Normative data for eight dimensions of reading attitudes: Canadian public school students

Abstract

The Survey of Reading Attitudes was administered to 613 fourth-, fifth-, and sixthgrade students enrolled in the schools that serve the metropolitan area of a small city in Ontario, Canada. Means, standard deviations, coefficient of alpha reliability estimates, and standard errors of measurement were computed for the eight dimensions of reading attitude included in the Survey, The reliability estimates for the respective dimensions are as follows: Expressed Reading Difficulty, a=.88, Reading as Direct Reinforcement, a=.83, Reading as Enjoyment, a = 3 9 , Alternative Learning Modes, a = . 7 2 SampleThis sample of 613 fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade children is a representative sample from the metropolitan area of a small city in Ontario, Canada; it represents approximately 75% of the student body at these grade levels and includes 3 I4 girls and 299 boys. The breakdown by grade level is 195 fourth graders, 226 fifth graders, and 192 sixth graders. The sample's reading achievement is slightly higher than that for the Province of Ontario and is average for this metropolitan area.

Reading attitudes and reading interests of urban intermediate grade students

“…As for validity, rank order correlation coefficients showed a moderate relation between the survey and an interest rating scale, with a median correlation of .42. Published research reports of the validity and reliability of the Survey of Reading Attitudes (Survey) (Wallbrown, Brown, & Engin, 1977, 1978 can be found elsewhere (Berkowitz & Engin, 1984;Blaha & Chomin, 1982;Hummel, 1984;Wallbrown & Blaha, 1981). These two survey instruments were used to explore the relation between the children's reading interests and their attitudes toward reading.…”

Reading attitudes and perceptions in traditional and nontraditional reading programs

“…A Survey of Reading Attitudes has been widely used in research studies with large populations (Blaha & Chomin, 1981;Brown et al, 1979;Hummel, 1984). Internal consistency coefficients ranging from .74 to .89 have been reported (Singleton & Engin, 1981).…”

Attitudes des élèves francophones de 6e, 9e et 12e années des Provinces maritimes à l’égard de la lecture en milieu scolaire

“…Par contre, Wallbrown, Brown et Engin (1974, 1975, 1977 ont développé une échelle (Survey of Reading Attitudes) comprenant 88 énoncés que l'analyse factorielle a regroupés en huit facteurs. D'autres recherches, utilisant le même questionnaire, ont confirmé leur présence par la suite (Blaha et Chomin, 1981;Hummel, 1984;Wallbrown, Levine, Singleton et Engin, 1981;Wallbrown, Singleton et Levine, 1982). Par conséquent, il est devenu possible d'évaluer l'impact de variables indépendantes sur ces facteurs bien identifiés.…”

“…Par conséquent, il est devenu possible d'évaluer l'impact de variables indépendantes sur ces facteurs bien identifiés. L'appartenance à un sexe et le niveau scolaire constituent les deux variables indépendantes les plus étudiées dans les ouvrages dont il est ici question (Hummel, 1984(Hummel, , 1985Wallbrown étf a/., 1981).…”

“…D'autres résultats de recherche pointent dans la même direction (Hummel, 1985;Stein et Smithells, 1969). Cependant, les niveaux scolaires choisis dans certaines recherches sont souvent rapprochés (Brown étal, 1979;Hummel, 1984). En agrandissant l'écart entre les niveaux, la probabilité de pouvoir dépister des changements dans les attitudes et d'en suivre l'évolution augmente.…”