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Student teaching is a cornerstone of teacher preparation, yet it remains one of the most difficult experiences to understand. Calls for an ecological approach to research on student teaching prompted this study in which the experience is examined from the perspective of the three key triad members. Using activity theory, this study explores how their interactions in specific contexts shaped opportunities for student teachers to learn to teach language arts. The findings reveal that all members of the triad were simultaneously operating in multiple settings and facing competing demands that shaped their actions and stances. Consequently, there were numerous instances of lost opportunities for student teachers to learn to teach, including sparse feedback on teaching subject matter and few links to methods courses, plus limited opportunities to develop identities as teachers. The structures that frame student teaching and its participants have deep roots in the cultures of universities and schools that must be considered if student teaching is to maximize its potential.

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State and school districts are looking for policies they believe will improve student performance. As a result, assessments have proliferated, stakes have increased, and specific curriculum and instructional approaches are being mandated. In this study, we probed beneath students' failing scores on a state reading assessment to investigate the needs of struggling students and implications for policy. We found that scores on state tests mask distinctive and multifaceted patterns of students' reading abilities that require dramatically different instructional emphases. We explore the implications of this complexity for state and local reform efforts that target improved teaching and learning.

This study investigated multiple models for assessing oral reading fluency, including 1‐minute oral reading measures that produce scores reported as words correct per minute (wcpm). We compared a measure of wcpm with measures of the individual and combined indicators of oral reading fluency (rate, accuracy, prosody, and comprehension) to examine construct, criterion, and consequential validity. Oral reading data and standardized comprehension test scores were analyzed for students in grades 2, 4, and 6. Our results indicate that assessments designed to include multiple indicators of oral reading fluency provided a finer‐grained understanding of oral reading fluency and fluency assessment, and a stronger predictor of general comprehension. Comparisons across grade levels also revealed developmental differences in the relation between oral reading fluency and comprehension, and the relative contributions of oral fluency indicators to comprehension. When commonly used benchmarks were applied to wcpm scores to identify students at risk of reading difficulty, both false positives and false negatives were found. This study raises issues regarding the alignment of oral reading fluency definitions and assessment, and the widespread use of wcpm measures and benchmarks to identify students at risk of reading difficulty and to plan instruction. [Note: Sheila Valencia discusses the research presented in this article in a podcast from the “Voice of Literacy”: http://www.voiceofliteracy.org/posts/40043.] استقصت هذه الدراسة نماذج متعددة لتقييم مرونة القراءة الجهرية بما فيها مقاييس القراءة الجهرية مدتها دقيقة واحدة التي تنتج علامات مسجلة ككلمات صحيحة لكل دقيقة. فقد قارننا مقياس من كلمات صحيحة لكل دقيقة ومقاييس من مؤشرات فردية وجماعية في مرونة القراءة الجهرية (السرعة والدقة والنطق والاستيعاب) لنفحص صدق تكوين الاختبار الفرضي والمرتبط بالمحك والمترتبي. وقد تم تحليل علامات الاختبار الاستيعابي المقنن ومعطيات القراءة الجهرية للطلاب في الصف الثاني والرابع والسادس. وتشير نتائجنا إلى أن التقديرات المصممة لتشمل مؤشرات متعددة من مرونة القراءة الجهرية وفرت فهماً أدق لها ولتقدير المرونة وكذلك وفرت منبئاً أقوى للاستيعاب العام. ولقد بينت المقارنات عبر الصفوف اختلافات تطورية في العلاقة بين مرونة القراءة الجهرية والاستيعاب والمساهمات النسبية لمؤشرات الطلاقة اللغوية في الاستيعاب. وحين تم تطبيق المقاييس المستخدمة الشائعة على علامات الكلمات الصحيحة لكل دقيقة لتحديد الطلاب على وشك أن يواجهوا صعوبات في القراءة فقد تم إيجاد إيجابيات زائفة وسلبيات زائفة. وترفع هذه الدراسة القضايا المتعلقة بتناسق مرونة القراءة الجهرية والتقييم والاستخدام الشائع من مقاييس الكلمات الصحيحة لكل دقيقة لتحديد الطلاب المتعرضين للخطر من صعوبة القراءة ولتخطيط التعليم. [Podcast: http://www.voiceofliteracy.org/posts/40043.] 本研究调查用以评估朗读流畅度的多个模型，其中包括通过一分钟的朗读测验来计算出受测者每分钟能正确读出的单词数量(wcpm)。本文作者把一项一分钟朗读测验的结果(wcpm)与几项单独和合并的朗读流畅指标(速度、准确性、韵律和理解)测验的结果作比较，以检查其建构效度、标准效度、后果效度。本文作者分析了二、四、六年级学生的朗读资料及他们的标准化阅读理解测验的成绩。分析结果显示，在设计上如包含多个朗读流畅指标的评估测验，能有助于加深对朗读流畅程度与流畅度评估的认识，并能使其成为较有效的普通阅读理解的预测因子。跨级别的比较结果亦发现朗读流畅程度与阅读理解之间的关系存在着发展差异，以及各个朗读流畅指标对阅读理解的相对预测效能。当常用的基准数值应用于一分钟朗读测验的成绩(wcpm)来确定容易有阅读困难的学生时，假阳...

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to learn how beginning elementary teachers understood and used curriculum materials for teaching reading, and how, in turn, these materials shaped teachers' instruction. We followed 4 teachers who worked in markedly different school situations and were provided a variety of curriculum materials, ranging from scripted reading programs to supplemental materials without teaching guides. Data were gathered through classroom observations, interviews, and curriculum artifacts over the teachers' first 3 years on the job. Our analysis suggested that curriculum materials interacted with teachers' knowledge of reading and reading instruction, and with the contexts in which they worked. As a result, curriculum materials both fostered and inhibited teachers' on-the-job learning. We found that the 2 teachers with weak knowledge or more restrictive materials and environments learned the least and were least able to adapt instruction to meet the needs of their students. The 2 teachers with stronger knowledge, access to multiple materials, and support for decision making regarding materials and instructional strategies learned the most and were most able to adapt instruction. Furthermore, early experiences with specific curriculum materials had effects 2 years later on these teachers' instructional practices. Implications for curriculum mandates, material selection, and professional development are discussed.

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