The Potential Impact of Structured Read-Aloud on Middle School Reading Achievement

Abstract

Read-aloud is a technique predominantly utilized at the elementary level. This study was designed to research the effectiveness of this technique at the middle school level, specifically, students who were not receiving special education or additional reading intervention services. For the current investigation, students in two middle schools within the same Virginia school district were assigned to receive the treatment of Structured Read-Aloud or received traditional middle-school reading instruction. These students were tested using the Diagnostic Online Reading Assessment (DORA) both in the fall before the intervention was implemented, and then again in the spring of the same year to assess gains. Results indicated that the use of Read-Aloud instruction had an impact on student DORA scores and implications of the research are considered.

The Benefits of Reading Aloud for Children: A Review in EFL Context

“…Reading aloud is argued to be most beneficial for children because it acts as the basis for their foundation to build knowledge 78-100 (Gurdon, 2019). During reading aloud, the teacher plays a crucial role to facilitate the interactions between the text and the students (Huang, 2010;Marchessault & Larwin, 2014). The following figure illustrates the role of the teacher in a reading-aloud activity.…”

“…The teacher's direct interaction with the text ensures that the teacher comprehends the text while acting to assess whether the text is suitable for the children. The teacher reads the text aloud to the children to create interaction between the children and the text (Huang, 2010), helping them understand the text without actually reading the text due to their early stage of competence (Marchessault & Larwin, 2014;Wadsworth, 2008). The teacher's voice will make the students focus on the text and the teacher's voice to avoid misunderstanding.…”

“…Parents and teachers will provide the reading texts, exempting the need for their autonomy or the requirement for them to choose their own texts, as appropriate English reading texts for young learners will be provided by knowledgeable adults around them (Huang, 2010;G. Jacobs, 2016;Marchessault & Larwin, 2014;Wadsworth, 2008) (Huang, 2010;Marchessault & Larwin, 2014;Wadsworth, 2008;Jacobs, 2016).…”

“…As argued by Jacobs (2016) and Marchessault and Larwin (2014), reading aloud is conducted with pauses for making connections, asking questions, as well as making and inviting comments. This interaction is a rich process that cultivates students' understanding.…”

Interactive Picture Book Read‐Alouds to the Rescue: Developing Emerging College EFL Learners’ Word Inference Ability

“…Although scholars have promoted teacher read‐alouds beyond elementary school to foster reading engagement and enhance vocabulary and comprehension (Albright & Ariail, ), the practice has been underresearched. In an investigation of the effects of interactive read‐alouds on middle schoolers’ use of text to infer the meanings of unfamiliar words and search for answers to comprehension questions, Marchessault and Larwin () found that participants showed significant growth in both vocabulary and reading. The vocabulary assessment, however, involved matching a picture to a spoken word, testing only students’ receptive oral vocabulary skills, not their ability to infer word meanings from context, claimed to be one of the focal strategies in the study.…”