Chapter II Review of the Literature Introduction It is a “reading world” we live in and students should be guaranteed every opportunity to succeed in this information driven society. Children today are overwhelmed with more reading material than ever before on billboard, television, the Internet and at school, causing reading to become a relevant and essential need in the life of every child (Lumpkin 1972). Being able to read has become the core of our information driven society. Yet, reading difficulties continue to plague the foundation of our education system creating a problem that only seems to be escalating. Hasselbring affirms that reading difficulties are a serious concern to our nation’s students claiming that, “as many as 20 percent of 17 year olds... [are] functionally illiterate and 44 percent of all high school students…[are] described as semi-illiterate”(2004). This is a harsh reality to face – a reality that stems from difficulties developed at the elementary level where reading complications arise and usually go unchecked. These reading difficulties are carri...
Gomez, L. M., & Gomez, K. (2007). Reading for learning: Literacy supports for 21st-century work. Phi
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you'll go.” This quote by Dr. Seuss explains the importance of reading. Knowing how to read is very important to be successful in life. In 2009,a nationwide study by the National Center for Educational Statistics recorded that sixty-seven percent of 4th grade students, seventy-five percent of 8th grade students, and seventy-four percent of 12th grade students were not reading at a proficient level. This will cause many problems as the child progresses through life and later on to adulthood. According to the National assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), forty-three percent read at the lowest 2 literacy level ("Who Needs Phonics"). They will not be able to apply to jobs, stigmatized in society, and may result in their children being illiterate also. In order to decrease the alarming rate of seven million illiterate children and give them a chance to have a better life is by integrating a method to teach them how to read better.
The recent statistics that the education system could be producing high school graduates who are functionally illiterate is very worrying. Researchers interested in investigating whether the high school education system is producing illiterate graduates investigate the issue by exploring three types of illiteracies; functional, cultural and moral literacy. The most disturbing news is that the level of functional literacy among high school graduates is wanting. Functional literacy “is the inability to read or write well enough to accomplish everyday tasks in modern society” (Sweet Par. 2). According to Lederman, 14 percent of American adults are “functionally illiterate’’. In addition, 29 percent of American adults just have literacy level of a fifth to seventh grade graduate, while 25 percent of high school graduates just have an eighth grade level or below (Lederman par.2-4). From the above information, it is unfortunate that a huge number of students graduate from graduate from high school successfully regardless of the alarming level of functional illiteracy. Fundamentally, something need to be done to reduce the high number of illiterateness among high school graduate, by considering the factors behind the reality that some high school students graduate from high school without adequate reading skills. Reading John Corcoran book “The Teacher Who Couldn’t Read” shows that there is hope for improving the situation but the fundamental step is to identify the reasons why and how functionally illiterate students are allowed to advance to the next grade. This research paper discusses three factors, social promotion, the use of movies instead of book assignments, and cheating in academic tasks.
As the human race continues to become progressively more intelligent, countries are becoming more and more competitive in a “race to the top.” Our society, and others alike, have placed increasing demands on citizens in an effort to ensure they go on to be productive, intelligent contributors. While this is a natural progression of the human race, those who were previously struggling to succeed are now fighting to close an even larger gap. When it comes to education, this is a clear and present concern for many educators and students. Teachers are being held accountable for raising the bar and ensuring that each student performs successfully, in accordance with the national (Common Core) standards. A big concern regarding these increasing demands of an every changing society, are students who are already struggling to succeed, such as those with learning disabilities. One of the primary targets of the Common Core is reading, as reading ability is considered to strongly predict whether or not a student goes on to be successful in the education system and in society. In order to service these children, educators have experimented with many research-based interventions in an effort to get struggling students up to grade level and prevent them from being taken out of the general education classroom. The following articles discuss various aspects of a popular research-based intervention, Fountas and Pinnell, and how this interventions benefit students with learning disabilities, specifically in the area of reading comprehension.
Illiteracy in America is still growing at an alarming rate and that fact has not changed much since Rudolf Flesch wrote his best-selling expose of reading instruction
...ed by most, and how dyslexia can cause problems with reading comprehension. It also discussed ways that we can mitigate these problems for dyslexic people, but these skills can and should be used by all learners. Reading comprehension is a perishable skill, one that if you don’t work on increasing your reading ability by building your vocabulary, learn to read effectively, or using the correct reading strategies for the type of reading material being studied will diminish. Even with the largest vocabulary, if the words are not understood literacy cannot be achieved. Literacy is the key to comprehensive reading. It also gave some of the tools for reading and understanding different types of literature and how to get the important information out of each one. Edmund Burk said “To read without reflecting is like eating without digesting” (Gallagher, 2003, p. 11).
“Learning to read can be a joyful and natural process” (Holdaway). Mastering literacy skills from an early age is associated with a successful academic career. Achieving familiarity with early literacy skills for children has risen as a controversial topic; if children do not gain these skills from the beginning of their academic development, they tend to have a more difficult time advancing to higher grade levels. Understanding simple reading concepts from an early age will allow young children to successfully master literacy skills. This way, these proactive students will not encounter difficult endeavors along the path to success. While it is important for early literacy learners to be challenged, it is equally important for them to learn reading skills that will allow smooth transitions throughout each school year. Preparing for the future is critical, and young students should start developing these skills as early as possible. Encouraging children to read will help them gain the motivation they need to continue learning throughout the years, especially as reading material becomes more difficult. The initial knowledge that children learn serves as a strong foundation for the learning abilities for their future. In order for children and toddlers to understand the importance of literacy skills from an early age, parents must enroll their children in classes that pay special attention to reading skills to better prepare them for their educational careers in the future.
Imagine waking up every morning dreading going to school and doing homework. No, it is not just because they are teenagers. This is the frustration thousands of high school students face daily because of the inability to understand words. Many high school students are affected by the significant problem of reading learning disabilities; therefore, in order to effectively address this issue, the nature and level of each student’s needs must be evaluated. Upon researching the wide range of strategies and interventions used in education for such students, it is apparent that the educator who applies the strategy is more important than the choice of which strategy is chosen.
Assessments and analyzing students’ literacy levels is continuous through the entirety of the school year. Teachers use many different assessments to guide planning and students to academic success. AIMS web is one assessment used frequently by teachers at Skyline. Students are assessed at the beginning of the year (fall), winter, and spring. Students are also take the STAR reading test to asses students’ comprehension ability. The data collected is used to create groups and identify where students are preforming at. Students who are struggling and need progress monitoring are monitored every two weeks. Students read a different story that is the same level as the previously read. Teachers then track students’ progress and hopes of closing
Practical adolescent literacy or remedial reading programs should use technology as an instructional tool (Sternberg, Borck, & Kaplan, 2007). When technology is used as an instrument, it can foster proper support for struggling readers (Silver-Pacuilla, & Fleischman, 2006). Struggling or remedial readers need instructional reinforcement and guided practice opportunities to enhance their comprehension skills (Lee, & Spratley, 2010). There are instructional technology reading programs that help remedial/struggling students improve decoding, spelling, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension deficiencies (Coyne, Kame’enui, & Carnine,
According to a research paper prepared by Taylor, Short, Frye, and Scherer (1992), there is a high probability that a student who is low in reading at the end of first grade will stay a disabled reader for quite some time. They also state that research has shown that the best way to break this lack of reading growth is to provide intervention/ remediation for these students as soon as possible. Borg, Gall, and Gall (1993), also support this claim. Based on several studies children who were poor readers at the first grade remained poor readers through fourth grades.
Teachers exerted all efforts in their desire to help their pupils read and comprehend. However, many just cope and could hardly decode the printed words. Thus, this inability to read becomes one of the major causes of failure among them which leads to other problems that are either behavioural or personal in nature.
.... (Elley, p.228) To solve the problem of illiteracy in the U.S. and the world will take time and a better understanding of the many causes that create our society of readers. "The value of literacy for achieving fulfilling, productive, expanding and participating lives of freedom in modern societies is undoubted, and unquestioned. At the same time, however, literacy does not seem to be well understood." &endash;H. Graff (Ed.). (1981). Literacy and social development in the west: A reader.
According to Burns, Roe and Smith (2002) “Reading is a combination of many skills leading to the construction of meaning, through integrating prior knowledge with information presented in the text.” The aim of reading is to communicate thoughts and ideas through written language. Over the years The Ministry of Education in Jamaica, educators, parents, and politicians continue to express concern over the low literacy rates demonstrated by schools especially at the grade four level where they sit the Grade Four Literacy Test. Although researchers pursue the root of reading disabilities and effective reading methods, concern is still expressed by teachers that many students cannot read at their instructional grade level. Several reading interventions and methods for remediation have been designed and implemented to increase reading fluency. As a result of these interventions, some students who struggle to
They do not possess adequate reading skills to grasp the information or the meaning underlying in the text. For instance, the United States of America, which is one of the developed countries in the world, grapples to cope with this problem. According to the U.S Department of Education, thirty-million Americans are considered illiterate and are unable to complete job applications or understand health care forms. The literacy rates among fourth grade students in America are struggling. Sixty-six percent (66%) of all U.S fourth graders scored “below proficient” on the 2013 National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) reading test are not reading at grade level. Even more alarming is the fact that among students from low-income backgrounds, 80 percent (80%) scored below grade level in reading. Reading proficiency among middle school students is not much better. On the 2013 NAEP reading test, about 22 percent (22%) of eighth graders scored below the “basic level”, and only 36 percent of eighth graders were at or above grade level. Accordingly, over 60 percent (60%) of inmates in the U.S prison system have reading skills at or below the fourth grade level; 85 percent of U.S juveniles in prison are functionally illiterate; percent set of adults with extremely low reading skills live at or below the poverty line; nearly two-thirds of students who reach the