Running Head: THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION UNDER THE COMMON CORE: USING THINK- ALOUDS TO EXPLORE STRUGGLING READERS’ COMPREHENSION OF NARRATIVE AND INFORMATIONAL TEXT BY RACHEL DONNELLY LELLA A dissertation submitted to The Graduate School of Education Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Education written under the direction of Dr. Lesley Morrow, Chair ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Benjamin Justice, Committee ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Tanja Sargent, Committee ___________________________________________________________ New Brunswick, New Jersey May 2016 THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION © 2016 Rachel Donnelly Lella ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Graduate School of Education New Brunswick, New Jersey Announcement of Ed.D. Dissertation Defense Rachel Donnelly Lella Response to Intervention under the Common Core: Using Think-Alouds to Explore Struggling Readers’ Comprehension of Narrative and Informational Text Committee: Dr. Lesley Morrow (GSE), Dr. Benjamin Justice (GSE), Dr. Tanja Sargent (GSE) Date: April 13, 2016 Time: 11:00am Location: Graduate School of Education, Room 347 ABSTRACT The focus of reading comprehension instruction has recently shifted from narrative to informational text as evidenced by the Common Core State Standards. Therefore, educators must be aware of the skills and strategies students use effectively as they comprehend various texts, which research shows can be achieved through think-alouds. Research also shows that explicit reading Response to Intervention (RTI), particularly RTI occurring in addition to rather than in place of classroom instruction, benefits struggling readers. Purpose of the Study. The purpose of this study was to understand the ways third grade readers who are below grade level but not classified expressed their understanding of narrative and informational texts after being exposed to direct instruction on conducting think-alouds. Methods. In this ten-week study, six third grade participants attended an after school reading club where they received direct instruction on conducting think-alouds. The participants’ subsequent use of think-alouds when reading narrative versus informational texts was explored. Pre-test and post-test scores on the DRA2 and QRI-5 reading assessments were analyzed to determine gains by comparing the treatment group to a control group. Results. While the frequency with which participants conducted think-alouds when reading narrative versus informational text was similar, each participant demonstrated understanding and use of think-alouds for both types of text. Participants also increased their reading comprehension scores on the DRA-2 and QRI-5 at a marginally significant rate when compared to the control group. The two strategies most often employed by participants were self-questioning and inferring, respectively, aligning with previous research on comprehension growth (Magliano & Graesser, 1996; Suh, 1989). Conclusions. The assumption gained from this study is that consistent use of think- alouds leads to progress from making basic observations of details towards utilizing skills and strategies in think-alouds. Further, the ability to make more sophisticated think-aloud comments reveals higher comprehension since students are demonstrating the use of skills and strategies to verbalize understanding or lack of understanding of ideas from the text. The results of this study indicate that not only are struggling readers capable of conducting think-alouds, but think-alouds may be beneficial in helping struggling readers increase their comprehension abilities. Keywords: Common Core State Standards, Response to Intervention, think-alouds, reading comprehension, struggling readers, after school, narrative text, informational text iii THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am sincerely honored and thankful to have completed my dissertation under the guidance of Dr. Lesley Mandel Morrow. As a greatly influential and widely respected leader and expert in the field of literacy education, I could not have hoped for a stronger advocate or advisor in my corner. She pushed me in every interaction not to try to “finish” but to make sure I was proposing, conducting, and defending a useful, well thought out research study of which I could be proud. I am further grateful to have been awarded the inaugural Lesley Mandel Morrow Scholarship while writing my dissertation, which afforded me the opportunity to focus specifically on my work. I would also like to thank Dr. Ben Justice and Dr. Tanja Sargent for their approachability as well as their honest and supportive feedback, which allowed me to consider new aspects of my research leading to vital improvements in my work. I owe much of my success in the Ed.D. program to my husband, Christopher, who convinced me to apply to the program in the first place and was there for me every step of the way. We didn’t have the easiest path down this road, but it was certainly worth it. We were blessed with our two beautiful daughters during the dissertation process: Sophia Annmarie while I wrote my proposal and Ava Kathleen while I analyzed the data. I considered walking away from this last phase of the Ed.D. program several times but was kept from doing so by the hope that my daughters would find a strong role model in their mom. I am incredibly thankful for my pups Rio and Layla for spending long days and nights flanking my sides as I wrote. I could not have made it this far without my incredibly supportive parents, brother, in-laws, and friends, particularly the Kennedys, my work teammates, my cohort rock Ken Kunz, and my SSSG girls. Each of them cheered me on, pushed me to work harder, and lifted me up with their encouragement and the pride they shared in me and my work. Thank you for believing in me. iv THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION Table of Contents ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................................ v LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ......................................................................................................... xi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 Statement of the Problem ............................................................................................................ 1 Purpose of the Study and Research Questions ............................................................................ 3 Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................................... 5 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................................. 7 Impact of the Common Core State Standards ............................................................................. 7 Reading Comprehension for Struggling Readers ...................................................................... 10 Response to Intervention ........................................................................................................... 13 After School Intervention as Response to Intervention ............................................................. 16 Teaching Metacognitive Strategies as Response to Intervention .............................................. 18 Using Think-Alouds to Aid in Comprehension ......................................................................... 21 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH DESIGN ................................................................................. 24 Context ...................................................................................................................................... 24 Research Participants ................................................................................................................. 24 Selection Criteria ............................................................................................................... 24 Gaining Access .................................................................................................................. 26 v THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION Data Sources and Data Collection Techniques ......................................................................... 28 DRA2 and QRI-5 ............................................................................................................... 28 Open-Ended Question Responses ...................................................................................... 30 Think-Alouds ..................................................................................................................... 31 Treatment ................................................................................................................................... 36 Data Analysis Procedures .......................................................................................................... 43 Validity and Reliability ............................................................................................................. 44 CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS .................................................................................................... 46 Think-Aloud Use for Narrative Versus Informational Text ...................................................... 46 Think-Aloud Categories .................................................................................................... 47 Self-Questions ....................................................................................................... 47 Comments About Ideas Participants Understood .................................................. 48 Comments About Ideas Participants Did Not Understand .................................... 49 Think-Aloud Frequency .................................................................................................... 50 Open-Ended Question Responses ...................................................................................... 53 Think-Aloud Reflections ................................................................................................... 58 Skills and Strategies Utilized with Narrative and Informational Text ...................................... 62 Inferences .......................................................................................................................... 63 Self-Questioning ................................................................................................................ 66 Text Features and Illustrations .......................................................................................... 68 Text Connections ............................................................................................................... 70 Text-to-Self Connections ....................................................................................... 71 Text-to-World Connections ................................................................................... 72 vi THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION Text-to-Media Connections ................................................................................... 73 Comparison of Treatment and Control Test Scores .................................................................. 74 Summary of Findings ................................................................................................................ 77 CHAPTER FIVE: JOURNAL ARTICLE ..................................................................................... 79 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 79 Theory ........................................................................................................................................ 81 Literature Review ...................................................................................................................... 83 Impact of the Common Core State Standards ................................................................... 83 Reading Comprehension for Struggling Readers .............................................................. 84 Response to Intervention ................................................................................................... 85 After School Intervention as Response to Intervention ..................................................... 87 Teaching Metacognitive Strategies as Comprehension Intervention ................................ 88 Using Think-Alouds to Aid in Comprehension ................................................................. 89 Methods ..................................................................................................................................... 91 Context .............................................................................................................................. 91 Research Participants ......................................................................................................... 92 Selection Criteria ................................................................................................... 92 Data Sources and Data Collection Techniques ................................................................. 92 Data Analysis Plan ............................................................................................................ 94 Ensuring Validity and Reliability ...................................................................................... 94 Treatment ........................................................................................................................... 95 Findings and Analysis ............................................................................................................... 98 Think-Aloud Use for Narrative Versus Informational Text .............................................. 98 vii THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION Skills and Strategies Utilized with Narrative and Informational Text ............................ 102 Inferences ............................................................................................................ 104 Self-Questioning .................................................................................................. 105 Text Features and Illustrations ............................................................................ 106 Text Connections ................................................................................................. 107 Comparison of Treatment and Control Test Scores ........................................................ 109 Summary of Findings .............................................................................................................. 112 Limitations ............................................................................................................................... 113 Closing Remarks ..................................................................................................................... 114 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 118 viii THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION LIST OF TABLES 1. Distribution of Eligible Students ........................................................................................... 26 2. Data Sources by Research Question ...................................................................................... 28 3. Skills Assessed by the DRA2 ................................................................................................ 29 4. Skills Assessed by the QRI-5 ................................................................................................ 30 5. Codes Used in Data Analysis ................................................................................................ 35 6. Schedule of Texts Used in Treatment ................................................................................... 37 7. Schedule of Small Group Instruction .................................................................................... 38 8. Number of Think-Alouds Conducted .................................................................................... 50 9. Number of Notes Written ...................................................................................................... 50 10. Types of Verbal Think-Alouds Conducted ......................................................................... 51 11. Types of Think-Aloud Notes Recorded .............................................................................. 51 12. Types of Written and Verbal Think-Alouds Conducted ..................................................... 52 13. Types of Think-Alouds Noted in Reflections of Narrative Text ......................................... 58 14. Types of Think-Alouds Noted in Reflections of Informational Text .................................. 59 15. Skills and Strategies Utilized During Verbal Think-Alouds ............................................... 63 16. Skills and Strategies Utilized During Written Think-Alouds .............................................. 63 17. Student Initiated Responses to Self-Questioning During Verbal Think-Alouds ................. 67 18. Student Initiated Responses to Self-Questioning During Written Think-Alouds ............... 67 19. Types of Text Connections Made During Verbal Think-Alouds ........................................ 71 20. Types of Text Connections Made During Written Think-Alouds ....................................... 71 21. DRA2 Pre-Test and Post-Test Scores .................................................................................. 75 22. QRI-5 Pre-Test and Post-Test Scores .................................................................................. 75 23. ANOVA Analysis ................................................................................................................ 76 24. Schedule of Small Group Instruction .................................................................................. 96 25. Number of Think-Alouds Conducted .................................................................................. 99 26. Number of Notes Written .................................................................................................... 99 ix THINK-ALOUDS AS RESPONSE TO INTERVENTION 27. Types of Written and Verbal Think-Alouds Conducted ................................................... 100 28. Types of Think-Alouds Noted in Reflections of Narrative Text ....................................... 101 29. Types of Think-Alouds Noted in Reflections of Informational Text ................................ 101 30. Skills and Strategies Utilized During Verbal Think-Alouds ............................................. 104 31. Skills and Strategies Utilized During Written Think-Alouds ............................................ 104 32. Student Initiated Responses to Self-Questioning During Verbal Think-Alouds ............... 106 33. Student Initiated Responses to Self-Questioning During Written Think-Alouds ............. 106 34. Types of Text Connections Made During Verbal Think-Alouds ...................................... 108 35. Types of Text Connections Made During Written Think-Alouds ..................................... 108 36. DRA2 Pre-Test and Post-Test Scores ................................................................................ 109 37. QRI-5 Pre-Test and Post-Test Scores ................................................................................ 110 38. ANOVA Analysis .............................................................................................................. 111 x