The effect of an oral reading program on reading achievement, listening vocabulary and attitude toward reading of grade five children

In all lessons, teachers communicate ideas orally in their daily contact with children. In this oral presentation teachers set models for children of correct pronunciation, intonation, and rhythm of speech. Listening to these speech patterns is of primary importance to children in developing comprehension in any language arts or communication skills program. Because it places primary emphasis on interpretation, oral reading by the teacher is one approach to reading instruction aimed at developing pupil's listening and reading vocabulary and comprehension. When the teacher reads orally to the children, she can alter her speed, use inflection, emphasis and pause, and create the atmosphere essential to making the lines sound as the author probably intended them to. It is assumed that this kind of reading not only helps to increase pupils’ listening and reading vocabulary, but makes them aware of the types of content juvenile literature can offer them. The major hypotheses of this study were: (1) to determine the effect of a program of oral reading by the teacher on children's silent reading achievement, listening vocabulary; attitude toward reading; (2) to determine the relationships between each of the following factors taken in turn: silent reading achievement; listening vocabulary; attitude toward reading; intelligence; socioeconomic status; (3) to determine the differences if any, in the silent reading achievement, listening vocabulary, and attitude toward reading of boys and girls. Eight grade five teachers, each teaching two reading classes in the Vancouver schools, were utilized in this experimental study. One class taught by each teacher served as the control class and the other the experimental class. In each case both classes got the same reading lessons from their teacher. However, in the experimental group the fifty minute reading lesson was shortened to forty minutes. The teacher read a children's novel for the remaining ten minutes. The program lasted for twelve weeks. As pretests, the Gates MacGinitie Reading Tests Survey D Form M-l, the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test Form A, and the San Diego County Inventory of Reading Attitude were given in the first week of January, 1968. Alternate forms of the Gates MacGinitie Reading Tests Survey D and of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test together with the same form of the San Diego County Inventory of Reading Attitude were given as posttests in the last week of March, 1968. Analysis of covariance was used to determine any difference in the treatment. Product-moment correlation coefficients were calculated between the means of the gain scores on each of the dependent variables for both boys and girls in the experimental as well as in the control group. The findings did not show any significant difference in silent reading achievement, listening vocabulary and attitude toward reading between the treatment groups. In the experimental group, the boys seem to have benefited more than the girls in silent reading comprehension. The boys comprehended better than the girls after the treatment. The oral reading by the teacher seems to have nullified the influence of intelligence and socio-economic status of children of low IQ and socio-economic level. Children of these categories in the experimental group made significantly greater gains in silent reading comprehension and total silent reading achievement than children in the same categories in the control group. When socio-economic status was held constant, the relationships in the experimental group between intelligence and gain scores on each of the dependent variables were not significant. All the children in this group seemed to progress regardless of their intelligence. When intelligence was held constant, in the experimental group, the relationships between socio-economic status and gain scores on each of the dependent variables were not significant. However, the negative significant relationships between socio-economic status and gain scores in silent reading speed and accuracy and socio-economic status and total silent reading achievement for the girls of low socio-economic level indicates that these girls improved in these two aspects or reading achievement. Also, the boys as well as the girls of low socio-economic level progressed in their total silent reading achievement. These findings seem to suggest that boys particularly need some kind of reading materials which increase their background of reading vocabulary and comprehension. Also, children of low IQ and socio-economic level seem to need some acquaintance with unfamiliar words, phrases and sentence structures which provide background for their later silent reading.Education, Faculty ofGraduat