The Impact of Teacher Behavior on Student Engagement Within a Tier 1 Response to Instruction (RtI) Model

• In Event: Poster Session 18
  In Poster Session: Current Issues and Topics in Special Education

Abstract

This study evaluated the relation between student engagement, teacher behaviors, and literacy activities during Tier 1 reading instruction. Twenty-one second-grade teachers, 344 average readers, and 84 low-skilled readers were observed three times over one school year. Correlation coefficients and regression analyses indicated that teacher behaviors and literacy activities during Tier 1 instruction have low associations with students’ level of engagement. Furthermore, academic engagement decreased and passive engagement increased across the course of the school year for all students. The most common behaviors exhibited by teachers across the school year were providing opportunities for group and individual responses. The literacy skills most frequently addressed during instruction shifted from writing in the fall to reading comprehension in the winter and spring.

Authors

• Lindsay Flynn, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Rollanda E. O'Connor, University of California - Riverside

• Kathleen Bocian, University of California - Riverside

• H. Lee Swanson, University of California - Riverside