Chapter V: Discussion
The purpose of this study was to determine if the comprehension skills of seventh grade at-risk students would improve with the use of a reading intervention program. The research questions were as follows: 1. What comprehension skills were necessary for middle school students to be successful? 2. What programs were available that helped improve comprehension skills? 3. What were the common components of these programs? 4. Did the use of the Read XL program improve the comprehension skills of seventh grade at-risk students? Discussion The researcher found that 80% of the participants improved their comprehension skills through the use of the Read XL program. This program was directed at the middle childhood level student. It appealed and motivated the middle childhood student, and may explain why the students looked forward to reading the weekly anthologies. This may also explain why their text scores improved. When students were interested in what they were doing, or reading, they were able to make better connections and conceptualize the information. Another factor for the increase in scores could be due to the fact the teacher researcher strictly followed the procedures and guidelines of the Read XL program. The program came equipped with specific procedures, guidelines, and lesson plans that were extremely helpful and easy to follow. These procedures were clear to the researcher and to the students. It is believed that perhaps the consistency in procedures, explained the increase in scores from the first half of the weekly selection assessments to the last half of the weekly selection assessments. The teacher researcher also felt that the class size contributed to the positive student outcomes. With only fifteen students, the teacher was able to work with students on a one-onone basis, hold small group discussions, and create partnerships for practicing reading strategies. This seemed to create a safe and comfortable atmosphere where the students felt free to discuss their problems and ask questions where they usually wouldn't ask in the regular classroom. It was also noted that during the pretest, the participants were faced with adverse testing conditions due to the hot weather and high temperature in the classroom. Due to the extremely 29 hot temperatures in late August and early September, the participants may have rushed through their reading passages in order to relieve their discomfort from the heat. The teacher researcher felt that concentration and comprehension might have been very difficult under these conditions. When the students took the posttest in November, the temperature of the classroom was much more comfortable. Therefore, the students were more apt to be focused in their reading and may have been able to comprehend what they were reading at a higher level, which in turn reflected higher scores on the posttest. Perhaps the greatest contributing factor to the outcomes of this project was that most of the students were genuinely interested in improving their comprehension skills. These students were aware that comprehension skills were a weakness for them and desired to improve this skill. Most students at this age, and particularly at-risk students, need a more structured environment. With structure and routine being critical at this stage in the learning process, the teacher researcher felt that the Read XL program was successful at accomplishing this task. Summary The participants of this study consisted of 15 seventh grade at-risk students. The students were enrolled in a public middle school in a small Midwest city. The purpose of this study was to determine if comprehension skills would improve if the students were involved in a reading intervention program. Students were instructed using the Read XL program for nine weeks. The students completed a pretest before formal instruction began and a posttest after the nine weeks of instruction were completed. Twelve of the fifteen students did show improvement from the pretest to the posttest. Students also completed a weekly selection assessment at the end of each unit. The first half of the weekly selection assessment scores were compared to the last half of the weekly selection assessment scores. Twelve ofthe fifteen students improved their scores from the first half ofthe program to the last half ofthe program, while one students' score remained the same. 30 Recommendations Recommendations for changes to the procedures, instruments, techniques Several recommendations have evolved from this investigation. One recommendation would be to conduct this reading intervention class at the beginning of the school day instead of the last forty-five minutes of the school day. The students seemed to be ready for their day to end by the time they came to class, and although they worked hard, the researcher felt that production might have been higher if the class was earlier in the day. Another recommendation would be to lengthen the study. It was believed that by providing a longer timeline for the investigation, more data could be collected. It would also be more valuable if the program started later in the school year. The participant wouldn't be faced with the uncomfortably hot classroom conditions. Pretest scores might be more accurate if the students were able to focus on the task at hand instead of being disrupted by the classroom conditions. Perhaps a survey would have been beneficial to the research as well. The survey could have been given at the end ofthe study to determine if the students' felt better about their comprehension skills. A survey could also have been given to the students' content area teachers to note any improvements noticed. Recommendations for advancing further research Further investigation of teaching reading comprehension skills to at-risk students might include a variety of changes to this study. The study could be extended to include word study and test-taking strategies in relation to comprehension. Further research would be needed to determine if a focus on these strategies would improve the students' comprehension skills that are needed when taking achievement tests such as the Ohio Proficiency Test.. Another recommendation would be to determine if increased reading time for students to practice their reading comprehension skills would improve results. Additional reading time could be done individually, with a small group, silently, or orally. The researcher felt that further research would be needed to determine if increased reading practice would improve the 31 comprehension of what was read. Recommendations for class use The researcher has considered implementing a specific program for building comprehension skills within her content area classroom. The results of the study indicated that the Read XL program might help students improve their reading skills. The researcher felt that at the middle childhood level, students are faced with more difficult reading due to the increased amount of expository text. Since the completion of this study, the researcher has tried new reading strategies with her content area students hoping to increase the comprehension skills of all students.
บทสนทนา v คัมภีร์: The purpose of this study was to determine if the comprehension skills of seventh grade at-risk students would improve with the use of a reading intervention program. The research questions were as follows: 1. What comprehension skills were necessary for middle school students to be successful? 2. What programs were available that helped improve comprehension skills? 3. What were the common components of these programs? 4. Did the use of the Read XL program improve the comprehension skills of seventh grade at-risk students? Discussion The researcher found that 80% of the participants improved their comprehension skills through the use of the Read XL program. This program was directed at the middle childhood level student. It appealed and motivated the middle childhood student, and may explain why the students looked forward to reading the weekly anthologies. This may also explain why their text scores improved. When students were interested in what they were doing, or reading, they were able to make better connections and conceptualize the information. Another factor for the increase in scores could be due to the fact the teacher researcher strictly followed the procedures and guidelines of the Read XL program. The program came equipped with specific procedures, guidelines, and lesson plans that were extremely helpful and easy to follow. These procedures were clear to the researcher and to the students. It is believed that perhaps the consistency in procedures, explained the increase in scores from the first half of the weekly selection assessments to the last half of the weekly selection assessments. The teacher researcher also felt that the class size contributed to the positive student outcomes. With only fifteen students, the teacher was able to work with students on a one-onone basis, hold small group discussions, and create partnerships for practicing reading strategies. This seemed to create a safe and comfortable atmosphere where the students felt free to discuss their problems and ask questions where they usually wouldn't ask in the regular classroom. It was also noted that during the pretest, the participants were faced with adverse testing conditions due to the hot weather and high temperature in the classroom. Due to the extremely 29 hot temperatures in late August and early September, the participants may have rushed through their reading passages in order to relieve their discomfort from the heat. The teacher researcher felt that concentration and comprehension might have been very difficult under these conditions. When the students took the posttest in November, the temperature of the classroom was much more comfortable. Therefore, the students were more apt to be focused in their reading and may have been able to comprehend what they were reading at a higher level, which in turn reflected higher scores on the posttest. Perhaps the greatest contributing factor to the outcomes of this project was that most of the students were genuinely interested in improving their comprehension skills. These students were aware that comprehension skills were a weakness for them and desired to improve this skill. Most students at this age, and particularly at-risk students, need a more structured environment. With structure and routine being critical at this stage in the learning process, the teacher researcher felt that the Read XL program was successful at accomplishing this task. Summary The participants of this study consisted of 15 seventh grade at-risk students. The students were enrolled in a public middle school in a small Midwest city. The purpose of this study was to determine if comprehension skills would improve if the students were involved in a reading intervention program. Students were instructed using the Read XL program for nine weeks. The students completed a pretest before formal instruction began and a posttest after the nine weeks of instruction were completed. Twelve of the fifteen students did show improvement from the pretest to the posttest. Students also completed a weekly selection assessment at the end of each unit. The first half of the weekly selection assessment scores were compared to the last half of the weekly selection assessment scores. Twelve ofthe fifteen students improved their scores from the first half ofthe program to the last half ofthe program, while one students' score remained the same. 30 Recommendations Recommendations for changes to the procedures, instruments, techniques Several recommendations have evolved from this investigation. One recommendation would be to conduct this reading intervention class at the beginning of the school day instead of the last forty-five minutes of the school day. The students seemed to be ready for their day to end by the time they came to class, and although they worked hard, the researcher felt that production might have been higher if the class was earlier in the day. Another recommendation would be to lengthen the study. It was believed that by providing a longer timeline for the investigation, more data could be collected. It would also be more valuable if the program started later in the school year. The participant wouldn't be faced with the uncomfortably hot classroom conditions. Pretest scores might be more accurate if the students were able to focus on the task at hand instead of being disrupted by the classroom conditions. Perhaps a survey would have been beneficial to the research as well. The survey could have been given at the end ofthe study to determine if the students' felt better about their comprehension skills. A survey could also have been given to the students' content area teachers to note any improvements noticed. Recommendations for advancing further research Further investigation of teaching reading comprehension skills to at-risk students might include a variety of changes to this study. The study could be extended to include word study and test-taking strategies in relation to comprehension. Further research would be needed to determine if a focus on these strategies would improve the students' comprehension skills that are needed when taking achievement tests such as the Ohio Proficiency Test.. Another recommendation would be to determine if increased reading time for students to practice their reading comprehension skills would improve results. Additional reading time could be done individually, with a small group, silently, or orally. The researcher felt that further research would be needed to determine if increased reading practice would improve the 31 comprehension of what was read. Recommendations for class use The researcher has considered implementing a specific program for building comprehension skills within her content area classroom. The results of the study indicated that the Read XL program might help students improve their reading skills. The researcher felt that at the middle childhood level, students are faced with more difficult reading due to the increased amount of expository text. Since the completion of this study, the researcher has tried new reading strategies with her content area students hoping to increase the comprehension skills of all students.
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