A Narrative Inquiry into Experiences of Teaching Reading

Title from PDF of title page, viewed May 9, 2018Dissertation advisor: Candace SchleinVitaIncludes bibliographical references (pages 220-237)Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Education and Department of English Language and Literature. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2018In recent years, educators have been paying attention to reading instruction and reading strategies in English classes at the high school level for several reasons. One of those reasons is the adoption of Common Core Standards and variations of those standards at the state level. As part of those standards, reading and writing benchmarks are not only essential but a primary focus for students in all disciplines. This study is a narrative inquiry into the experiences of high school English teachers to better understand their stories from teaching English grades 9–12 for five years or more. I collected data from three high school English teacher participants through interviews, classroom observations, and journal entries. I also made use of a personal frame not only as researcher but as an impetus for understanding teaching reading at the high school level in today’s English classrooms. There were three distinct themes that responded directly to the study’s research question and sub question: “Teachers’ Relationships with their Students,” “Teachers’ Beliefs about their Abilities in Teaching Reading,” and “Classroom Structure for Instruction.” An outcome of this study further centers on the teacher participants’ views about CCSS in relation to impacting their instruction. Readers of this study may find it useful as a narrative inquiry investigation into reading instruction and into literacy skills necessary for success in the 21st century. Reading and writing skills will be increasingly important as the world become smaller due to the increased inventions and usages of different types of technologies. This study might serve as a contribution in this intention because it finds that a person’s background with reading and personal experiences with reading allow the individual to understand their relationship with texts and also to help understand self-efficacy. This study might also help to start a professional development training for teachers to learn how to engage in different reading strategies across the disciplines.Introduction -- Theoretical framework -- Literature review -- Methodology -- Data analysis: common narrative themes -- Conclusion -- Appendix A. Superintendent Letter of Permission -- Appendix B. Consent form -- Appendix C. Interview #1 Protocol -- Appendix D. Interview #2 Protocol -- Appendix E. Observation Matrix -- Appendix F. Journal Entry Prompt