Relation and Interactions Among Reading Fluency and Competence for Adult Education Learners

Statistical analyses of data from an academically diverse sample of 276 adult basic and secondary education learners extends understanding of the relation of and interactions between oral reading fluency and reading competence indices. Significant interactions between total word rate and word error rate that differed in relation to two measures of reading competence suggest that adult literacy instructors should emphasize fluency instruction to a greater or lesser degree depending on whether the major goal of instruction is academic reading (e.g., being able to comprehend a textbook) or functional reading (e.g., being able to fill out a job application).     

Rapid Feedback Assessment Methods: Can We Improve Engagement and Preparation for Exams in Large-enrollment Courses?

Scratch-off immediate feedback assessment technique (IF-AT) forms and classroom response systems (clickers) can increase student engagement and interaction and help students prepare for exams by indicating the type and level of questions they will encounter. We used the IF-AT throughout the semester in three sections of a lower-division biology class; in two, students worked on IF-AT questions in small permanent groups, and in one, students alternated between IF-AT and clickers each week. At the end of the semester, students answered surveys about instant feedback techniques. Students appreciated prompt feedback on their understanding of course material, enjoyed the group interaction and opportunities to learn from each other, and continued to have positive perceptions of instant feedback activities and to take them seriously throughout the semester. While appreciating the versatility of clicker questions, we find that the ease of use, low cost, effectiveness, and improved classroom climate of the IF-AT method are particularly commendable.     

Dispositional factors affecting motivation during learning in adult basic and secondary education programs

Research indicates that about a quarter of adult students separate from formal adult basic and secondary education (ABE/ASE) programs before completing one educational level. This retrospective study explores individual dispositional factors that affect motivation during learning, particularly students’ goals, goal-directed thinking and action based on hope theory and attendance behaviors, and self-perceptions of competency based on affective domain attributions about external and internal obstacles to learning and employment, and demographic factors. Among 274 ABE/ASE students, those learners who made an education gain in 1 year significantly differed from those who did not in only a few dispositional or demographic variables; and by educational level they significantly differed in a wide variety of dispositional and demographic variables. These findings suggest researchable questions and programmatic considerations that may lead to future innovations that improve learner persistence.     

Reading profiles for adults with low-literacy: cluster analysis with power and speeded measures

The United States’ National Institute for Literacy’s (NIFL) review of adult literacy instruction research recommended adult education (AE) programs assess underlying reading abilities in order to plan appropriate instruction for low-literacy learners. This study developed adult reading ability groups using measures from power tests and speeded tests of phonemic decoding, word recognition, fluency, and comprehension. A multiple cluster analysis of these reading ability scores from 295 low-literacy AE participants yielded seven reading ability groups. These groups are described in terms of instructional needs relevant to an instructor’s planning and activities.     

A Gestalt Approach to Group Supervision

The authors define and then describe the practice of group supervision. The role of creative experiment in assisting supervisees who perceive themselves as confused, moving in circles, or immobilized is described. Fictional case examples illustrate these issues in supervision. The authors posit the “good fit” of Gestalt theory and techniques with supervision groups.     

The Effect of Addition and Subtraction Practice within a Word-Problem Intervention on Addition and Subtraction Outcomes

This study examined the influence of addition and subtraction practice embedded within a word-problem intervention for Grade 3 students experiencing word-problem difficulty. Students (N = 448) were randomly assigned to one of two variants of a word-problem intervention or a business-as-usual comparison condition. Within the word-problem interventions, students participated in targeted addition and subtraction fact and computation practice for approximately 3 minutes of each 30-minute session across 47 intervention sessions, but also continually practiced addition and subtraction through word-problem solving. At posttest, students who participated in the intervention demonstrated improved single-digit addition and subtraction performance as well as improved double-digit addition and subtraction performance. At follow-up in Grade 4, persistence of effects was only identified for double-digit addition. Considering addition and subtraction are foundational to many other mathematics skills, addition and subtraction practice serves as an important component of mathematics intervention.