Basal Reading Research Paper

Basal readers approach was designed during the 19th century, it emphasize phonics and contains stories with controlled vocabulary. They are grade leveled series of textbooks produced by an educational publisher which focus on teaching reading either by a code-emphasis approach or a meaning-emphasis approach. These types of series will often have accompanying spelling programs, flash cards and sentence strips to go with them. Over the past decade and a half, many teachers have moved away from using basal readers. Teachers used guided reading as its core and incorporating all types of books to include language in lessons throughout the curriculum. Basal reading programs do have some advantages over other programs, with the advantages there also

They believed that there were also boundaries to the program, such as readability of the text, the stories often seemed vary widely in grade level within a reader. The students had tended to be placed into reading levels in which were either too difficult or too easy for them. In 1986, an estimated 98% of teachers in the United States used a basal series (Flood & Lapp, 1986). It was than revealed that many teachers began to use the program as a source, instead of a guide towards their teaching. Often, teachers are required by the state, district, or county to utilize a particular basal reader series, with standardized tests assessing the skills incorporated therein. In addition, teachers may feel that skills instruction is too important to be left untaught. Furthermore, teachers may have neither the time nor the expertise to develop a curriculum of lessons and activities for use with trade books, which is why the basal approach is a positive use towards new

In this approach there are well organized instruction of skills or strategies supplements, rather than precedes, the acquisition of reading or writing skills within the context of children's literature (Walmsley & Walp, 1990). By teachers integrating reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills to children's literature, the teacher can establish meaningful relationships between concepts and be able to increase the way students developmental on making meaning. Basal readers, language textbooks, worksheets and teachers' manuals contain the curriculum and lessons are sequenced. Each lesson is developed towards a specific skill; the teacher transmits information, with children assuming a reflexive role in their learning. Reading and the language arts are also taught but separately from other content areas. Children are also being assessed by objective measurements, such as standardized and teacher made