Search results

Title: An analysis of attitudes, values, and literary quality of contemporary young adult romance series novels.
Creator: Irvine, Carolyn Lenette., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Twenty contemporary young adult romance series novels were examined in order to determine attitudes, values, and literary quality. This examination was done by content analysis. All 20 novels were selected from Waldenbooks and B. Dalton Bookseller's Bestsellers lists. The number of positive and negative attitudes toward Family, Peers, School, Love and Sex, Religion, Authority Figures, Neighborhood, Free-time Recreation, and Part-time Work was determined. The findings revealed that there were...
Show moreTwenty contemporary young adult romance series novels were examined in order to determine attitudes, values, and literary quality. This examination was done by content analysis. All 20 novels were selected from Waldenbooks and B. Dalton Bookseller's Bestsellers lists. The number of positive and negative attitudes toward Family, Peers, School, Love and Sex, Religion, Authority Figures, Neighborhood, Free-time Recreation, and Part-time Work was determined. The findings revealed that there were more positive attitudes (181) than there were negative attitudes (128). Free-time Recreation had more positive attitudes (68) than any other category, and Family and Peers had more negative attitudes (42)., Literary quality was determined by using a modification of Charlotte Huck's (1987) criteria for judging young adult literature. The main topics of the criteria were: plot, setting, theme, characterization, style, point of view, and format. The books were considered good literary choices if the answer was yes to 80% of the criteria. The findings revealed that 17 of the 20 novels studied met the criteria above 80%, and three books met 77.8% of the criteria. The novels rated high as literary choices, according to the criteria. It was concluded that romance series novels, with teachers guiding the reading of students, may be a part of the English curriculum.
Show less
Date Issued: 1989, 1989
Identifier: AAI9004997, 3091111, FSDT3091111, fsu:77768
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The children's literature curriculum of an elementary school: A microethnography.
Creator: Jenkins, Lisa Shamburger., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The purpose of this qualitative study was to observe, identify, and describe literary experiences and activities provided for students during the elementary school years. This study sought to describe literary information presented to students, along with how and why teachers use children's literature in the overall elementary curriculum., In order to fulfill these purposes the researcher became an observer within the context of one elementary school for a period of five months. During this...
Show moreThe purpose of this qualitative study was to observe, identify, and describe literary experiences and activities provided for students during the elementary school years. This study sought to describe literary information presented to students, along with how and why teachers use children's literature in the overall elementary curriculum., In order to fulfill these purposes the researcher became an observer within the context of one elementary school for a period of five months. During this time the researcher observed extensively in all grade levels and the school library media center. The researcher also utilized a variety of other qualitative research strategies, such as interviewing, examining instructional materials, and inspecting students' work related to literature. Triangulation involved follow-up interviews with teachers, school administrators, and district supervisors, examination of lesson plans, and repeated classroom and library media observations in order to confirm findings. Two broad perspectives were used to present the overall use of literature at one elementary school. The perspectives were: children's literature as a separate subject area and children's literature as an instructional tool., Based on the qualitative data gathered the following conclusions were derived: (1) no consistent, well-coordinated curriculum in children's literature was currently in use, (2) no system for ensuring coverage of certain literary concepts across grade levels and for preventing excessive rereading of stories was provided, (3) an implicit curriculum in children's literature existed in which teachers drew upon personal craft knowledge and creativity to bring literature into their classrooms, and this curriculum varied greatly from teacher to teacher and grade to grade, (4) most students preferred having literature read aloud to them, rather than reading independently, (5) school library media specialist played a supplemental role to the implicit literature curriculum, but in this school the resident literature experts who served as resources to other teachers were two classroom teachers, (6) reading aloud to students was the most routinely implemented literature activity, with other literature activities typically occurring spasmodically, (7) there was no consistent pattern for purchasing literature for individual classrooms, (8) teachers typically used whole class grouping for reading instruction, rather than providing varied grouping patterns.
Show less
Date Issued: 1991, 1991
Identifier: AAI9209121, 3087693, FSDT3087693, fsu:76508
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A comparative study of the readability and comprehensibility of a simplified and the original version of an American short story with students of English as a Foreign Language.
Creator: Harper, Candace Ann., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study examined the effects of simplification of a short story on the readability and comprehensibility of the text for EFL readers at varying L2 proficiencies, and on these readers' response to the story. The research was conducted with the assumption that simplification procedures which reduce semantic, syntactic, and content features of texts do not adequately reflect current reading theory and may render texts more "readable" but not necessarily more comprehensible or engaging....
Show moreThis study examined the effects of simplification of a short story on the readability and comprehensibility of the text for EFL readers at varying L2 proficiencies, and on these readers' response to the story. The research was conducted with the assumption that simplification procedures which reduce semantic, syntactic, and content features of texts do not adequately reflect current reading theory and may render texts more "readable" but not necessarily more comprehensible or engaging. Familiarity with story discourse may provide readers schematic resources to overcome linguistic complexity., The subjects were 256 French and Yugoslav university students. TOEFL scores, ranging from 320 to 630, served as the covariate in the statistical analyses of the comprehension measures., Readability of the two text versions was addressed through application of readability formulas and analyses of propositional content, cohesion, and stylistic features. Comprehension was measured by means of cloze passages scored with exact and acceptable word criteria, a multiple-choice test, and written recall protocols eliciting variables of percentage of propositions recalled and total words written. Response was measured by readers' conclusions for the story, and their justifications of their conclusions., Descriptive statistics for the readability measures show the original version has higher difficulty ratings, greater propositional density and number of metadiscourse features, and greater cohesion, particularly lexical cohesion. Inferential statistics for the comprehension measures uniformly demonstrate that the original version was more difficult to understand. Summary statistics for the response variables indicate, however, that readers of the original version wrote longer story conclusions, included more reader-based inferences in their justifications, and showed more awareness of story genre and stylistic characteristics., Procedural and instrumental limitations are discussed, with instructional implications for the use of cohesive, coherent, simplified materials in L2 contexts where reading for information (as in ESP), or independent reading for pleasure (as with SSR), are the goals. The importance of the role of the teacher in preparing readers to interact with unsimplified texts is stressed.
Show less
Date Issued: 1990, 1990
Identifier: AAI9024095, 3162029, FSDT3162029, fsu:78227
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A descriptive analysis of test scores posted by seven community colleges on the communication subtests of the College-Level Academic Skills Test.
Creator: Culbreth, Laurie Bonney., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: An analysis of the 1991 Florida CLAST essay and reading subtest data reveals that only three Florida community colleges: Lake-Sumter Community College, St. Johns River Community College, and Indian River Community College reported the highest passing rates on both the essay and reading subtests. The other twenty-five community colleges in the state reported large differences in student passing rates between the essay subtest and the reading subtest., The researcher also examined four other...
Show moreAn analysis of the 1991 Florida CLAST essay and reading subtest data reveals that only three Florida community colleges: Lake-Sumter Community College, St. Johns River Community College, and Indian River Community College reported the highest passing rates on both the essay and reading subtests. The other twenty-five community colleges in the state reported large differences in student passing rates between the essay subtest and the reading subtest., The researcher also examined four other community colleges within the state: Chipola Junior College, Gulf Coast Community College, North Florida Junior College, and Lake City Community College. These four institutions reported large differences in the student passing rates between the CLAST essay subtest and the reading subtest., The purpose of this study is to ascertain possible factors which contribute to the higher passing rates reported by L-SCC, SJRCC, and IRCC. The six factors are curricula required for A.A. degree-seeking students, reading materials, exiting CLAST policies, student entrance scores, and teaching strategies and teaching styles of the English departments., An analysis of this data reveals that two factors are related to the superior CLAST performance of the students at L-SCC, IRCC, and SJRCC--Category 2 (curricula) and Category 3 (exiting CLAST policies).
Show less
Date Issued: 1994, 1994
Identifier: AAI9502846, 3088451, FSDT3088451, fsu:77256
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Developing executive control processes in reading: The design and evaluation of the reading strategies training program.
Creator: Jacobs, John William, III., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The purpose of this study was twofold. First, by following systematic instructional design procedures, component skills were identified and instructional materials were developed for a paper-based reading strategies training program (RSTP). The theoretical basis for instruction was a model describing the components of strategic reading. Ninety subjects were randomly assigned to three treatment conditions. The uninformed treatment group (UT) received only instruction on how to perform seven...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was twofold. First, by following systematic instructional design procedures, component skills were identified and instructional materials were developed for a paper-based reading strategies training program (RSTP). The theoretical basis for instruction was a model describing the components of strategic reading. Ninety subjects were randomly assigned to three treatment conditions. The uninformed treatment group (UT) received only instruction on how to perform seven reading tactics. The informed treatment group (IT) was given, in addition, information about where, when, and when not to use these tactics. The informed plus metacognition group (ITM) was given the same instructional materials as the IT group plus a four step metastrategy that was expected to aid subjects' selection and ordering of tactics. Subjects were given a pretest and posttest on skills taught in the RSTP, and an attitude questionnaire., Results of the training indicated the RSTP improved subjects' skills, although expected between-group differences were not found and skill acquisition was less than desirable for all groups. This result prompted additional training for a subset (N = 57) of the original sample, with the criterion for exclusion from retraining being absence from five or more of the original 13 training sessions. Approximately two weeks later, these subjects were individually tested with six reading tasks that required use of either low comprehension-intensive tactics (i.e., scanning or skimming) or high comprehension-intensive tactics (i.e., notetaking and summarization). As subjects performed the reading tasks, the experimenter rated their performance in terms of whether or not they applied the correct reading tactics within each task., Subjects' reading strategy use changed in response to variations in type of reading tasks (either low or high comprehension-intensive) but not in accordance with hypothesized differences based on group inclusion. Tactic use was also significantly correlated with grade and reading achievement. The finding of no significant group differences failed to support previous research indicating the efficacy of training executive control processes for facilitating transfer. However, the instructional model used to develop the RSTP, as well as data collection procedures used to investigate reading strategy use, will be useful to other researchers. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)
Show less
Date Issued: 1987, 1987
Identifier: AAI8805668, 3086796, FSDT3086796, fsu:76271
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: An evaluation of the effectiveness of two methods for providing computer-assisted repeated reading training to reading-disabled students.
Creator: Cohen, Andrew Lawrence., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The present study evaluated the instructional effectiveness of two methods for providing computer-assisted repeated reading training to reading disabled students. One repeated reading method, the Processing Power program (ICT, Inc., 1983), was designed to help disabled readers compensate for proposed dysfunctions in visual processes, while providing repeated reading practice (Fisher, 1979, 1980, 1981). Consequently, disabled readers in the processing power condition received repeated reading...
Show moreThe present study evaluated the instructional effectiveness of two methods for providing computer-assisted repeated reading training to reading disabled students. One repeated reading method, the Processing Power program (ICT, Inc., 1983), was designed to help disabled readers compensate for proposed dysfunctions in visual processes, while providing repeated reading practice (Fisher, 1979, 1980, 1981). Consequently, disabled readers in the processing power condition received repeated reading instruction that included isolated word practice to improve the efficiency of word decoding skills, widely spaced words to reduce the amount of competing textual information, and increasingly complex visual formats to reacquaint the reader with the left-to-right sequencing of text. The second method of repeated reading practice, the Reading Shell program (IDDEA Inc. and SIMPAC Educational products, Inc., 1986), provided disabled readers in the repetitive reading condition with standard text formats during all passage readings., Forty seven reading disabled students, matched in groups of three based on intelligence, age, and word recognition ability were randomly assigned to either the processing power condition, repetitive reading condition, or no-treatment control group. Contrasts between the oral reading fluency rates of subjects in the two repeated reading programs indicates that disabled readers are able to process standard text without the visual interference hypothesized by Fisher's (1979, 1980, 1981) Complementary theory of reading.
Show less
Date Issued: 1988, 1988
Identifier: AAI8819144, 3161602, FSDT3161602, fsu:77803
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Improvement in reading comprehension and writing performance as a function of text-interactive instruction.
Creator: Murray, Bertha Flowers., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study investigated whether text-interactive instruction improved the reading comprehension and writing performance of students enrolled in developmental reading at a Florida community college. Pre-treatment reading comprehension and writing performance levels of two groups of students were assessed. For twelve weeks, one group received text-interactive instruction and the other traditional instruction. Text-interactive instruction supposes that the meaning and structure of a text are...
Show moreThis study investigated whether text-interactive instruction improved the reading comprehension and writing performance of students enrolled in developmental reading at a Florida community college. Pre-treatment reading comprehension and writing performance levels of two groups of students were assessed. For twelve weeks, one group received text-interactive instruction and the other traditional instruction. Text-interactive instruction supposes that the meaning and structure of a text are created from interaction among text, teacher, reader, peers, and context. Prediction questions were used to help students learn to predict, infer, analyze, and evaluate. Because these processes are shared by reading and writing, students improved both reading comprehension and writing performance. Other activities included discussing short stories and essays., The traditional model involved reading short stories and essays and supplying answers to skills-specific questions about main ideas, details, words in contexts, facts, inferences, and conclusions. At the conclusion of the study, mean pretest scores were compared to mean posttest scores. To assess the significance of any differences, three separate ANOVA's were conducted. Results indicated that students receiving text-interactive instruction improved significantly higher in writing performance when the writing was evaluated for the use of embedded cues that evoke feelings, emotions, and attitudes. Additionally, students receiving text-interactive instruction performed at a higher level, although not statistically significant, when essays were holistically scored. Finally, students receiving traditional instruction achieved at a higher level, in reading comprehension although not statistically significant, than those receiving text-interactive instruction.
Show less
Date Issued: 1991, 1991
Identifier: AAI9123535, 3087510, FSDT3087510, fsu:76333
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The nature of phonological processing abilities: A study of kindergarten and second-grade children.
Creator: Simmons, Karen Dorothy., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Ninety-five kindergarten and 89 second-grade children were given a battery of tasks to examine the latent structure of phonological processing. Tasks commonly used to measure phonological awareness, phonological code retrieval, and phonological coding in working memory were administered, along with control tasks and measures of general cognitive ability. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to evaluate how well each of 17 alternative models of phonological processing "fit" the data...
Show moreNinety-five kindergarten and 89 second-grade children were given a battery of tasks to examine the latent structure of phonological processing. Tasks commonly used to measure phonological awareness, phonological code retrieval, and phonological coding in working memory were administered, along with control tasks and measures of general cognitive ability. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to evaluate how well each of 17 alternative models of phonological processing "fit" the data collected at both the kindergarten and second grade-levels. In addition, the relationship between phonological processing and cognitive ability was examined by obtaining correlations between each identified latent phonological processing factor and the cognitive ability factor. For the kindergarten children, one factor accounted for individual differences in performance on tasks purported to measure phonological coding in working memory and on tasks purported to measure analysis skill. Separate, correlated factors accounted for performance on measures of synthesis, serial naming, and isolated naming. Identical results were observed at the second-grade level, with the exception that individual performance differences on working memory and analysis tasks were accounted for by separate (although highly correlated) factors, rather than by a single latent ability. At both grade levels, the correlations obtained between the latent phonological processing factors and the cognitive ability factor indicated a stronger relationship between phonological processing and cognitive ability than was expected on the basis of previous research. The results suggest that the latent structure of phonological processing is relatively cohesive and stable during the early years of reading instruction. The slightly different pattern of results observed with the second-grade sample, however,, suggests that the present study cannot rule out the possibility that the latent structure of phonological processing changes following the mastery of initial reading skills.
Show less
Date Issued: 1991, 1991
Identifier: AAI9212283, 3087736, FSDT3087736, fsu:76546
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The use of the personal reflexive journal in the adult literacy tutorial: The case of Jane.
Creator: Alexander, Mary M. Cozean., Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This ethnographic, single-case study was conducted over a two-year period. It documents the changes that occurred in the life of a forty-two year old female as she gained reading and writing skills in a literacy tutorial. This documentation was based on numerous personal journals that she dictated and wrote., Although her income level or economic status did not change significantly during the period of the study, her individual reading scores rose from lower elementary to post-secondary level...
Show moreThis ethnographic, single-case study was conducted over a two-year period. It documents the changes that occurred in the life of a forty-two year old female as she gained reading and writing skills in a literacy tutorial. This documentation was based on numerous personal journals that she dictated and wrote., Although her income level or economic status did not change significantly during the period of the study, her individual reading scores rose from lower elementary to post-secondary level. In addition, according to her, what changed in her life was her self-concept with respect to reading and writing, and her insight into the historical value of what she had learned outside of any educational setting. This change or growth process was paralleled to the Kubler-Ross model (1975), and was compared to the Belenky, et al. model (1986)., A ten-step program and process model for the Personal Reflexive Journal was developed and is included in this study for use with adult literacy students who are learning to express themselves through writing.
Show less
Date Issued: 1989, 1989
Identifier: AAI9014594, 3161942, FSDT3161942, fsu:78141
Format: Document (PDF)

Education, Language and Literature (5)	+ -
Education, Educational Psychology (3)	+ -
Education, Community College (2)	+ -
Education, Adult and Continuing (1)	+ -
Education, Early Childhood (1)	+ -

Florida State University (9)	+ -
Alexander, Mary M. Cozean. (1)	+ -
Cohen, Andrew Lawrence. (1)	+ -
Culbreth, Laurie Bonney. (1)	+ -
Harper, Candace Ann. (1)	+ -

Irvine, Carolyn Lenette. (1)	+ -
Jacobs, John William, III. (1)	+ -
Jenkins, Lisa Shamburger. (1)	+ -
Murray, Bertha Flowers. (1)	+ -
Simmons, Karen Dorothy. (1)	+ -

Search In

Sort Results By:

Narrow results by:

Collection

Topical Subject

Type of Resource

Language

Creator

Format

Found In

Owner