Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

Publication Date

Fall 11-6-1978

Abstract

The importance of reading a a process of learning subject matter emphasizes the responsibility teachers have in teaching that process to their students. The, raining of secondary teachers to meet that responsibility is a recent development for teacher preparatory institutions. Such training must be effective in training teachers who will implement sound teaching practices that include teaching reading as a process of learning.

To train such teachers, it is necessary that factors which affect their learning be identified, to ensure that the outcome of instruction will be teachers with the knowledge of and ability to teach reading in their respective content areas.

Literature relevant to this topic was reviewed and nine variables thought to be influential in the acquisition of concepts of reading in content fields were identified. This research project was conducted to test the relationship of those variables with competency in teaching reading and to determine the effectiveness of three varied instructional approaches to teaching reading in content areas.

The nine variables identified for study were attitude toward teaching reading in content fields, personal reading competency, sex of the teacher trainee, prior introduction to reading and related field experience, designated teaching level, semesters of education courses completed, college major, level of educational attainment, and number of reading courses taken.

Fifty-nine secondary education students at the University of New Mexico participated in one o three treatment groups. Group one received instruction for teaching of reading in content fields for 80 minutes each class period. The class met twice a week for fifteen weeks. Group two received instruction for teaching of reading in content fields for forty minutes each class period for the same number of weeks, and also received instruction for improvement of their personal reading skills for forty minutes each class period. Group three received a twelve hour introduction to reading.

The hypotheses tested were (1) that there is no significant differences in students' attitudes, reading competency, or competency to teach reading who are taught reading skills in conjunction with course content and students who are not taught such skills, and (2) that competency to teach reading in content fields is independent of the variables of attitude toward teaching reading in content fields, individual reading skill, related field experience and introduction to reading, sex, designated teaching level, number of education courses, college major, educational attainment, and number of reading courses.

The research also proposed to evaluate the effectiveness of each of the instructional approaches. Instruments were used to assess attitude toward teaching reading in content fields, competency teaching reading in content fields, and personal reading competency. The instruments used were the Vaughn Scale to Measure Attitudes toward Teaching Reading in Content Fields, Questionnaire - Teaching Reading in Content Fields, and the Nelson-Denny Reading Test. Statistical procedures used for data analysis were analysis of variance, multiple comparison tests, multiple class­ification analysis, and multiple regression.

A significant relationship at the .05 Alpha level was found in one group between competency in teaching reading in content fields and the variables of prior introduction to reading and attitude toward teaching reading in content fields. Analysis indicated no significant differences in the group who received instruction for personal reading skill and the group who did not receive that instruction. All groups made significant gains in competency to teach reading in content fields, justifying the inclusion of a course in reading in content areas at the preservice level.

Document Type

Dissertation

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Individual, Family, and Community Education

First Committee Member (Chair)

Robert Harold White

Second Committee Member

Unknown

Third Committee Member

Gladys Levis-Matichek

Fourth Committee Member

James G. Cooper

Download

Share

COinS