In this Critical Issues, we argue that the preparation of novice literacy researchers should change in response to the growing diversification of epistemologies and methods employed in literacy research. We assert that the preparation of novice literacy researchers should be aimed at developing students who understand and appreciate a broad range of research epistemologies and methods. We suggest ways in which coursework related to research methods and epistemologies, research apprenticeships and mentoring, and the reading and writing of literacy research might intensify and adjust to meet this aim. We contend that whether our field will be characterized by methodological fragmentation or ecological balance will depend in large part on how we prepare future literacy researchers.
lthough the highly popular Accelerated Reader (AR) book reading incentive program claims to motivate children of all reading ability levels, very little independent empirical research has examined this assertion. To help fill this void, we used two related three-factor mixed designs with Method (AR vs. Control), Gender; and either Grade Level (fourth vs. fifth) or Reading Ability (high vs. low) to explore AR's influence on the reading attitudes and self-perceptions of children intwo comparable school districts. The analyses indicatethat ARpositively influenced academic reading attitudes, but not recreational ones, and that it negatively influenced two types of self-perceptions in low achieving male readers. These findings and others ofconsequence arediscussed along with implications for future research.
Little is known about reading ability among doctoral students. Thus, we used a multi-stage mixed analysis to examine 205 doctoral students' levels of reading ability, their perceptions of barriers that prevented them from reading empirical articles, and the relationship between these two sets of constructs. Approximately 10% of doctoral students attained reading ability scores that represented the lower percentiles of a normative sample of undergraduate students. A thematic analysis revealed 8 themes (subsumed by 3 meta-themes: Research Characteristics; Comprehension; Text Characteristics) that represented barriers to reading empirical articles and that predicted both perceived and actual reading ability. Combinations of these themes and meta-themes were related to both perceived reading ability and actual reading ability (reading comprehension, reading vocabulary). The implications of these and other findings are discussed and recommendations are provided for helping doctoral students successfully negotiate the path of emergent scholarship.
The Anna Plan is a unique delivery model for enhancing schoolwide literacy instruction in the primary grades. Based on the principles of Reading Recovery and Four Blocks literacy instruction, it provides supplementary reading instruction through the distinctive use of teaching staff. Over six years, it has resulted in sweeping changes in the way literacy instruction occurs as well as noteworthy increases in children's reading abilities. This article gives a brief history of the authors' work within the Anna Plan, explains each of the model's seven tenets, and describes the research base that drives it. The focal point of the article is the detailed description of the organization and components of the five‐day framework used to augment classroom reading and writing instruction. Finally, the authors recount how the Anna Plan has been embraced by two elementary schools and offer some conclusions about what contributes to the success of whole‐class support models for early literacy.
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