Literature circles are a socially supportive context in which students can cultivate their reader identities. This is especially promising for students with lower reader self-efficacies. This qualitative multiple case study explored the positioning practices of four Grades 5-6 students with comparatively low reader self-efficacy. In literature…

This three-article dissertation study investigated technology integration in elementary reading instruction that aims to improve students' reading skills by seeking to accomplish three overarching goals: (1) examine the general effects of digital tools used in elementary classrooms for improving students' reading achievements; (2) measure…

Background: In the last two decades, a number of empirical studies investigated the impact of UK-based interventions for struggling readers in later primary years (called Key Stage 2 or KS2 in the UK). However, to date, there are no reviews that look at the extent and nature of the existing UK-based literature. This scoping review explores the…

The Cellfield reading intervention is based on the multi-deficit theory of reading difficulties and addresses several foundation skills of reading simultaneously. Existing research has confirmed that the Cellfield intervention leads to improvement in reading skill directly following the intervention, but little data exist to determine the…

In this study, an undergraduate teacher education course is used to explore whether and how academic reading seminars "reflect the theoretical notion of academic literacies and provide a learning environment for developing academic and professional learning and engagement." The data analyzed in this article are transcribed recordings of…

Reading comprehension is not a skill someone learns and can then apply in different reading contexts. It is one of the most complex activities that readers engage in on a regular basis, and the ability to comprehend is dependent upon a wide range of knowledge and skills. Despite a common view about comprehension, several lines of enquiry have…

Designing rigorous studies to identify technology-based interventions to improve K-12 student reading skills require intervention researchers to take a "road less traveled." This chapter presents that road using the Knowledge Acquisition and Transformation Expansions (KATE) intervention as a case study. An early version of KATE has shown…

The term "Science of Reading" (SOR) has become a popular phrase in practitioner circles. To best serve students, it is important that teachers and interventionists are knowledgeable about the SOR. This article provides a special educator's guide to the SOR by reviewing critical elements that have emerged in public discourse about the…

The ability to read is fundamental in determining an individual's academic success and social integration, and it is also known to have an impact on other cognitive abilities. A lack of foundational pre-reading skills can accumulate later, causing reading and learning problems. Early diagnosis and development of these skills are therefore…

This study aimed to investigate the impact of LETRS professional development on reading proficiency. I used ANOVA tests to analyze third- through fifth-grade EOG assessment scores for changes in proficiency from 2021-2023. The results indicated a statistically significant change in the means for all grades. Third-grade results reflected the most…

Ohio elementary schools are moving to the Science of Reading, an approach that emphasizes phonics along with vocabulary- and knowledge-rich content. Keen on learning what this transition looks like inside classrooms, the Thomas B. Fordham Institute asked Ellen Belcher, a former journalist with the Dayton Daily News, to visit Margaretta Local…

Reading acquisition is a major focus in schools. For students to be literate in the later grades, it is crucial that foundational skills instruction takes place in the primary grades (K-2). In part, foundational skills needed to become a successful reader include phonological and phonemic awareness (PPA). PPA skills are crucial, and researchers…

Teachers understand the importance of think-alouds, yet research shows that think-alouds may be used ineffectively in practice. Often, this results from the difficulty of explicitly sharing the inner thought processes of competent readers and writers in transferable ways for students. To our knowledge, a tool for helping preservice teachers…

The purpose of this content analysis study was to identify the affordances embedded in core reading program (CRP) teacher's manuals that facilitate graphical literacy skills as a component of literacy instruction. In the informational text selections of selected CRPs, graphic category, type, function, and connection to text were assessed to…

The teaching of critical thinking (CT) has become an important requirement in many English language classrooms at different educational levels, yet little is known about how teachers promote the learning of CT. This article reports on a qualitative study examining the ways in which two university English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers in…