How and in What Ways Does Homogeneous Small Group Instruction in Reading Influence Struggling Middle School Readers and Their Attitudes toward Reading

Abstract

The study of how homogeneous small group instruction influences struggling middle school readers and their attitudes toward reading was a twelve-week mixed ANOVA study that examined the affects small group instruction for struggling middle school readers. Participants in this study were seven sixth-grade students considered to be struggling readers. The homogeneous small group instruction often correlated with the weekly skills outlined in the lesson plans of a regular classroom teacher with current reading materials including, but not limited to, short stories, novels, magazines, newspaper current events, recipes, response journals, and internet resources. Activities included oral reading, vocabulary exploration, group activities, presentations, research, internet exploration, reader’s theatre, and creative writing. Results of this mixed ANOVA study indicated that the struggling readers involved in homogeneous instruction demonstrated slight gains in both motivation and reading ability. A re-examination of the study identified social acceptance from peers in regular classrooms, understanding and higher expectations from their teacher, and a smaller, more personable environment as being significant catalysts to recharging their motivation of becoming engaged, active, and more independent readers.