Date of Award

5-2009

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (Ded)

Abstract

The purpose of this case study was to describe post-National Reading Panel classroom literacy practices in a Head Start classroom and to identify practices that the school used to promote literacy development in the home. The case study was conducted in a Head Start classroom that had a total of 11 children, nine girls and two boys who were 4 and 5 years old. The study focused on features of the environment that supported literacy development, the informal literacy opportunities provided in the classroom, formal literacy practices the teacher used in the classroom, the literacy practices in the Head Start classroom that have been affected by the National Reading Panel report and the No Child Left Behind Act, and the events at school that promoted literacy development in the home.

Qualitative research methodology was used. The data were collected through classroom observations and photographs (e.g., literacy materials, learning centers, children's writing samples), interviews with the early childhood teacher and education coordinator, and classroom artifacts (e.g., children's work, newsletters, and literacy information). Through the analysis of data there were codes, categories, and six themes that emerged. The six themes were (a) The Classroom is a Literacy Rich Environment, (b) Formal and Informal Literacy Opportunities are Numerous and Varied, (c) The Teacher Facilitates Literacy Learning and Makes Changes to the Classroom Environment to Promote Literacy Learning, ( d) Efforts to Share Knowledge of Early Literacy Development with Parents is Varied and Yields Mixed Results, (e) Parent Involvement in a Program with Mandated Involvement is Limited, and (f) The Education Coordinator Trains Teachers for Program Alignment with Post-National Reading Panel Changes.

The conclusions of this study revealed the development and discussion of three assertions. The assertions were (a) The formal and informal literacy opportunities in this classroom are becoming aligned to support the post-National Reading Panel outcomes expectations and teaching practices, (b) The classroom teacher is responsive to the learners and not mechanistically aiming to implement prescribed mandated curriculum, and ( c) There are barriers to successful parent education and involvement that can be resolved. The assertions resulted in recommendations for the Head Start program and researchers. More research needs to be conducted on post-National Reading Panel literacy practices in early childhood education settings.

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