Results
(P.S. They're awesome)
All Students' Reading Comprehension Improved
As a result of students' participation in the intervention, their reading comprehension improved an average of 1.875 reading levels (Fountas and Pinnell)! Check out the sections below for details on data sources and measures that were used to draw conclusions.
Data Sources
The first data source that I used was Reading 3D progress monitoring. I did a pretest at the beginning of the intervention and a posttest at the end. Students' reading levels were determined using Fountas and Pinnell's leveling system (alphabetic). After the posttest, I found the average gains in reading comprehension, which was 1.875 levels. I ran a statistical test to ensure that the results were likely due to the intervention and found that they were. Therefore, I can say with confidence that students' comprehension gains were due to their participation in literature circles!
Student Journals
Throughout the duration of the intervention, students kept their sticky notes that they used to track their thinking and put them in their journals so that I could see what types of things they were writing down. They also reflected on their literature circle discussions and wrote about what their group discussed. I analyzed all of their journals at the end of the project and found that ALL students used research-based comprehension strategies to track their thinking. Check out the pictures to see some samples.
Look at all of her annotations!
This is a reflection by a student.
This student wrote down several questions and feelings.
This student summarized each page on a sticky note to monitor his comprehension.
Here's another synopsis of two pages.
This student recorded several questions she had while reading.
Researcher Journal
I kept a journal with my observations throughout the duration of the intervention. I found some really cool trends!
- The texts I chose were PERFECT. Students were able to make really genuine connections to the books because they were culturally relevant.
- Students utilized multiple strategies as they read. The authentic context required them to synthesize strategies and use them in their discussions.
- Students used their discussions to make meaning. They talked very naturally about their books and helped each other to better understand their books.