Recognition

This action research project focused on causes for reading deficiencies of the targeted eighth grade students and how those deficiencies affect students ' achievement in language arts, science, and mathematics. The targeted population consisted of 30 eighth grade students in a middle-class community located in a suburban area of a large Midwestern city. The problem of declining reading performance, and its impact on content area subjects, was evidenced by a decline in reading scores on the State Standards Achievement Test, a survey of targeted students, and an interview of students by the teacher researchers. Primary causes were identified as the lack of students ' ability to identify and define unfamiliar words and a reading rate that fell short of eighth grade academic demands. Secondary causes were a lack of student practice and poor motivation as it pertains to reading. An intervention strategy was devised. The plan involved the teacher researchers in the subjects of language arts, science, and mathematics. The intervention strategies devised to address the word-recognition issue were as follows