Texts are a central part of reading. Yet our understandings of appropriate text features and distributions of text diets at different points in students' reading development are limited. The thesis of the essay is that, if the trajectory of struggling readers is to change, attention is needed to the features of texts and students' text diets,…

Beginning readers and struggling readers need explicit, systematic instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics (Adams, 2008; Ehri,1992, 1998; Ehri, Nunes, Willows, Schuster, & Yaghoub-Zadeh, 2001; Gaskins et al., 1997; Moats, 2004; Morris, 2015; National Reading Panel, 2000; Reutzel, 2015). Ehri and McCormick's (2008) phases of word learning…

The aim of this project was to develop an early reading intervention for children with Down syndrome based on the related behavioral phenotype. The intervention targeted learning of letter-sound correspondences, reading of decodable and high frequency words, and phonological awareness. We evaluated the feasibility and potential efficacy of the…

A model-based approach for matching language learners to texts of appropriate difficulty is described. Results are communicated to test takers via a targeted reading range expressed on the reporting scale of an automated text complexity measurement tool (ATCMT). Test takers can use this feedback to select reading materials that are well matched to…

This paper aims to report the findings of a research project, developed from the need to make contributions about the characteristics that emerge, when a three-year-old child and his caregiver carry reading activities out. By the use of recordings and students' artifacts, in order to collect data; and analyzing the information collected through…

This research investigated reading support and book preferences of fourth grade English language learners (ELLs) who were struggling readers. This qualitative research focused on three case studies. Interviews were conducted to explore ELLs' perceptions on reading motivation, reading programs, and types of support they received. Descriptions of…

Reading aloud is a common classroom practice that has many cognitive and affective benefits for students. Early childhood teachers conduct read-aloud events in classrooms across the country on a daily basis. A read-aloud event could not occur without the intentional selection of a book. This exploratory, sequential mixed method study explored the…

School districts across the United States have increasingly adopted information and communications technology (ICT) in an attempt to improve student achievement across a wide range of educational settings. This paper examines the impacts of Achieve3000, an early literacy program that differentiates non-fiction reading passages based on individual…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in Reading regularly collects achievement information on representative samples of students in grades 4, 8, and 12. Through The Nation's Report Card, the NAEP Reading Assessment reports how well students perform in reading various texts and responding to those texts by answering…

The reading framework for the 2017 NAEP describes the types of texts and questions that should be included in the assessment, as well as how the questions should be designed and scored. The assessment measures students' reading comprehension and ability to apply vocabulary knowledge by having them read passages in English and answer questions…

Study objectives were to clarify children's gender-based implicit and explicit mathematics and reading stereotypes, and to determine if implicit and explicit measures were related or represented distinct constructs. One hundred and fifty-six boys and girls (mean age 11.3 years) from six elementary schools completed math or reading stereotype…

This article highlights considerations for teachers when selecting and using e-books and e-book applications (apps) with beginning readers during guided and independent reading. A framework for examining e-books and e-book apps is suggested, and several apps and related digital features are described. The article also includes an overview of…

In this practitioner inquiry, the teacher researcher found that a culture of high-stakes testing had pervaded her diverse, urban seventh-grade students' conceptions of reading; students associated reading with tests and skills-based worksheets rather than pleasure. Using students' voices, passions, and interests, the teacher researcher broadened…

Two-thirds of U.S. high school students today are unable to read and comprehend complex academic materials, think critically about texts, synthesize information from multiple sources, or effectively communicate what they have learned. And in response, many teachers simply stop assigning challenging texts, opting instead to "deliver…

Research increasingly links low literacy levels in the early grades with a range of poor outcomes; for instance, students who read below grade level at the end of third grade are about four times less likely than their higher-achieving peers to graduate from high school (Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2010, 2011; Balfanz, Bridgeland, Bruce & Fox,…