Word Study Promotes the Application of Spelling Skills within Elementary Students’ Independent Writing

The research question addressed in this project was how does a balanced literacy program that includes word study promote application of spelling skills within elementary students’ independent writing? It documents the implementation of effective word study components within an elementary setting. The action research project included whole group lessons, followed by guided practice using interactive writing and writing conferences, and also individualized, hands-on, independent word work. These strategies were based off of the research of Fountas and Pinnell and the resource Word Matters (2001). Through the implementation of these components the author developed a deeper understanding of effective word study strategies that promote implementation during independent writing

Impact of the Orton-Gillingham program on the reading of students who are reading below grade level

This study investigated the effectiveness of the Orton-Gillingham supplemental tutoring program on third grade students. Participants were struggling readers who read at a slow rate. These students are in regular education, Basic Skills Improvement Program, or special education classes. Students received tutoring in groups which consisted of four to five students in each group and were homogeneous. The Dynamic Indicator for Early Basic Literature Skills assessments were used as a baseline in September, and posttest in January and February, to measure abilities in fluency, decoding, and story retell/comprehension. Results indicate that the Orton-Gillingham Program was effective at improving the fluency and decoding skills of the regular education students, Basic Skill Improvement Program students, and special education students. The results were inconclusive for the story retell/comprehension subtests. Students in the regular education, Basic Skills Improvement Program, and special education classes were able to read more words per minute and decode at a higher rate after the tutoring indicating that this program is effective for all three groups

Multilingualism, Teaching, and Learning Foreign Languages in Present-Day Hungary

Hungary is a monolingual state in Central Eastern Europe, where the Hungarian language, as the official language, is spoken by the whole population, including persons belonging to national and linguistic minorities. On the territory of Hungary, in the course of history, there have always lived representatives of other cultures and speakers of other languages. Nevertheless, in terms of the ability of speaking more than one language, within the European Union, Hungary is left behind, according to the latest Eurobarometer survey. In this paper we will highlight some of the facts and problems undermining real multilingualism in Hungary

The effect of the Wilson Reading Program on spelling skills in an inclusive sixth grade setting

This study examined the use of the Wilson Reading program as a method for instructing spelling rules and principles in an inclusive sixth grade setting. The subjects included eighteen sixth grade students, four special education and fourteen regular education students. Post testing results indicated that in 76% of all the students there was an increase of approximately one year in spelling ability. Two of the four special education students had an increase in age appropriate ability, with the two remaining special education students decreasing in grade equivalence

An investigation of the cross-language transfer of reading skills: Evidence from a study in Nigerian Government Primary Schools

This paper investigates the linguistic interdependence of grade 3 children studying in government primary schools in northern Nigeria who are learning to read in Hausa (L1) and English (L2) simultaneously. There are few studies in the African context that consider linguistic interdependence and the bidirectional influences of literacy skills in multilingual contexts. To do so a total of 2,328 grade 3 children were tested on their Hausa and English letter sound knowledge (phonemes) and reading decoding skills (word) after participating in a two-year English structured reading intervention programme as part of their school day. In grade 4 these children will become English immersion learners, with English becoming the medium of instruction. Carrying out bivariate correlations we find a large and strongly positively significant correlation between L1 and L2 test scores. Concerning bidirectionality a feedback path model illustrates that L1 word predicts L2 word and vice versa. Multi-level modelling is then used to consider the variation in test scores. Almost two thirds of the variation in the word score is attributable to the pupil level and one third to the school level. Hausa word score is significantly predicted through Hausa sound and English word score. English word score is significantly predicted through Hausa word and English sound score. The findings have implications for language policy and classroom instruction showing the importance of cross-language transfer between reading skills. The overall results support bidirectionality and linguistic interdependence