The purpose of this study was to analyze the impact of Flipgrid-based discussion activities with student-selected nonfiction texts on middle school students' motivation to read. The study investigated how teacher training affected teachers' comfort and confidence in using Flipgrid. While various discussion-based activities have been used with…

African American males have consistently scored lower than their peers on national reading assessments for the last 50 years (Ladd, 2017). These readers are among many students who find their reading motivation wanes as they matriculate through school. Reading attitudes of middle schoolers are also generally negative. This qualitative case study…

This study explores the relationship between features of the books students select for independent reading and their motivation to read. After spending 15 to 20 minutes reading from their self-selected texts, participants (n = 340) completed the Motivation to Read Profile-Revised (MRP-R) (Malloy et al., 2013) and provided information about their…

The ability to read, the single most important skill students need for learning, has been on the decline across the nation while student interest in books has also waned. Yet, despite the flagging interest in, and proficiency with, reading, English Language Arts (ELA) instruction has remained largely unchanged especially in grades 6-12. The…

This single-case study was designed to evaluate the effects of autonomous text choice on reading motivation and reading comprehension in underperforming sixth-grade students. This study was built upon the theoretical framework constructed using self-determination theory, situational expectancy-value theory, and culturally relevant pedagogy. Study…

This study aims to understand how women's voices can be empowered in a high school English Language Arts (ELA) class. Through the use of female authors and female protagonists in the classroom texts, this study seeks to understand if implementing female-driven texts enhances female students' literary experiences, empowers the personal identities…

Considering teens' progressive reading decline and disinterest, this mixed methods quasi-experimental study investigated the impact of providing high school students freedom to choose books in English class on their reading volume and reading identities. In a rural Midwestern school, the control group followed a traditional English curriculum with…

This case study explored the relationship between levels of content choice in three high school online English language arts courses and evidence of student motivation in student work and students' thoughts about motivation. These courses were designed around the main components of Self-Determination Theory (autonomy, competence, relatedness) and…

Elementary students' literacy skills are decreasing nationwide ("The Nation's Report Card," 2019). This is concerning because as literacy skills slip, the literacy demands for American workers are steadily increasing (OECD, 2013). Unfortunately, adding to the situation is the fact that students' attitudes towards reading are worsening…

This research explored ways in which educators can provide learners with differentiated instruction through student choice that provides engagement to positively interact with a student's reading identity. Throughout their learning journey, learners may have both positive and negative experiences with reading that directly affect their reading…

This study sought to determine how preservice teachers select multicultural children's literature, as well as how preservice teachers respond to multicultural instruction. The qualitative study gathered information and experiences from two groups: Focus Group A and Focus Group B, both of whom were enrolled in a required children's literature…

This multiple case study explored the characteristics of clinical experiences that support preservice teachers' understandings of culturally responsive literacy in elementary classrooms. In particular, this study focused on capturing the voices and perspectives of three preservice teachers through semi-structured interviews, observations, and the…

This research was a 12-week-long study of six participants attending the same alternative high school in a suburban district in the northeast of the United States. Rosenblatt's Reader Response Theory and interpretative qualitative methodology were used to examine participants' reactions to reading self-selected young adult (YA) literature during…

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of a collaborative inquiry group of middle school ELA teachers who were utilizing the Appreciative Inquiry (AI) framework to create a virtual library of e-books, examine students' reading motivation data, and implement classroom practices intended to increase student reading value, motivation,…

Elementary teachers can help students develop a critical literacy lens and learn how to question, analyze, and challenge assumptions. In turn, this can develop an inclusive classroom. My teacher action research looks at how critical literacy impacts both me, the teacher, and my fifth-grade students, in a predominantly White suburban public school…