ERIC Number: ED327840
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1990-Dec
Pages: 17
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
"Weaving a Web" of Literacy: A One-Year Evaluation of the Implementation of a Literature-Based Whole Language Approach.
Phillips, Laura A.
A study investigated the effectiveness of a program to improve the reading/vocabulary skills of an ability-grouped fifth grade class of "low achievers" (N=15) through the implementation of a literature-based whole language approach. Students were read aloud to from quality children's literature. From these books, spelling and vocabulary lists were developed and administered 30 minutes a day, 4 days a week during the scheduled classroom reading period. By means of a thematic web, additional skills and subject matter were interwoven so as to provide students with a less fragmented curriculum. The Iowa Tests of Basic Skills were administered in the spring prior to the program and again in the spring of the following year. Results indicated gains of: (1) one year and four months in vocabulary; (2) one year and five months in reading; and (3) seven months in spelling. While the positive statistical findings related to the project were encouraging, the classroom teacher was much more excited by the day-to-day response from the students. For the first time, this group of "low achievers" became aware of the function of print, the nature of written language, and the structure of narrative text. They began to value books, independently selected books appropriate for their reading level, and were eager to share books with each other and the teacher. (Two figures representing literature webs, four tables of data, and one graph are attached.) (RS)
Descriptors: Childrens Literature, Classroom Research, Grade 5, Instructional Effectiveness, Intermediate Grades, Literature Appreciation, Low Achievement, Program Evaluation, Reading Aloud to Others, Reading Attitudes, Reading Improvement, Reading Skills, Spelling, Vocabulary Development, Whole Language Approach
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Iowa Tests of Basic Skills
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A