Reading instruction for middle- and high-school students is focused on vocabulary and comprehension, yet research suggests that comprehension skills among these students are alarmingly low. Small-group reading interventions are becoming more prevalent in schools, but there are few studies regarding small-group reading comprehension interventions.…

Concerns regarding literacy levels in the United States are long standing. Debates have existed for decades regarding the most effective ways to teach reading, especially the polarizing dilemma of how much to focus on decoding versus code-emphasis and whole language instruction. Fortunately, as a result of concentrated research efforts and…

This study explored the influence of an excessively challenging reading task on middle school students' motivation, attributions for failure, and persistence. In particular, the authors considered the possibility that relative topic interest might function as a buffer against the negative outcomes of excessive challenge. Students ranging from 10…

This article describes the classroom interactions surrounding teacher read-alouds of nonfiction texts in the classroom of a teacher who strived for cultural relevancy. Participants in this study were one European American teacher and her upper-elementary students who lived in the surrounding working-class neighborhood; all but two students…

As four teacher educators teaching a course associated with state-mandated assessment of literacy subject matter knowledge and instructional practices, we conducted a self-study of our experiences. In this article, we describe how high-stakes assessment further compounds the problematic nature of teaching and learning literacy in coursework. We…

Approximately 40% of U.S. fourth-grade students are nonfluent readers. In response to the need for fluency-based instructional programs for elementary-aged students, the Helping Early Literacy with Practice Strategies (HELPS) Program was developed by integrating eight evidence-based fluency-building instructional strategies into a systematic…

The America Reads Challenge offers colleges and universities an opportunity to make a contribution to the community while enhancing the education of their students, employing tutoring as a service learning experience. At the same time, their efforts will help the institution develop and sustain community partnerships. This paper reports an…

Responsive teaching has been a mainstay of literacy research and policy. The result has been a plethora of programs, approaches and initiatives aimed at addressing literacy problems. Frequently, these have come in the form of scripted instructional programs. Often overlooked is the necessity of teacher training. Reading Recovery is an early…

The Fifth Edition of the :Handbook of Research on Teaching" is an essential resource for students and scholars dedicated to the study of teaching and learning. The volume covers a vast array of topics ranging from the history of teaching to technological and literacy issues. In each authoritative chapter, the authors summarize the state of…

The intention of this study was to establish if the third grade English Language Learners improved reading fluency when using the computerized Waterford Early Reading Program. This quantitative study determined the effectiveness of the Waterford Early Reading Program at two Title I elementary schools. Students not meeting Grade Level Expectations…

As the ability to read proficiently is essential for success both in and out of the school setting, literacy has become an area of particular focus in today's classrooms. While recent assessments indicate that students are making progress in the area of reading (e.g., National Assessment of Educational Progress [NAEP], 2011), there continues to be…

American schools are witnessing the increasing cultural heterogeneity of our nation's population. Educators are faced with the challenge of ensuring positive educational outcomes for all students, despite the lack of empirical understanding of how to effectively educate culturally and linguistically diverse learners. The purpose of this paper is…

This study examines a family literacy intervention conducted in two first-grade classrooms with culturally diverse student populations. In the treatment and control classrooms, six parents and a classroom teacher learned practices for building home-school partnerships. Data were analyzed to determine changes in home-literacy practices, increases…

The purpose of this research is to share the reading assessments that graduate students selected for their clinical practice with struggling readers. After a careful look at assessments, their place in the recent shift to Response to Intervention (RTI), specifically regarding reading instruction and the preparation of reading…

Considering the digital landscape of the 21st century classroom, it is paramount that teacher education programs prepare preservice teachers to incorporate technology into their classrooms to engage in communicative and collaborative acts as readers and writers. This collective case study was conducted to explore what happened when nine preservice…