ERIC Number: ED645566
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 54
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 979-8-8340-4652-3
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
The Craft of Language: An Analysis of Associations between a Metalinguistic Writing Course and Reading Comprehension
Anna Giambattista Incognito
ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, St. John's University (New York)
This study examines associations between writing instruction with a focus on explicit sentence syntax and reading comprehension in a sample of students receiving special education services. While the outcome data does not show direct causation between student enrollment in a treatment writing course using Systemic Functional Linguistics and reading scores on state testing, the significant associations between variables imply possibilities for improvements in reading pedagogy. Reading comprehension depends on how accurately readers capture an author's intended meaning while reading. Current research shows this has less to do with decoding words in a sentence, and more to do with recognizing communicative cues hiding in the syntax of sentences (Kush et al., 2015; Roberts, 2017; Hellbernd & Sammler, 2016). An awareness of how sentence parts correspond to the length and patterns of stressed syllables in words and phrases that appear in sentences helps readers control their voice inflection, allowing them to pause when necessary and regulate the pace of their reading, so that it emulates spoken speech (Buxo-Lugo & Watson, 2016). This is paramount since, as action theories of language suggest, tone of voice conveys intention, and meaning is found in underlying intentions (Hellbernd & Sammler, 2016). When writers learn the grammar behind speech functions, they make more informed choices to affect meaning while increasing their metalinguistic awareness of reading. Therefore, this study examines the reading performance of 75, 6th-grade participants after receiving 16 weeks of writing lessons focusing on the deliberate language choices of writers (Halliday & Matthiessen, 2014). [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
Descriptors: Metalinguistics, Syllables, Decoding (Reading), Syntax, Reading Comprehension, Writing Instruction, Speech Communication, Cues, Special Education, Linguistics, Teaching Methods, Instructional Improvement, Phrase Structure, Grammar, Grade 6, Language Usage, Correlation
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Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Elementary Education; Grade 6; Intermediate Grades; Middle Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A