Using the BEAR assessment system, the author set up a hypothetical reading competence (RC) developmental continuum and sketched the RC assessment standards, established RC measurement tasks, and described outputs. The author collected real RC evidence based on the cross-sectional study models, then adjusted the developmental continuum and RC…

There is confusion among teachers in a school district in a southeastern state about the instructional use of the state-mandated Dominie assessment for word-level reading and phonemic awareness skills for kindergarten and first-grade students. Recent assessment data indicated that 20% of students tested in kindergarten and first grade needed…

Reading ability is one of the most crucial skills learned in elementary school, a primary focus for students in these years. Around the third grade, though, students start transitioning to a skill they will need the rest of their academic and work career--reading to learn. Students begin demonstrating their learning by taking high-stakes…

Tens of thousands of students begin each new school year with the hope that they will finally find "the" teacher who will help them succeed as readers, writers, and learners. This book shows how teachers can provide the type of differentiated instruction that struggling readers need by drawing on students' individual and cultural backgrounds, as…

The purpose of this case study is to document the ways in which fifth-grade students in a historically, low-performing school learned to write from a teacher who did not emphasize test-taking processes. The study demonstrates how these instructional practices in a writing workshop context positively affected the student performance on a statewide…

The purpose of this case study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of one class of sixth grade middle students enrolled in a Title I reading class. The class consisted of 15 students. Through instrumental case study, qualitative data were collected over 24 weeks through (a) interviews, (b) observations, and (c) documents: student…

Teacher knowledge is important because it is related to student outcomes. The researchers of this article wanted to answer the following questions: (1) How do classroom teachers describe the reading cueing systems? (2) How do classroom teachers analyze running record information? and (3) How do classroom teachers implement classroom reading…

This pilot study describes elementary teachers' use of collaborative inquiry as a strategy for assessing Response to Instruction and Intervention (RtI [superscript 2]) in reading for an English Learner student. The design of the study was based on the sociocultural theory that assessment practices shape teachers' understanding of students and of…

Presents an approach to evaluation of reading instruction called CIPP (context, input, process, product), including: methods for discovering the needs of each student, getting input from students and colleagues concerning possible action, implementing evaluation in the process of instruction, and then carrying out an evaluation of the final…

Differences in sets of criteria for evaluating microcomputer software are discussed. They are set against the results of three studies in which teachers in the United Kingdom evaluated five programs which were used in reading or English lessons. A comparison of the checklist criteria with the case study data was made using Stake's (1967) matrix of…

A study followed three textbook adoption committees as they evaluated basal reading programs. The committees used "A Guide to Selecting Basal Reading Programs" (developed at the Center for the Study of Reading) to help them evaluate the quality of instruction in existing programs. Case studies of the three committees sought to address the…

This book focuses on three distinct types of struggling readers that teachers will instantly recognize from their own classrooms--the "Catch-On Reader," the "Catch-Up Reader," and the "Stalled Reader." The book provides detailed case studies which bring to life the specific problems these students are likely to face…

This evaluation report contains information on the teacher professional development (Teacher Reading Academies) and the Accelerated Reading Instruction program. According to the report, the evaluation design utilized case study research, survey research, focus groups, and analysis of administrative data and student information in producing the…

This practical guide aims to present a miscue analysis workshop in a book, to offer a teacher-friendly account of the "whys and hows" of the topic. The guide demonstrates that the teacher can do miscue analysis every day with every student reading any book through the use of an "Over the Shoulder Procedure." Teachers will not only be able to…

Helps show the journey of a teacher finding the path to good teaching and the ways in which she helped her student. Presents insights into teacher learning as well as some useful assessments and instructional techniques used with a child who struggled in reading and writing. (SG)