A Preliminary Investigation of the Effects of a Professional Development Training on Secondary Students' Reading Scores

<p>Much of the emphasis on interventions to improve literacy skills has been focused on the primary grade levels. Over the last decade, an increasing amount of research has stressed the need for effective reading interventions for adolescents. However, little research has evaluated effective professional development of secondary teachers in the area of literacy. The current study examines the results of embedded teacher professional development in the form of an intensive summer reading program on student reading achievement. Students reading below the 50^th percentile at the end of seventh and ninth grades were identified. The final sample consisted of 92 students who participated in the summer program in its entirety. The program consisted of four weeks (20 sessions) of reading instruction. For the students below grade level, grade equivalent scores significantly increased one-third to one-half of a year. Limitations of the current study are discussed as well as recommendations for future research.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Specialist in Education

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Department of Psychology

Year

2014

Author dc:creator

• Follett, Shannon

Contributors dc:contributor

• Carl Myers (Director), Pamela Petty, Andrew Mienaltowski

• Professional Development
• Literacy
• Secondary Students
• Teacher Education
• School Psychology
• Curriculum and Instruction
• Education
• Social Psychology
• Teacher Education and Professional Development

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1402

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.wku.edu:theses-2407