Sheila Valencia - Chair of Curriculum&Instruction, University of Washington

The purpose of this study is to investigate various approaches to fluency assessment with the aim of developing guidelines for valid assessment and informed instruction. Specifically, we ask: 1) How do reading rate, accuracy, and expression interact to produce high levels of reading comprehension? 2) How does reading fluency change across developmental levels and texts of different difficulty?

Funded by: The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction,
Washington State
Co-PI: Tom Stritikus

Every year thousands of students take standardized tests and state reading tests, and every year thousands fail them. When the federal legislation associated with “No Child Left Behind” is fully implemented, these numbers will grow exponentially and English Language Learners (ELLs) are projected to make up a disproportionately high percentage of these failing students. Schools districts and schools are struggling for ways to meet the needs of these students. Many of them may not be receiving the educational services they may need and, with increasingly limited resources, many may be exited from additional language support classes before they are ready to deal with academic challenges in English.

There are surprisingly little data on the nature of the instructional services provided to ELLs in elementary and middle schools and on their reading and writing performance. This mixed-method study addresses both issues. Interviews with administrators, ESL teachers, and classroom teachers in more than 15 schools, across 6 school districts have provided data on the envisioned and enacted programs of support provided to language minority students. By tracking district policies into school programs and individual classrooms where mainstream teachers work with ELL students, we are learning about how programs actually work and what educators believe can help them meet the needs of students. In addition, we are conducting a secondary analysis of state test results to examine the reading and writing performance of ELLs who are currently receiving services as well as those who have been exited from supplemental support. Our goal is to gain a better understanding of the policies and practices that can support ELL students and their teachers. With these data in hand, we are more likely to provide appropriate literacy instruction for these students and ultimately help them achieve and succeed in school.

Funded by: The Nesholm Family Foundation

For the past four years, the Nesholm Family Foundation has supported an initiative to improve literacy instruction in several high-need Seattle middle schools. Working together with literacy coaches and administrators, we have developed curriculum models to enhance reading instruction and provided on-site professional development for classroom teachers. Over the years, we have focused on explicit instruction in comprehension and vocabulary, reading motivation and engagement, using assessment information to inform instruction, and model teaching. This on-going school project provides a bi-directional link between reading research and on-the-ground practice: new research informs classroom practice and policy, and practice in schools informs possibilities for new research.

back to top

College of Education | C & I | C & I Faculty

Home

Current Research & School Projects

Publications

Presentations

Courses

Vitae






				Funded by: The Spencer Foundation Reading fluency is on everyone’s agenda: The National Reading Panel, No Child Left Behind, state departments of education, and school districts nationwide. In practical terms, oral reading fluency is the ability to accurately and quickly decode the words in a text, and to read with proper phrasing and expression. Students who must expend extraordinary effort to read “use up” the cognitive resources they need to comprehend. So, it is not simply that their reading is slow, labored, and lacks the smoothness of skilled readers but rather that such behaviors may be signs that they have difficulty understanding. In an effort to help schools focus on fluency, influential reports are encouraging educators and states to assess it by measuring students’ speed and accuracy while reading grade level material for one minute. Although such an approach may be time-efficient, recent calls for research suggest that it may be premature and potentially problematic. Furthermore, because assessment often drives instruction, interventions aimed at improving oral reading fluency frequently emphasize increasing the number of words read correctly per minute on short reading selections, without direct regard for expression or comprehension. The purpose of this study is to investigate various approaches to fluency assessment with the aim of developing guidelines for valid assessment and informed instruction. Specifically, we ask: 1) How do reading rate, accuracy, and expression interact to produce high levels of reading comprehension? 2) How does reading fluency change across developmental levels and texts of different difficulty? Funded by: The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, Washington State Co-PI: Tom Stritikus Every year thousands of students take standardized tests and state reading tests, and every year thousands fail them. When the federal legislation associated with “No Child Left Behind” is fully implemented, these numbers will grow exponentially and English Language Learners (ELLs) are projected to make up a disproportionately high percentage of these failing students. Schools districts and schools are struggling for ways to meet the needs of these students. Many of them may not be receiving the educational services they may need and, with increasingly limited resources, many may be exited from additional language support classes before they are ready to deal with academic challenges in English. There are surprisingly little data on the nature of the instructional services provided to ELLs in elementary and middle schools and on their reading and writing performance. This mixed-method study addresses both issues. Interviews with administrators, ESL teachers, and classroom teachers in more than 15 schools, across 6 school districts have provided data on the envisioned and enacted programs of support provided to language minority students. By tracking district policies into school programs and individual classrooms where mainstream teachers work with ELL students, we are learning about how programs actually work and what educators believe can help them meet the needs of students. In addition, we are conducting a secondary analysis of state test results to examine the reading and writing performance of ELLs who are currently receiving services as well as those who have been exited from supplemental support. Our goal is to gain a better understanding of the policies and practices that can support ELL students and their teachers. With these data in hand, we are more likely to provide appropriate literacy instruction for these students and ultimately help them achieve and succeed in school. Funded by: The Nesholm Family Foundation For the past four years, the Nesholm Family Foundation has supported an initiative to improve literacy instruction in several high-need Seattle middle schools. Working together with literacy coaches and administrators, we have developed curriculum models to enhance reading instruction and provided on-site professional development for classroom teachers. Over the years, we have focused on explicit instruction in comprehension and vocabulary, reading motivation and engagement, using assessment information to inform instruction, and model teaching. This on-going school project provides a bi-directional link between reading research and on-the-ground practice: new research informs classroom practice and policy, and practice in schools informs possibilities for new research. back to top College of Education \| C & I \| C & I Faculty
	Home Current Research & School Projects Publications Presentations Courses Vitae