Ensuring a literate future Samuel Whitley, Yojanna Cuenca-Carlino, and Tiffany Sloan

Introduction In 2015, over a quarter of the twelfth graders assessed with the reading subsection of the National Assessment of Educational Progress displayed below basic reading abilities (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017). Nearly three fourths of the nation’s twelfth graders show writing skills at the basic or below basic level (National Center for Education Statistics, 2012). Previous research has indicated that reading comprehension and written expression are inextricably linked. Secondary students well served by receiving instruction in both areas (Graham & Perin, 2007).

Purpose of the study Utilize a Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) framework in conjunction with standard educational practices to improve the abilities of secondary students to read and summarize expository texts. Extend the use of SRSD to an economically and ethnically diverse set of students.

Research questions What impact does the use of the TWA plus SHORT mnemonic have on students reading comprehension and written expression when embedded within a SRSD framework? Does the use of SRSD improve students’ perceptions of their self-efficacy in writing?

Sample Consisted of three high school students Penny = Caucasian female in the 10th grade. Eligible for special education under the category of OHI. IEP identified areas of deficit included reading comprehension, as well as planning and organizing her writing. Laski = Caucasian female in 9th grade. Eligible for special education under the category of SLD. IEP identified area of deficit included written expression (planning, organization, and sequencing of thoughts). David = Hispanic male in 10th grade. Eligible for special education under the category of OHI. IEP identified areas of deficit included reading comprehension, as well as planning and organizing his writing.

Setting and Interventionist Project Success room. This is a classroom that provides specialized academic remediation for students who qualify for specialized academic services. Not all students received instruction at identical times. Students not engaged in direct instruction on the mnemonics embedded in the SRSD framework completed teacher established small group or individual seatwork activities under the supervision of the classroom paraprofessional Implemented by the special education teacher LBS I certified 12 years experience teaching No experience with SRSD

Teacher training and support Teacher provided with pre-intervention professional development by authors of study covering: Background information of SRSD Basic information on research design and procedures Expectations for successful researcher-teacher partnership Discussion of materials and SRSD lesson modeling

Reading Materials

Intervention: SRSD SRSD is a writing strategy that incorporates instruction in self-regulation. Evidence-based practice for students with LD and EB/D Over 40 years of studies Used to teach: Narrative writing Argumentative writing Revising Reading comprehension Reading comprehension plus written summaries Math Word problem solving Solving multi-step equations

SRSD Lessons The SRSD lessons can be taught: Individually In small or large groups Typically 3-4 times a week for 30-45 minutes sessions The number of lessons required depends on how quickly students progress through the stages

Stages of SRSD Stages Process Purpose Stage 1 Develop and activate background knowledge Increase background knowledge Discussion about reading and writing Example: characteristics of good readers and writers, types of expository texts, characteristics of good summaries Stage 2 Discuss the strategy including benefits and expectations How and when to use the strategy Self-regulation procedures are emphasized (i.e. goal setting, monitoring) TWA+SHORT Stage 3 Model the strategy Teachers model the strategy- Inner thought process Stage 4 Memorize the strategy Practice steps of the process and memorize the strategy Stage 5 Provide guided practice Longest of the stages. Students practice writing with help Stage 6 Independent practice Students require little or no support. Write independently-

Self-Regulation Principles in SRSD Goal Write a summary What is it I have to do?” “Hooray, I’m done!” “The first step in writing is “P” – pick my idea.” Self-reinforcement Planning TWA+SHORT Self-Regulation Principles in SRSD Set goals for learning Talk to themselves in positive ways about learning Use self-instruction to guide themselves through a learning problem Monitor their comprehension or progress Reward themselves for success Self-evaluation Graph their progress “I have to take my time…Think of the steps.” Attention control/ self-management Self-monitoring “I need to slow down and take my time.” Application of learning strategies TWA+SHORT “Am I following my plan?”

Stage 1 Develop background knowledge Sign learning contract Importance of learning reading and writing strategies Comprehension strategies Re-read, reduce rate, stop and think Writing strategies Note taking, finding main idea, rephrasing, planning Sign learning contract

Contract

Stage 2 Discuss the strategy Two lessons Lesson 1: Introduce TWA mnemonic T = Think Before Reading (1. Purpose, 2. Previous knowledge, 3. What to learn) W = Think While Reading (1. Speed, 2. Previous knowledge, 3. Rereading) A = Think After Reading (1. Main idea, 2. Summarization, 3. What you learned) Main idea highlighted with yellow, details numbered and highlighted in blue

Stage 2 Lesson 2: Introduce SHORT mnemonic and graphic organizer S = State the topic sentence and reread (yellow highlighter) H = Hunt for highlights (blue highlighter) O = Organize supporting details (paraphrase in complete sentence on graphic organizer) R = Reread graphic organizer and summary (“Do I have all the parts?”) T = Top it off with a conclusion Explain how to transfer notes to paragraph form Discussed characteristics of expository text and types

Stage 3 Model it (Can be repeated with multiple examples) Review TWA + SHORT Introduce positive statements Model process Talking out loud about sample with TWA worksheet and SHORT ogranizer Transfer to paragraph form Self-evaluate

Stage 4 Memorize it Steps of TWA+SHORT Review types of expository text Review self-statements Review components of summaries Done through teacher directed activities/games

Stage 5 and Stage 6 Guided Practice Independent Practice Student performance with previous scaffolds Teacher provides encouragement to use strategies When students have completed the summaries with minimal help, materials removed Asked to summarize one reading without materials Independent Practice Dependent measure

Experimental design Multiple baseline across participants One demonstration and two replications PND-I and Tau-U to supplement visual analysis Wilcoxon signed-rank test for significant median differences for self-efficacy in writing

Baseline Laski

Results PND-I and Tau-U PND-I Tau-U Penny 100% 1.00 Laski David

Results Self-Efficacy Gain scores for the self-efficacy in writing measure were analyzed. All three of the study’s participants indicated increased feelings of self-efficacy in writing. Despite this, a Wilcoxon signed-rank test determined that there was no statistically significant difference in reported self-efficacy in writing (Mdn = 4.00) following instruction in SRSD (Mdn = 23.00) as compared to pre-SRSD instruction levels of perceived self- efficacy in writing (Mdn = 19.00), z = 1.604, p = .11.   

Conclusions Effective instructional framework for improving students’ ability to understand and summarize what they read Effective for secondary students eligible for special education under various eligibility categories Engaging for instruction for students Easily implemented by teachers during course of typical school day