Date of Award
1-30-1991
Document Type
Dissertation - NSU Access Only
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Center for the Advancement of Education
Abstract
This report describes a program to improve language skills for the elementary students, grade one through grade six, at the Harkex-Wylie Elementary School. Review of students reading placement, based on Ginn Criteria Reference Test scores, indicated that 46 percent of students are reading below grade level. On the language subtest of the 1988 California Achievement Test, 44 percent of the students scored below the 50th normal curve equivalent. The following factors were identified in this Research Project as possible causal factors: a single instructional methodology used for the teaching of reading, the limited usage of the language arts experience approach in the teaching of writing, the poor integration of reading and writing in other content areas, high student transiency, and low parental involvement. After analyzing the above factors, solution strategies were developed within the limitations of the practicum setting. The solution strategies implemented included: analysis of student standardized reading test results and language test results identifying areas in need of remediation, the development of an Action Plan, teacher inservice training, and the implementation of interrelating language arts and science instruction in the classroom. The solution strategies were an attempt to improve student reading and writing performance. All of the terminal objectives were achieved: the number of students in need of compensatory education for reading and language decreased; there was an increase in mean holistic writing scores, grades three through six; there was an overall decrease in the number of students reading below grade level; and there was a decrease of the number of students scoring below the 50th normal curve equivalent on the California Achievement Language subtest. In addition, the intermediate objectives were accomplished by varied teaching strategies identified in the Action Plans.