The decades-long and contentious debate over how students are taught to read centers around the role that phonics and alphabetic code-related skills have in reading instruction. Some claim that these skills are not prioritized in most elementary classrooms because teacher education programs do not adequately prepare preservice teachers (PSTs) to…

Teachers of elementary English language arts/literacy (ELA) tend to line up behind one of two very different approaches to reading instruction. The first approach prioritizes reading comprehension strategies over content. The second rests on the idea that building background knowledge of the world, including the vocabulary that accompanies such…

Interactive read-alouds, where adults read text to children and facilitate discussion of the text, are an incredibly effective method for supporting children's literacy learning. In this article, Tanya Wright, an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Michigan State University, describes some of the knowledge and skills that…

This study presents the results of an analysis of Croatian Language and Natural Sciences textbooks used in the fourth and sixth grade of primary education in Croatia. Textbooks are therein seen as core educational materials, influencing teacher practices--specifically, the reading comprehension instruction. Five textbooks were coded for text type,…

Background: Malawi's primary education system made progress in increasing access to school over the last decade, but is challenged to provide quality learning in the face of expanding enrollment (World Bank 2021). By Standard 4, 19 percent of students still score zero on Standard 1 math items and only 22 percent are able to comprehend a short…

Augmented Reality (AR) has gained significant attention in the field of language learning. This study conducted a systematic review of research on AR-supported language learning published between 2008 and 2022. Thirty articles were selected based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria, and analyzed using an analytical framework with the…

Teaching children scientific vocabulary is an important part of science education and should be carefully considered when planning units of work so that children can understand new words and apply them to their learning (Sewell, 2018). This view is echoed in the aims of the National Curriculum in England, which states that pupils should be able to…

The article documents the reflections on gathering data from the home country via distance while living and studying in New Zealand. These reflections strengthen the idea that data collection via distance could be a viable solution in circumstances where face-to-face data collection may not be an option. Three threads: negotiations, insider…

This article reports impacts of action research-oriented upgrading training given to teachers on early reading performances of Grades 2 & 3 students. Initially a baseline assessment was conducted to determine the initial reading performances of the students, and a survey was conducted to identify the training and experience teachers had in…

Improving the reading ability of young students could hardly be a more urgent priority for our elementary schools. Two thirds of American fourth and eighth graders are not able to read proficiently--and the outcomes are far worse for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The National Assessment of Educational Progress in 2019 showed that only…

More than 50% of fourth graders in the United States are reading below a proficient level, with more than 75% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch scoring lower than the U.S. average reading score. A framework of background knowledge is essential for vocabulary acquisition so the reader can comprehend the meaning of a text.…

The technique provided in this article offers an integrated-skills activity. Students should be able to read the description of a visual image, describe their own visuals, read and collect information from other students' writing, and speak about what they have found. This activity can be adapted for nearly any language level. The activity can…

Why aren't more schools seeing significant improvement in students' reading ability when they implement Response to Intervention (RTI) or Multitiered Systems of Support (MTSS) in their literacy programs? These frameworks serve as a way for educators to identify struggling readers and provide the small-group instruction they need to improve their…

Over 18 million children in Ethiopia are enrolled at the primary level with a net enrollment rate of 100 percent. Unfortunately, the positive achievement of getting more children into school has strained the capacity of the system, and student learning has suffered. USAID's 2018 Early Grade Reading Assessment suggests that only 40 percent of…

Evidence based reading instruction and intervention are essential for students with disabilities. The authors recommend that elementary special education teachers emphasize both code-based and meaning-based skills as part of delivering intensive reading interventions, including providing explicit and systematic decoding and vocabulary instruction.…