The present study used a nested hierarchical design to assess different aspects of literacy teaching as predictors of change in studentsââ¬â¢ reading and attention in first grade. Studies have also shown that students who start school with attention problems often experience difficulties with learning to read, together presenting a serious challenge for teachers in meeting the learning needs of these students. On the other hand, effective classrooms may provide clear ââ¬Ëvalue-addedââ¬â¢ educational advantages for all children. Furthermore, different classroom contexts may be differentially effective from some children over other children. The present study thus considers firstly the role(s) of teachers in diverse classroom contexts in shaping the development of typically developing first grade students and then secondly, of students who may be at risk of attention difficulties in these same classrooms. For students who started the year with strong reading skills, classroom management predicted higher rates of growth in reading comprehension whereas for students with weaker initial reading ability, student engagement predicted greater reading comprehension growth. For students at risk of attention difficulties, the overall quality of the teaching environment predicted growth in listening comprehension. These results are consistent with goodness-of-fit models of the influence of classroom practices on childrenââ¬â¢s reading and that some classrooms can be a source of resilience for children at-risk of attention problems.
Effective Grade 1 Classroom Contexts for Reading and Language Growth: Evidence from Typical Children and Children at Risk of Attention Difficulties
Louise Deault and Robert Savage
Last date updated on September, 2024