Reading Instruction in the Primary Grades

Instructional Materials

Most states allow school districts or schools to choose the textbooks they will use for instruction. However, many states (20 in 2014), known as textbook adoption states, select or recommend the textbooks for use by local education agencies.54 Since many of these states have large student populations (e.g., California and Texas), they greatly influence the national market of published textbooks.

Reading texts are published and updated by a handful of publishing companies. Recently, many English/language arts textbooks were updated to align with the Common Core State Standards. Commercial products offer an array of components that can be selected to build a school’s or district’s program, giving more or less emphasis to certain aspects of reading. For example, these may include charts and workbooks on phonics and phonemic awareness, texts of selections to be used in instruction, journals for writing about selections read in class, and books for self‑selected pleasure reading keyed to specific grade ranges. Most commercial products or reading programs provide alternative methods for using shared materials to address the needs of students with varying levels of reading achievement and English language proficiency. Some products provide supplemental materials for small group instruction. Since schools may integrate reading instruction with writing instruction, most commercially developed reading programs include writing instruction in their curriculum materials. To satisfy textbook requirements in California and Texas, commercial reading programs share many common features, resulting in a degree of cohesiveness to reading curricula across the country.

Use of Technology

The use of technology in US public schools has been growing in recent years. The ratio of public school students to instructional computers with Internet access decreased from 7 to 1 in 2000 to 3 to 1 in 2008.55 In 2009, 69 percent of teachers reported that they or their students “often” or “sometimes” used computers in the classroom, and 94 percent of public school teachers reported using the Internet for instructional or administrative purposes.56,57 Most states emphasize an integrated approach to reading across different types of media and subject areas. Producing and publishing writing using technology, including the Internet, is a writing anchor standard in the Common Core State Standards for K–12 students.

Many reading and literacy textbooks use the Internet and instructional technologies such as SMART Boards as tools for supplementing teachers’ delivery of English/language arts and reading instruction. Teachers also may use technology for sharing resources such as lesson plans, instructional activities, and assessments with their peers or for improving their own practice through online professional development aligned with their specific needs.58

Role of Reading Specialists

Reading specialists are teachers whose primary assignment is to improve the literacy of the students in their school.59 However, the means with which reading specialists carry out their responsibility varies across districts and schools. In some cases, reading specialists support classroom teachers by providing materials and ideas, helping to organize students for instruction, assisting in diagnosis and assessment, and leading professional development. In other cases, reading specialists lead pullout classes with individuals or small groups of students who struggle to read or fail to perform proficiently on English/language arts and reading assessments.60 In a 2014 study, reading specialists reported that guided reading strategies and effective use of technology were key practices for improving students’ reading achievement, particularly for students who struggle to meet English/language arts proficiency standards.61 Licensing requirements for reading specialists vary from state to state. Most states require additional coursework in reading and related subjects, and some states require a master’s degree.

Second Language Instruction

An English language learner (ELL) is a student who is in the process of acquiring English and has a first language other than or in addition to English. The percentage of ELL students in the United States has increased over time from 8.7 percent in 2002–2003 to 9.2 percent in 2012–2013.62 ELL students tend to be overrepresented in certain areas. School districts in urbanized areas have higher percentages of ELL students than school districts in more remote areas. In 2012–2013, ELL students represented approximately 14 percent of total public school enrollments in cities, whereas in rural areas, ELL students accounted for only about 4 percent of the student population.63

A critical challenge facing K–12 schools in the United States is teaching ELL students to read and write in English. English language learning students who are unable to read and write proficiently in English may struggle to participate fully in education and may face limited job opportunities and earning power.64 As of 2015, 9 percent of adults age 25 and older who spoke only English at home had not completed high school. The percentage of those not completing high school was about three times higher for those who spoke a language other than English at home (28 percent) and about four times higher among those who spoke Spanish or Spanish Creole at home (37 percent).65 In 2014, the Institution of Education Sciences—the statistics, research, and evaluation division of the US Department of Education—updated its practice guide for educating ELL students in the elementary grades. The practice guide makes recommendations based on best practices identified through rigorous research on instruction for ELL students in kindergarten through Grade 8. It recommends that states and districts teach a set of academic vocabulary words intensively across several days using a variety of instructional activities, integrate written and oral English language instruction into content area teaching, deliver ongoing and structured teaching to develop written language skills, and provide small group interventions for students struggling with literacy or English language development.66

Accommodation Policies for Testing

Starting in 1997, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act has required states to include students with disabilities in standardized assessments. In 2002, the No Child Left Behind Act required states to measure and report on the performance of students with disabilities for the purpose of determining whether schools met adequate yearly progress goals.67 A challenge of assessing students with disabilities is designing test instruments that measure the students’ reading proficiency and not the characteristics related to their disabilities. States and districts accommodate students’ disabilities by changing the test administration in a variety of ways that do not affect the assessment construct or the interpretation of results.68 Although accommodation policies vary across states, common practices for students with reading disabilities include reading test items aloud, administering tests in large print or Braille for students with visual impairments, not limiting test time, and making linguistic modifications for ELL students.69