Chapter 8: Teaching Reading

1. Chapter 8: Teaching Reading SPED 562: LD Methods

2. Component of Language (National Research Council, 1998) Why talk about language? Because word comprehension precedes production • Phonology – the way sounds of the language operate • Morphology – the way words are formed and are related to each other • Semantics – how language conveys meaning • Pragmatics – using speech to achieve goals • Lexicon – stored information about the meanings and pronunciation of words

3. Evidence-based reading • Phonological awareness • Phonics • Fluency • Vocabulary • Comprehension

4. Phonemic Awareness • Knowing that every spoken word can be conceived as a sequence of phonemes. This awareness is key to understanding the logic of the alphabetic principle and thus to future learning of phonics and spelling.

5. Phonological Awareness • The “general ability to attend to the sounds of language as distinct from its meaning (NRC, 1998, p.52). • Performance on phonological awareness tasks is correlated with language proficiency (Chaney, 1992).

6. Phonics • Teach letters and letter sounds • Let students make words using such items as refrigerator magnet letters and letter cards • Teach sound principles based on the letter connections

7. Fluency • Developing rapid and even automatic word identification • Requires practice at word identification including deriving meaning from print

8. Vocabulary • A correlate of comprehension (NRC, 1998) • Word identification begins with visual recognition of the series of letters in a specific order (see phonological awareness for creation) • “Skilled readers develop both a knowledge of how spelling patterns correspond to possible word pronunciations and a sensitivity, based on experience, to the relative frequency of printed word and subword forms (NRC, p.66) • Practice and experience is necessary

9. Comprehension • Skilled comprehenders • Detect inconsistencies in texts • Apply background knowledge • Draw global inferences • Monitor their own comprehension (Yuill and Oakhill, 1991) • Skilled comprehenders form more ideas from the title and expectations than unskilled • Comprehension monitoring can improve with training, most up to and including 3rd grade (Elliott-Faust & Pressley, 1986).

10. Program Specifics • PALS • High interest books • Explicit instruction • Reciprocal teaching

11. PALS • Peer Assisted Learning Strategies • A SUPPLEMENT to regular instruction • Children working together in pairs to complete several types of activities • A series of lessons lasting 35 min a session x 2 or 3 sessions a week x 16 weeks • Features • High & low skilled students paired together as partners • High skilled student reads 1st to provide more fluent reading model • Students switch roles during each activity • Teacher Direction is included

12. Reading Choices • Look for high-interest books that match the reading level of the student. • Allow for rereadings of books to improve intonation and word pattern recognition of written words. • Preteach vocabulary and teach context clues • Teach print awareness with multiple genres of print

13. Explicit and Direct Instruction • Teach letters in isolation with corresponding sounds • Have students repeat teacher’s model of letter name and sound • I do it • We do it • You do it • Frequent interactions and feedback

14. Reciprocal Teaching (Block, 2003) • Teacher initiates discussion about a section of text to be read • Group discusses the questions and resolves disagreements and misunderstandings • Teacher summarizes the gist of what was read, clarifies words and predicts upcoming content • After others share and make predictions, the teacher asks for a new leader. • The new leader starts the same process for a new section to be read

15. Early Intervention Start smart Poor instruction in first grade may have long-term effects on the student and the school • Lower student expectations • Slower and undemanding curricula • Class make-up (National Research Council, 1998) Provide high quality interventions as early as possible.

16. Whole Language: Easing the controversy • Priority during reading and writing activities is given to the construction of meaning (Foorman et al, 1998). • Phonics lessons are conducted opportunistically in the context of meaningful reading and writing. • Teacher is conceived as the facilitator rather than the director • Portfolio assessment is a preferred measure.

17. Questions • Name and explain some evidence-based components of reading instruction. • Name some programs ideas that help students who struggle. • What should be the focus of early intervention? • Why is whole language typically not as effective for students who struggle reading?