Patterns in Elementary Teachers' Use of Reading Instruction Materials

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: Considerations in Early Childhood and Elementary Literacy

Abstract

Educators often have the choice between selecting authentic or school-only texts in elementary reading instruction. We define authentic texts as those occurring outside of a literacy-learning context such as trade books. School-only materials are those made primarily for literacy-instruction purposes, such as basal readers. This study uses the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS-K: 2011) to describe the use of different text types among first and second-grade teachers, and to identify predictors of text choice. we found that teachers without masters degrees or in high-poverty schools tend to use less authentic and more school-only texts. Further, classes with higher proportions of minority students are associated with the use of less authentic materials after controlling for covariates including prior student achievement.

Authors

• Yi Shang, John Carroll University

• Dan Reynolds, John Carroll University