Theses and Dissertations from UMD
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2
New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM
More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.
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Item INCREASING READING ACHIEVEMENT AND NARROWING THE READING ACHIEVEMENT GAP FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES THROUGH EFFECTIVE EVIDENCE-BASED CORE INSTRUCTION, EARLY IDENTIFICATION & PREVENTION AND TIERED INTERVENTIONS(2021) Harris, Christina Marie; McLaughlin, Margaret J; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)ABSTRACT Title of Dissertation: INCREASING READING ACHIEVEMENT AND NARROWING THE READING ACHIEVEMENT GAP FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES THROUGH EFFECTIVE EVIDENCE-BASED CORE INSTRUCTION, EARLY IDENTIFICATION & PREVENTION AND TIERED INTERVENTIONS Christina M. Harris, Doctorate of Education, 2021 Dissertation directed by: Dr. Margaret McLaughlin, College of Education Many students, especially students with disabilities are underachieving in reading. Early evidence-based literacy instruction implemented in kindergarten and first grade is critical for providing the necessary foundation for learning to read. The status of kindergarten and first grade literacy instruction impacts the goal of ensuring students are reading by grade three and sets the trajectory for future academic success. This study focused on determining the status of evidence-based early literacy instruction in K-1 classrooms in District C through surveying teachers regarding their knowledge and skills in teaching reading and their use of instructional practices. Observations during literacy instruction in a sampling of classrooms in the district focused on implementation of key practices aligned with structured literacy. The investigation of teacher knowledge of evidence-based literacy instructional practices and the status of implementation of evidence-based literacy instruction in K-1 classrooms will help to inform teacher professional development so that early evidence-based literacy instruction is implemented in core instruction in the most critical grades which will improve reading achievement for all students, including students with disabilities. The research study was guided by these questions: 1. To what extent do teachers in grade K-1 classrooms report having the knowledge and skills to teach all students using evidence-based early literacy practices in the five areas of reading? 2. What challenges to implementing evidence-based early literacy practices do K-1 teachers report? 3. To what extent do a sample of K-1 teachers demonstrate evidence-based literacy practices aligned with key principles of structured literacy? Based on the survey results, the majority of teachers rated having about average to high levels of knowledge with teaching the 5 areas of reading but rated lower teaching reading to struggling readers and students with disabilities. Teachers rated highest their knowledge/skills in teaching phonemic awareness and phonics and rated lowest for vocabulary. Teachers reported the most prevalent instructional practices used are teacher demonstrations/modeling and guided practice and the most prevalent grouping approach is whole class. Classroom observation results indicated that teachers are implementing evidence-based instructional practices, but with varying frequencies including high rates of teacher modeling and low practice opportunities for students.Item Stress and achievement in elementary school students: The mediating role of growth mindset(2019) Babaturk, Leyla; O'Neal, Colleen R; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The achievement gap is one of the most pernicious education problems in the United States, and stress has a negative impact on achievement. Growth mindset may explain how stress impacts achievement. This study used a short-term longitudinal design (n = 251; 36% DLL) to evaluate growth mindset as a mediator of the negative impact of stress on literacy achievement in 3rd - 5th grade students. Results confirmed that perceived stress was negative related to achievement. The present study also explored whether mediation model results differ between dual-language learning (DLL) and English-native students. Although growth mindset did not act as a mediator in the full sample, growth-minded attributions mediated the negative effect of stress on achievement for non-DLL students only. These results hold implications for understanding how to help students with the consequences of stress on their mindsets and academic performance.Item The Effects of Constructs of Motivation that Affirm and Undermine Reading Achievement Inside and Outside of School on Middle School Students' Reading Achievement(2009) Coddington, Cassandra Shular; Wigfield, Allan; Guthrie, John T; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study was to examine whether motivation for reading was multidimensional in two respects. First, central constructs were drawn from three major theories of motivation. Second, versions of each construct were formulated that were expected to correlate positively with achievement (affirming); and versions of each construct were formulated that were expected to correlate negatively with achievement (undermining). The goal of the study was to determine whether these reading motivation constructs were relatively independent and whether the multiple motivations contributed to predicting achievement. Constructs of motivation were derived from Self-Determination Theory (Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier, & Ryan, 1991), Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1977, 2001) and Social Goals (Wentzel, 2002, 2004). Constructs of motivation that affirm reading achievement and constructs of motivation that undermine reading achievement were both examined. These constructs included, intrinsic motivation, avoidance, self-efficacy, perceived difficulty, prosocial interactions, and antisocial interactions. This study also investigated student motivations for reading for two reasons, school and outside school. Participants were 247 seventh grade students from two middle schools in a mid-Atlantic state. Students completed four measures, including the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Comprehension test, a measure of inferencing ability, a motivation questionnaire for school reading, and a motivation questionnaire for outside school reading. Reading/Language Arts grades were also obtained for all students. Four objectives were addressed through the results of six research questions. Factor analyses results supported the discussion of motivation as a multidimensional construct. Three factors emerged when examining the three constructs of motivation that affirm achievement and the three constructs of motivation that undermine achievement. In addition, factor analyses results supported the perspective that undermining motivations are uniquely predictive of achievement and not simply negatively valenced affirming motivations. Two factors emerged when analyzing the affirming and undermining constructs of motivation in theoretical pairs. Regression analyses indicated that undermining motivations are predictive of achievement even when affirming motivations have been taken into account statistically. Some differences in these results for the school and outside school constructs are discussed. Significance of the findings was discussed in terms of the theoretical importance of the simultaneous functioning of multiple motivations for reading among adolescent students.