Date

3-2019

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (EdD)

Chair

Sarah Pannone

Keywords

Early Literacy, Professional Development Transfer, Reading Instruction, Read to Be Ready

Disciplines

Education | Educational Leadership | Elementary Education | Language and Literacy Education

Abstract

The purpose of this embedded case study was to describe the implementation of Read to Be Ready instructional practices by elementary grades teachers. The issue this study investigated were the factors that affected the transfer of the Read to Be Ready practices, first used in a summer literacy camp environment, to the general classroom environment for 12 elementary teachers in southeast Tennessee. The theory that guided this study was Bandura’s (1986) Social Cognitive Theory, which explains the relationship between behaviors and reinforcements and describes what influences human behavior. The research answered the question of what are the experiences teachers have when implementing Read to Be Ready instructional practices in their general classroom settings. The research was accomplished using qualitative methods of data collection and analysis to include observations, personal interviews, and document analysis. The data was coded to segment information and provide descriptions of themes that emerged. A type of pattern matching, called explanation building, was used to present a narrative explanation about the case. The data collected from these participants helped explain the implementation process teachers experienced when implementing these reading practices in their general classroom settings. Results from this research indicated that teachers who implemented Read to Be Ready instructional practices experienced a shift in mind-set regarding teaching methodology and required supports such as further training, administrator and district support, and access to high-quality resources. The benefits of implementation outweighed the costs, as teachers noticed growth in student literacy skills, improvement in student engagement toward reading tasks, and renewed student motivation and confidence towards reading.

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