Developing oral reading fluency: Effects of daily use of word walls and daily independent silent reading on oral reading fluency development of second-grade students

The researcher measured the effectiveness of two popular supplemental reading instruction strategies, word walls and independent silent reading, in 6 second-grade classes over 12 weeks. The study involved the comparison of eight oral reading fluency growth measures (Rate, Accuracy, Fluency, Comprehension, Oral Reading Quotient-overall oral reading ability, Sight Word Efficiency, Phonemic Decoding Efficiency, and Total Word Reading Efficiency). The researcher used the individually administered Gray Oral Reading Tests (fourth edition) and the Test of Word Reading Efficiency in a pretestintervention-posttest experimental design to obtain these measures. Although pretest and posttest comparisons of the standard scores and percentile ranks revealed no statistically significant effects for either intervention group when compared to the Control group, actual gain score grade equivalency comparisons to the anticipated gains of 3 months were statistically significant for all three groups for almost every measure. The researcher concluded that although the daily use of Word Walls and the daily use of Independent Silent Reading both appear to be effective reading instruction strategies for second grade students, other reading instruction strategies (employed by the Control group) appear to be comparably effective. All three groups experienced a remarkable gain in overall oral reading ability according to the GORT-4 Oral Reading Quotient measure. This dramatic gain over the beginning three months of second grade suggests this period may be a crucial phase of reading fluency development. Developing Oral Reading Fluency iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This undertaking would not have been possible without the help, encouragement, and assistance of numerous family members, friends, and colleagues. Thank you for your support and interest in my research work. Thank you to my committee chairperson, Dr. Karen Parker, for her wise counsel and direction throughout this process. I would also like to thank my committee, Dr. Ellen Lowrie Black, Dr. Michelle Goodwin, and Dr. Jane Baskwill for their encouragement and helpful suggestions. My research assistants, Kimberlee Osborn, Joyce Baker, Bev Osborn, and Brian Osborn, were a pleasure to work with, and I thank them for their generous contributions of time and expertise. I would also like to acknowledge and thank the schools, principals, students, and especially the classroom teachers who agreed to be involved in this study and modify their teaching strategies for 12 weeks (Annette Hartman, Theresa Heikoop, Marilyn Lutgendorff, Paula Roth, Krista Taekema, and Karen Whitenect). Thank you to my wife, Kimberlee Osborn, who has been a constant source of encouragement, a patient sounding board, an obliging editor, and a loving companion throughout this journey. Developing Oral Reading Fluency v CONTENTS ABSTRACT iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv TABLES x FIGURES xii CHAPTER ONE Introduction 1 General Background 2 Statement of the Problem 8 Statement of Null Hypotheses 9 Professional Significance of the Study 10 Overview of Methodology 12 Definitions of Key Terms 13 CHAPTER TWO Review of the Related Research Literature 15 Current Trends in General Reading Instruction Research 16 The Report of the National Reading Panel 17 General Reading Instruction Research 22 What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction 22 Putting Reading First: The Building Blocks for Teaching Children to Read 25 Early Reading Strategy: The Report of the Expert Panel on Early Reading in Ontario 27 Developing Oral Reading Fluency vi Current Trends in Reading Fluency Research 29 A Focus on Fluency 29 What Research Says About Fluency Instruction 31 Defining Reading Fluency 32 A Brief History of Reading Fluency 34 Reading Fluency Instruction Strategies 35 Reading Fluency Assessment Measures 39 Theoretical Literature Related to Reading Fluency Development 42 Theoretical Literature and Empirical Research Related to Vocabulary Instruction and Word Walls 45 Phases of Word Learning 47 Theory of Automatic Information Processing in Reading 48 Vocabulary Instruction 53 Word Wall Advocates 58 Theoretical Literature and Empirical Research Related to Independent Silent Reading 60 Traditional Independent Silent Reading 61 The Matthew Effect for Reading Development 65 National Reading Panel’s Review of Empirical Studies on Sustained Silent Reading 65 The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research 2 Edition 70 Empirical Research Supporting the Use of Independent