A Fuctional Reading Program and Its Effect Upon the General Achievements of Pupils of Grades Eight Through Twelve, Lincoln High School, Coldspring, Texas

The teachers of grades nine through twelve of Lincoln High School, Coldspring, Texas, voiced loud complaints about the standard of work done by the pupils in any subject in which silent reading and independent study skills were involved. They expressed the belief that something could be and should be done about the matter; yet very little except complaining was undertaken prior to the 1953-1954 school year. Every year for the past six years some of the students who left school in May without having graduated did not return in September. Some went to other towns and entered schools, while others failed to enroll any more in any school. Most of the drop-outs occurred in grades eight through ten. They were pupils whose scholastic achievements were low in all subjects listed on their permanent records. Many of the students who entered the high school department and many of those who were promoted were passed on from grade to grade to relieve the congestion in the elementary grades or because of psychological reasons. Test results for a period of several years showed that there were serious reading difficulties among the students who enrolled year after year. The investigator, in reading the literature of her field, discovered the widespread seriousness of the reading difficulties of students on the high school level, and resolved to do intensive study of the problem in her teaching situation. This study was undertaken (1) to determine the general educational levels of the pupils of grades eight through twelve of Lincoln High School, Coldspring, Texas, (2) to find the reading level of each pupil, (3) to locate the major reading weaknesses of the pupils in study-type reading, (4) to adjust the English curriculum to meet the needs shown, and (5) to relate the pupils\u27 reading abilities to their achievements in content subjects