Reading Engagement in African-Americans and European Students.

Based on What Research has to say about Reading Instruction by Samuels and Farstrup.

*African-Americans are disproportionately represented variables of low wages, joblessness, and low skills that
characterize a large proportion of African American families (Farstrup and Samuels, 2011). --Leads to: Low education Low reading abilities Cultural factors affecting African Americans: --values --belief systems --linguistics --traditions --preferences **In order to teach and help African American students, teachers must first understand who they are as an individual person.

Evidence-Based Model of Behavioral Reading Engagement

First Link: Classroom practices: Student interests, types of tasks, activities that support motivation and engagement on the part of the students Second Link: Student Motivation: Valuing and Intrinstic motivation--Do the students feel reading is important? Do they read for pleasure? Third Link: Behavorial Engagement: Amount of time, persistence or effort that students exhibit in reading activities that prove to be successful for school Fourth Link: School Achievement: Test scores or grades by the students These links comprise a larger chain needed to understand and foster success for African-American students and their education. Each link of the chain needs to be studied and understood to have the model be an entire unit of success.

Achievement and Engagement Based on Behavior

Behavioral engagement refers to the activities students participate in that enable them to gain cognitive skills, perform well on assessments, and attain relatively high grades (Farstrup and Samuels, 2011).

Key elements: Participation, engagement, attendance, and promptness to, or in,

class daily

What can teachers do? Become very strict on having work done on time and
how assignments should be completed.

In a 2005 study of African Americans in grades 7-12, reading and vocabulary test
scores were predicted by two behavioral factors: School participation and School expectations

These factors were equally important for both male and female students

African Americans in College

In 2003, African American college students had grade point averages that significantly decreased by motivation (Farstrup and Samuels, 2011). Students themselves did not see any correlation between their behaviors and the outcomes; In other words, they believe they are driven by external forces out of their control and feel helpless as students or readers (Farstrup and Samuels, 121).

The same study also found that intrinsic motivation does not effect grade point averages for African Americans either.

Active Learning: Research based on Finally, Hall,

Howe, and Lenderman 1986 report

Test scores are the direct result of how much active learning and reading achievement correlate for African American students.
Students views on their peers, social life, and school were independent of their test score results. Researchers of this study define active learning as: Experimenting, observing, preparing, and discussing. These elements are crucial for students to succeed in their education. The more African American students are actively engaged in their learning, the higher their test scores result.

Achievement Gaps: African American Students V. European Students

1970: Data collection began on student achievement with the NAEP test (National Assessment of Educational Progress) Test is conducted on students in grades 4th, 8th, and 12th European students have consistently scored higher in reading on this exam than African American students. Very few fluctuations have occurred since 1970. Local test scores from all over the United States have also shown a reading gap in African American students and European students in grades 1, 5, and secondary levels (7-12). African American students are also more likely to drop out in comparison to European students, most likely due to the large reading gap which results in low achievement. African American males are the most effected by the gap in reading at almost 2 grade levels below, where as female African Americans were very close that that of European females in reading.

When students commit themselves to their education, studies show they are much more high achieving overall. This is a choice, not a gift of most students. The ideas of commitment and self-determination are true for students of all ethnicities, socio-economic status, and genders. Achievement and dedication are reciprocal. ...dedication grows and generates achievement, achievement increases dedication simultaneously (Farstrup and Samuels, 128).

What can teachers and parents do?

Work together to stress the

importance of reading and its correlation with success and achievement in education. They can also work together as a cohesive unit to better the reading engagement and achievement with students with activities, information, and events all focused on the importance of reading and how fun it can be.

Suggestions for Teachers to Foster Reading Dedication

Have students complete tasks that require them to spend a high amount of time and effort on reading. *High amount refers to time beyond minutes and hours* Make sure to monitor comprehension for students over a long length of time. Make sure students are held accountable for their reading. Stress that reading should become a life-style change such as a musician or sports player would make the practice of their talent a lifestyle change. Offer a variety of texts for students so they can find the right one for them. Have a chunk of time each day dedicated to reading such as an SSR (Sustained Silent Reading) time or DEAR time (Drop Everything and Read).

Classroom Practices
5 Important Teaching Practices for Dedication Growth
1. Relevance 2. Collaboration 3. Choice 4. Emphasis on Importance 5. Thematic Units For African American students who were 40% or more below reading level in 7th grade, relevance significantly improved dedication to reading more so than European students at the same level. African American students who had teachers that stressed more relevance in lessons and units spent more time, put in more effort, and persisted more with the tasks than those who had not received as much of this teaching practice. Farstrup and Samules. (2011). What Research has to say about reading instruction.

More Instructional Practices

Students in the top 40% of reading received teaching based on the practices of: choice, emphasis, and thematic units. African American students did significantly better with these teaching practices than their European counterparts. Teachers had students collaborate with each other about texts. Choices in reading were provided daily for students. Emphasis was given through teacher lead discussion with students that brought in reading, writing, personal experience, and media for students. Thematic units provided students with a link that supported the idea of dedication to reading. Differences between African American and European students who were reading on grade level did not seem to be effected by these practices.

How does relevance work in the classroom?

Students can connect to a text by how they link it to: values, culture, experiences, opinions, family, and where they live. For African American Students at the elementary level, the biggest factor in how they create relevance is through the texts characters. At the secondary level, teacher-student relationships are the biggest factor in how students create relevance. If they feel that the teacher cares about them as a person, and is working on their behalf, studies have shown that students will work harder for them. **This often leads to success on the part of the students.

Final Thoughts/Summary

To foster educational success for students, teachers can:

1. Offer text choice

2. Implement activities that allow for student discussion and participation 3. Bridge the gap between school, home and community 4. Implement lessons that help students feel confident and successful 5. Make learning relevant and meaningful for students 6. Foster relationships with students at a personal level by getting to know their interests *Remember that African American students typically fall behind European students in reading, so by implementing the above tasks, it will help the African American students and make learning fun for all students.

Personal Experience
The students that I have the best relationships with in my classroom, are the students who are the most behaved and who try the hardest; The are NOT necessarily the students with the best grades. Offering text choice or task choice in my classroom not only helps for differentiation among my students, but it also leads to higher participation and enthusiasm on the part of my students. I offer a reading block every Friday in my classroom with students being allow to read any book of their choosing. For many, they look forward to this time to relax and read as many do not do this at home, or have resources to do so at home. Having different types of activities, lessons, or tasks for the students to participate in allows for them to interact with others in regards to reading that they might not have done so with before. It also allow students to shine as individuals while we work together as a class towards accomplishment and success. By doing many of the activities presented in this slide show from the text, my students grow and become not only successful learners, but also independent learners. There is a real text-text, text-world, and text-self connection by students in my classroom on a daily basis.

References
Farstrup and Samuels. (2011). What Research Has to Say About Reading Instruction. (4th ed.). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.