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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/68907
Description
Title
The Development of a Test of Content Area Reading
Author(s)
Knickerbocker, Joan Lee
Issue Date
1983
Department of Study
Education
Discipline
Education
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Education, Reading
Abstract
The primary purpose of this study was to develop and pilot test an objective instrument designed to assess secondary school subject area teachers' knowledge of reading as it applies to their teaching. A secondary purpose of the study was to determine how subject area taught, grade level taught, length of teaching experience, attendance in college or university courses emphasizing reading instruction, attendance in course work beyond the bachelor's degree and personal judgment of the anticipated benefit from further training in reading, relate to performance level on the test. The instrument is intended to be utilized in pre-service and in-service teacher training.
The first phase of the research included a survey of the conceptual and research literature in secondary level reading to determine those instructional practices which constitute content area reading. Instrument development included writing a content-process outline derived from the identified universe. Based on the outline, a pool of preliminary multiple-choice items were written. The preliminary instrument and content outline were submitted to authorities in the field of content area reading for content validation. Based on their suggestions the instrument was revised. The instrument was pilot tested with 145 volunteer teachers. The instrument was again revised based on the data analysis. The revised 40-item instrument was pilot tested with 266 volunteer secondary school subject area teachers.
The reliability of the instrument was .770 (Kuder-Richardson #20); standard error of measurement, 2.77; standard deviation, 5.79; mean score, 24.55; and median score, 25.06.
Teachers who had taken a course emphasizing reading instruction performed significantly better than teachers who had not. Teachers of English/Language Arts performed significantly better than teachers of other subject areas. Grade level taught, length of teaching experience, attendance in college or university courses beyond the bachelor's degree and perceived benefit from training in reading were not found to be significantly related to test performance.
The results of the study support the recommendation for training in appropriate reading instruction for all secondary level pre-service and in-service teachers.
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