Assessing Drama-Based Instruction During Preschool Storytime: A New Measurement Tool

• In Event: Increasing and Optimizing Arts Experiences

Abstract

The instructional strategies teachers use during storytime can do much to capture students’ attention and improve their language and literacy skills. The present study developed and tested a coding system to measure frequency and quality of teachers’ storytime reading strategies. The Teacher Use of Strategies for Storytime Drama (TUSSD) measure was created using the scholarly literature on read-aloud strategies with an emphasis on drama-based instructional strategies. The TUSSD was used to code teacher (N = 13) behavior during storytime for frequency and quality of strategy usage. Preliminary findings show that a few strategies are used frequently while most are rarely used and application quality is low. These findings illustrate a need for teacher training on using drama-based strategies during storytime.

Authors

• Annette Schmidt, Arizona State University - Tempe

• Melissa Pierce, Arizona State University

• Lauren Van Huisstede, Arizona State University

• Scott C. Marley, Arizona State University

• Michael Kelley