Middle School Teachers' Read-Aloud Practices in the Classroom

201 Pages·2014·4.99 MB·English

by  Christina Durham

MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHERS’ READ-ALOUD PRACTICES IN THE
CLASSROOM: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY
by
Christina Marie Durham
A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Education
Liberty University
2014
MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHERS’ READ ALOUD PRACTICES IN THE
CLASSROOM: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY
by Christina Marie Durham
A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Education
Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA
2014
APPROVED BY:
_______________________________
Rick Bragg, Ed.D, Committee Chair
___________________________________
Joan Fitzpatrick, Ph.D, Committee Member
___________________________________
Jillian Wendt, Ed.D, Committee Member
_______________________________________________
Scott Watson, Ph.D, Associate Dean, Advanced Programs
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The possession of strong literacy skills will improve the quality of life for all children.
Teacher read-alouds is a well-used practice within the elementary grades because of the
intellectual and behavioral benefits for the students. However, there is a lack of research
on this practice for middle school students. The purpose of this qualitative,
transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the perceptions of middle
school reading specialists toward read-alouds across the content areas. The participants
were five reading specialists from one rural public school system and one suburban/rural
public school system in Maryland. The reading specialists were interviewed about their
knowledge and experiences with read-alouds in the classrooms. The findings indicated
that middle school teachers read aloud to their students, and the reading specialists
supported this practice for many intellectual and behavioral reasons. Data were collected,
coded, and analyzed through the use of the NVivo 10 program. Two overarching themes
were identified, which confirmed the importance of read-alouds across the content areas
and the need to implement this practice in the middle school classrooms. Implications for
classroom practice as well as for future research are provided.

Keywords: teacher read-alouds, shared story reading, Social Learning Theory,
middle school, middle school students, reading specialists, middle school teachers,
middle school content areas

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Dedication
This dissertation is dedicated to my sons, Brooks Jr. and Tristan whom I have
enjoyed reading out loud to. You have shown me that there is so much that we, as
researchers and educators, can do to help children with all kinds of abilities. Brooks,
although your premature birth at 24 weeks resulted in developmental delays, your love,
interest, and involvement in learning demonstrates that you have the desire to grow and
progress in all areas of your life. Tristan, you show so much enthusiasm and interest in
the stories that we read together. These moments together will always be remembered
and cherished. Because of our reading experiences together, I want other children, no
matter what age, to experience these read-aloud opportunities. This findings from this
dissertation support the belief that all children can and will learn, with the support and the
methods of teacher modeling. Thank you for opening my eyes and heart.

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Acknowledgements
There are so many individuals who have supported and encouraged me
during this journey of research, hard work, roadblocks, and now the finish line! A
huge thank you to my committee, Dr. Rick Bragg, Dr. Joan Fitzpatrick, and Dr.
Jillian Wendt. Your patience, guidance, encouragement, feedback, and prayers have
brought me to where I am now. You were always available to answer any questions
and to simply tell me, “You can do it!” Thank you for your kindness and showing
Christ throughout this whole process from beginning to end. Thank you for
believing in me and finding my study important and valuable in the field of
education. You challenged me to be a stronger writer and researcher. Thank you
Dr. Fred Milacci for your guidance and encouragement. Your feedback also has
made me a stronger writer and researcher. Thank you Dr. Sharon Sweet for your
diligence in editing my dissertation. I appreciate your dedication to ensure
everything looks good! Thank you to my husband, Brooks, for being patient with
me and encouraging me when this study took longer than expected. To my family
and friends, thank you, thank you, thank you for your prayers, love, and support.
Thank You Jesus, for being with me every step of the way. All the glory and honor
goes to You!

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Table of Contents
Abstract
 .........................................................................................................................................................................
 3

Dedication
 .....................................................................................................................................................................
 4

Acknowledgements
 ..................................................................................................................................................
 5

Table
 of
 Contents
 .......................................................................................................................................................
 6

List
 of
 Tables
 .............................................................................................................................................................
 10

List
 of
 Abbreviations
 ..............................................................................................................................................
 11

CHAPTER
 ONE:

 INTRODUCTION
 .....................................................................................................................
 12

Background
 ................................................................................................................................................
 14

Bandura’s
 Social
 Learning
 Theory
 ...................................................................................................
 17

Situation
 to
 Self
 ........................................................................................................................................
 21

Problem
 Statement
 .................................................................................................................................
 22

Purpose
 Statement
 ..................................................................................................................................
 22

Significance
 of
 the
 Study
 ......................................................................................................................
 23

Research
 Questions
 ................................................................................................................................
 24

Research
 Plan
 ............................................................................................................................................
 25

Delimitations
 .............................................................................................................................................
 29

Assumptions
 ..............................................................................................................................................
 29

CHAPTER
 TWO:

 LITERATURE
 REVIEW
 .......................................................................................................
 30

Overview
 .....................................................................................................................................................
 30

Theoretical
 Framework
 ........................................................................................................................
 32

  Bandura’s
 Social
 Learning
 Theory
 ...................................................................................
 32

Review
 of
 the
 Related
 Literature
 ......................................................................................................
 37

  Students
 with
 Disabilities
 ....................................................................................................
 44

  Students
 with
 Behavioral
 Challenges
 .............................................................................
 50

  Students
 with
 Low
 Vocabulary
 ..........................................................................................
 50

6
Vocabulary
 Instruction
 .........................................................................................................
 51

  Comprehension
 Instruction
 ................................................................................................
 54

  Nonfiction
 Read-­‐Alouds
 ........................................................................................................
 60

  Fiction
 Read-­‐Alouds
 ...............................................................................................................
 61

  Integrating
 Reading
 in
 Secondary
 Content
 Areas
 .....................................................
 63

  Teacher
 Read-­‐Alouds
 in
 the
 Middle
 School
 .................................................................
 75

CHAPTER
 THREE:

 METHODOLOGY
 ...............................................................................................................
 82

Overview
 .....................................................................................................................................................
 82

Design
 ...........................................................................................................................................................
 82

Research
 Questions
 ................................................................................................................................
 83

Participants
 ................................................................................................................................................
 84

Setting
 ...........................................................................................................................................................
 85

Procedures
 .................................................................................................................................................
 86

The
 Researcher's
 Role
 ...........................................................................................................................
 87

Data
 Collection
 ..........................................................................................................................................
 88

Data
 Analysis
 .............................................................................................................................................
 91

Trustworthiness
 ......................................................................................................................................
 93

  Credibility
 ...................................................................................................................................
 93

  Dependability
 and
 confirmability
 ....................................................................................
 94

  Validity
 and
 transferability
 .................................................................................................
 94

Ethical
 Considerations
 ..........................................................................................................................
 95

CHAPTER
 FOUR:

 FINDINGS
 ...............................................................................................................................
 96

Research
 Questions
 ................................................................................................................................
 96

Data
 Collection
 ..........................................................................................................................................
 96

  Focus
 Group
 Interviews
 ........................................................................................................
 97

7
Individual
 Interviews
 ............................................................................................................
 97

Participants
 ................................................................................................................................................
 98

Descriptions
 of
 Participants
 ............................................................................................................
 100

Significant
 Statements
 ........................................................................................................................
 107

Meaningful
 Units
 ...................................................................................................................................
 108

Meaningful
 unit
 one:

 Reading
 specialists’
 experiences
 with
 read-­‐alouds.
 .................
 108

Meaningful
 unit
 two:

 Student
 engagement
 and
 interest
 ....................................................
 111

Meaningful
 unit
 three:

 Opportunities
 teachers
 gave
 to
 students
 before,

 during,
 and
 after
 a
 read-­‐aloud.
 .......................................................................................
 113

Meaningful
 unit
 four:

 Reasons
 for
 and
 against
 teacher
 read-­‐alouds
 ............................
 116

Meaningful
 Unit
 Five:

 Impact
 on
 Student
 Population
 (e.g.,
 ADHD,
 ELL,
 EBD,

 and
 IEP/504…………………...……………………….…………………………………………..
 120

Meaningful
 unit
 six:

 Impact
 on
 the
 content
 areas:
 English/language
 arts
 (ELA),

 mathematics,
 science,
 social
 studies
 (SS)
 ..................................................................
 126

Meaningful
 unit
 seven:

 Types
 of
 text
 used
 in
 read-­‐alouds
 ................................................
 132

Meaningful
 unit
 eight:

 Perception
 on
 teacher
 read-­‐alouds
 ..............................................
 135

Meaningful
 unit
 nine:

 Perception
 of
 professional
 development
 for
 read-­‐

 alouds.
 ......................................................................................................................................
 140

Thick
 Descriptions
 of
 Participants’
 Experiences
 ....................................................................
 141

Composite
 Description
 of
 the
 Phenomenon
 of
 Teacher
 Read-­‐Alouds
 ..........................
 144

Summary
 ..................................................................................................................................................
 146

CHAPTER
 FIVE:

 DISCUSSION
 .........................................................................................................................
 147

Summary
 of
 the
 Findings
 ..................................................................................................................
 147

  Research
 Question
 One
 ......................................................................................................
 148

  Research
 Question
 Two
 .....................................................................................................
 150

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Research
 Question
 Three
 ..................................................................................................
 151

  Research
 Question
 Four
 ....................................................................................................
 152

Implications
 of
 the
 Findings
 ............................................................................................................
 153

  Theoretical
 Implications
 ...................................................................................................
 153

  Methodological
 and
 Empirical
 Implications
 .............................................................
 156

  Practical
 Implications
 .........................................................................................................
 157

  Implications
 for
 Educators
 ...............................................................................................
 159

Study
 Limitations
 .................................................................................................................................
 163

Recommendations
 for
 Future
 Research
 .....................................................................................
 163

REFERENCES
 ..........................................................................................................................................................
 166

APPENDICES
 ...........................................................................................................................................................
 181

  A:

 Researcher's
 Epoche
 Statement
 ...........................................................................................
 181

  B:

 “Anderson”
 School
 District
 Approval
 Letter
 ...................................................................
 182

  C:

 “Christian”
 School
 District
 Approval
 Letter
 .....................................................................
 185

  D:

 IRB
 Approval
 Letter
 ...................................................................................................................
 186

  E:

 Reading
 Specialist
 Recruitment
 Letter
 ..............................................................................
 187

  F:

 Reading
 Specialist
 Consent
 Form
 .........................................................................................
 189

  G:

 Focus
 Group
 Interview
 Guide
 with
 Prompts
 ..................................................................
 192

  H:

 Individual
 Interview
 Guide
 with
 Prompts
 .......................................................................
 193

  I:

 Meaningful
 Units
 and
 Statements
 ........................................................................................
 196

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List of Tables
1. Percentage of 9-Year-Olds in the U.S. Who Read for Fun ....................................... 16

2. Percentages of 13-Year-Olds in the U.S.Who Read for Fun ..................................... 16

3. Percentage of 17-Year-Olds in the U.S. Who Read for Fun ..................................... 17

4. Participant Information .............................................................................................. 99

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