrative structure did enhance story structure knowledge and had a strong positive effect on reading comprehension when compared to the dictionary usage and word study group. The effects were realized by the end of phase one; they were maintained during phase two, but the group differences did not increase over time.

English-as-a-Second-Language Reading Instruction in the United States: A Research Review

The purpose of this review is to characterize research and portray findings on English-as-a-second-language (ESL) reading instruction in the United States. The spectrum of research on ESL reading instruction in the United States might best be characterized as having considerable breadth, but little depth. However, some tentative themes emerged. Among the most important statements that could be made were the following. First, some broad classroom parameters were discerned: Students may work mainly in small groups, stressing word recognition and oral reading; typical instructional discourse patterns may be incompatible with common home-discourse patterns; and teachers may work with lower ESL groups in different ways and stress lower level skills even more as compared to higher ESL groups. Second, research contributed little clarification on issues surrounding the role and timing of native-language reading instruction and ESL reading instruction for ESL reading achievement. Third, instruction targeting specific student knowledge, such as vocabulary knowledge, background knowledge, and text-structure knowledge, was generally effective. Fourth, there was a paucity of information about important issues related to ESL reading in teacher materials.

Dialogic Discussion and the Paideia Seminar

Discussion is currently at the center of educators’ attention, and Paideia Seminars are discussions that increasingly are being advocated. In particular, Paideia Seminars embody dialogic discussion. However, little is known about the extent to which principles of dialogic discussion are manifested in classrooms during the enactment of the seminars. The main purpose of this case study was to examine types of discussion in Paideia Seminars. Data were collected through observations, questionnaires, and interviews. “Grand case analysis,” “micro-examination” of the seminar discussions, and “narrative research” analyses were done. The overarching conclusion of the study was that the observed discussions reflected the teacher’s transitional status in conducting dialogic discussion, with some features of “ideal” Paideia Seminar dialogue represented and some features of “teacher-fronted” discussion represented.

Balance in the Making: Learning To Read in an Ethnically Diverse First-Grade Classroom.

The study explored what diverse 1st-grade children can learn about reading within a year-long balanced approach to emergent reading instruction. The study took place in a 1st-grade classroom where one of the coauthors was the teacher, and there were 20 children from diverse ethnic and linguistic backgrounds. A researcher participant observer visited the classroom. Data were analyzed using the constant-comparison method. Conclusions were that, first, the children were constructing a balanced view of reading: (a) They began to learn about local knowledge about reading, (b) they began to construct global knowledge about reading, (c) they developed a desire to read and a responsive stance to reading, and (d) significant generative moments signaled the childrens movement toward more mature reading abilities. Second, a balanced program can be used successfully in a diverse 1st-grade classroom.

The Common Core State Standards’ Quantitative Text Complexity Trajectory Figuring Out How Much Complexity Is Enough

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) set a controversial aspirational, quantitative trajectory for text complexity exposure for readers throughout the grades, aiming for all high school graduates to be able to independently read complex college and workplace texts. However, the trajectory standard is presented without reference to how the grade-by-grade complexity ranges were determined or rationalized, and little guidance is provided for educators to know how to apply the flexible quantitative text exposure standard in their local contexts. We extend and elaborate the CCSS presentation and discussion, proposing that decisions about shifting quantitative text complexity levels in schools requires more than implementation of a single, static standard. A rigorous two-part analytical strategy for decision making surrounding the quantitative trajectory standard is proposed, a strategy that can be used by state policy makers, district officials, and educators in general. First, borrowing methods from student growth modeling, we illustrate an analytical method for creation of multiple trajectories that can lead to the CCSS end-of-high-school target for text complexity exposure, resulting in trajectories that place greater burden for shifting text complexity levels on students in different grades. Second, we submit that knowledge of the multiple possibilities, in conjunction with a set of guiding principles for decision making, can support educators and policy makers in critiquing and using the CCSS quantitative standard for text complexity exposure to establish particular expectations for quantitative text complexity exposure for particular students in situ.

VALIDITY AND STRUCTURE, COHERENCE, AND QUALITY MEASURES IN WRITING

The purpose of the present study was to investigate convergent and divergent validity of inferences from selected measures of struture, coherence, and quality for compositions. Thirty sixth-graders wrote two stories each. Each story was scored six times, for each of three constructs (structure, coherence, and quality), using two ways of measuring (reader- and text-based). Patterns in correlation matrices were examined for the extent to which they conformed to expectations which would support convergent and divergent validity. The major conclusions of the study were: (a) Overall, the findings strongly supported validity of inferences from the structure measures, called into serious question the validity of inferences from the coherence measures, and weakly supported it for inferences from the quality measures; (b) some evidence was provided for the distinctiveness of the three constructs, structure, coherence, and quality; and (c) some method/halo bias emerged in the reader-based method of assessment.

How Will Bilingual/ESL Programs in Literacy Change in the Next Millennium?

Several literacy researchers share their thoughts about bilingual education and English language learning in the context of demographic shifts anticipated in the current millennium.

EVALUATION OF HOME LITERACY ENVIRONMENT: AN ILLUSTRATION WITH PRESCHOOL CHILDREN WITH DOWN SYNDROME

We show how a microexploration can be used to evaluate the home literacy (reading and writing) environment of preschool children with disabilities. In addition, we offer an initial descriptive informational base about home literacy for preschoolers with Down syndrome that is based on the findings of the microexploration. The goal of the microexploration was to describe the extent and nature of literacy artifacts, references, and events in the homes of 3 preschool children with Down syndrome. A trained observer visited the childrens homes, completed checklists of literacy artifacts, tape‐recorded everything that occurred indoors, and took fieldnotes. Analyses were done from three perspectives: (a) From transcripts of the tape recordings, verbalizations were coded into categories of literacy references and events, as well as other categories, (b) Patterns were derived from the transcripts and fieldnotes. (c) Storybook sharings were analyzed for a variety of story‐meaning‐related and other types of talk. On...

Student Reading Growth Illuminates the Common Core Text-Complexity Standard

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) establish a challenging text-complexity standard for all high school graduates to read at college and workplace text-complexity levels. We argue that implementation of the CCSS standard requires concurrent examination of historical student reading-growth trends. An example of a historical student average reading-growth curve is presented, along with growth curves for quartile subgroups. Next, a strategy is illustrated for exploring potential alternate student reading paths if students are to attain the CCSS goal. Finally, implications derived from the student growth illustrations are discussed in relation to the Common Core text-complexity standard and its implementation.

Helping parents to read expository literature to their children: Promoting main‐idea and detail understanding

Abstract Two studies were done to explore whether either of two sorts of individual work with parents in reading expository texts to their third‐grade children would help their childrens understanding of new texts. In Study 1, parents were specifically shown how to pinpoint main ideas and details. In Study 2, parents were shown a simple “read and recall” approach in which main ideas and details were not specifically pinpointed. A single‐case multiple‐probe design was used for each of the two studies. On the whole, the work with parents which specified how to highlight main ideas and details had moderately positive effects on childrens main‐idea and detail understanding of previously unread texts. The nonspecific work with parents had no similar effects.