Ineffective Reading Teachers Impact the Abilities of Student’s Reading Achievement: Analysis of No Child Left Behind Act

Ineffective Reading Teachers Impact the Abilities of Student’s Reading Achievement

Abstract

The No Child Left Behind Act was signed into Congress on January 8, 2002, by George Bush. It is an act that gives the state the authority to authorize federal education programs. There are challenges within this act but has sought to advance student achievement in schools across the nation. However, students tend to have proficiencies with fundamental reading skills and is not able to comprehend at a simple reading level. The information of this research will be examined as well as the assessment of the qualitative study with a quantitative emphasis on it. In this study, the Florida Twin Project, researchers selected eight hundred-six first and second-grade Florida twin sets to perform the study on. The main purpose of this theory is to show the importance of teachers that teach English effects the achievement of students. In order to establish if the inconsistency in reading is because of genetic reasons, researchers has to use the grades of the twins’ Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) assessment, which is a reading evaluation. The comparison of the test scores of the twins’ peers and the twins’ will be used to create a measurement of teacher quality. Improving students reading achievement is a national goal our former president, Barack Obama. Furthermore, the study will show the effects of teacher quality and how it suggests a need for ongoing research of this complex issue.

Statement of the Problem

Introduction

People can agree in order to achieve academic success in education today, the quality of teachers is substantially important. Since the enactment of No Child Left Behind, society puts an emphasis on scores and numbers then connects them with the extremely qualified teachers who taught them. The pressure that falls on the shoulders of these teachers is high. The importance of making sure all students are on level with their grade is a concern for everyone. Unfortunately, achievement disparities in math and reading remain a problem across the board for many.

Purpose

In life, one must know how to read to be successful. Teaching children at an early age to read will initially determine how their accomplishment in school transcends over into life and the world we live in today. Reading is such an integral part of life that ensuring qualified teachers are in place is what matters most (Darling-Hammond & Pall, 1996). Recently there has been an extreme amount of research done on the different approaches on learning how to read, how your heredity aspects can affect learning, and the benefits and drawbacks of those programs. Without researching, these are factors that would be non-existent. Nonetheless, the most crucial component is the teacher when it comes to training a child to read. Student achievement should account for at least half of the teacher's score to show if they are being effective or ineffective. This can eliminate depending on teacher credentials and students passing state-mandated tests to determine how effective the teacher really is, but more so if the teacher is using great teaching techniques and best practices to achieve success in student learning (Dexter & Hughes). This is one of the reasons behind this proposal so that it can explore the research of how ineffective teachers can impact the achievement of a child’s reading aptitude.

There is still much deliberation between scholars and researchers about the extent of guidance that teachers have on a student's reading success. There are different components to a child’s success. If all the tools are not readily available it makes it that much harder for teachers, effective or ineffective, do their job. Research has been limited on the information about non-effective teachers deterring a student’s success. Taylor, J., Roehrig, A. D., Hensler, B. S., Conner, C . M. & Schatschneider, C. (2010). To gain more knowledge on the issue the following questions will be asked. (1) Even though the “No Child Left Behind’ and numerous judicial acts has been enacted, are teachers highly capable to teach? (2) How is the ineffectiveness of a teacher really decided? (3) How does the planning of the teacher affect student success? So, the answers to these questions can bring a good point on how to measure a teacher’s effectiveness. Using fellow teachers, administrators and student achievement can also help measure the effectiveness of teachers.

Classification of Terms

• Best practices – existing practices that already possess a high level of widely-agreed effectiveness. (edutopia.org)
• Highly qualified- requires the teacher to earn a bachelor’s degree in every subject they teach and obtain a full state certification in every subject or has passed the state teacher licensing examination and holds a license to teach in such State. (TEA Title IX 9101)
• Instruction- the activities of educating or instructing in a particular subject or skill; activities that impart knowledge or skill, a lesson. vocabulary.com (2010)
• No Child Left Behind (NCLB)- a federal law passed under the George W. Bush administration in 2001. It provides money for extra educational assistance for poor children in return for improvements in their academic progress (Capers, 2010). NCLB`s purpose is to improve the performance of America's primary and secondary schools by increasing the standards of accountability for states, school districts, and schools, as well as providing parents more flexibility in choosing which schools their children will attend. (Edweek.org)
• Success – the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. Merriam-webster.com (2010)
• Teacher- one that teaches; especially: one whose occupation is to instruct. Merriam-webster.com (2010)
• Teacher Quality - Teachers who can constantly help their students in making substantial academic progress. Teachers must have knowledge of their subject, recognize how students learn, and have comprehensive range of teaching techniques that meets the needs of diverse students. Saphier (2014)

Research methodology

Participants/Students

The researchers in this assessment selected eight hundred-six twins to perform the study. The sample contained two hundred eighty monozygotic or identical (143 female and 137 male) and five hundred twenty-six dizygzotic or fraternal (130 same-sex female; 128 same-sex male; 268 opposite sex) twin sets (Taylor, Roehrig, Hensler, Connor & Schatschneider, 2005). The subjects for the study were chosen from different schools in Florida and were in the first and second grades. Choosing different twin sets in this phase of the assessment will give better results. Having a mixture of different races and cultures helps to expand the outcome. So, based off the study, white subjects were 35%, Hispanic subjects were 33%, African-American subjects were 27% and the rest of the subjects were of mixed or another ethnicity. This information showed the subjects that participated were from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. Having all students a sense of collegial cohesiveness, hands-on approach to curriculum instruction, overarching teaching philosophy that all children can learn, communication that all students will be successful, high expectations for all children and parents playing a vital role in their child’s success (Brown & Medway, 2005). These are a few reasons the study is significant because of the direct influence of heredity variability amongst the children.

Teachers

Dr. Jeanette Taylor, the lead writer for the Florida Twin Project on Reading talks about the results from the study performed at Florida State University that comprised teachers along with first and second-grade students in Tallahassee, Florida. Although the authors did not disclose the quantity of teachers used (whether they were effective or ineffective) to contribute in the study, neither did it stipulate their qualities, beliefs, or attributes. Dr. Taylor did affirm that the teachers taught first and second grade from different Florida schools demonstrating the diverse environments they came from. (Taylor, Roehrig, Hensler. Connor & Schatschneider, 2005). The information also examines the teacher’s practices that are effective in overcoming educational barriers faced by poor and minority children.

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Data analysis

The intent of the study was that the results was gathered through three key possibilities: (1) Oral Reading Fluency test (ORF), (2) scores of the student, and (3) parents’ report. The first and second-grade students who participated in this study, reading skills were measured using the ORF test. The school staff collected the reading achievement test results and stored them in the Progress Monitoring and Reporting Network (PMRN). The PMRN is utilized to evaluate student progress or performance in those areas in which they were identified by universal screening as being at risk for failure (Dexter & Hughes). Results from the start of the year showed the baseline data and the students’ scores at the end of the year showed the post-evaluation data. By utilizing the results of the twins’ Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) exam, which measures reading abilities, they were able to see the inconsistencies in reading was based off genetic factors and expended the results of the twins’ peers, so they could generate a degree of teacher quality.

The results were assessed and compared at the end of the year. The advantages in reading was credited to the efficient teacher however, the less significant improvements were contributed to the inefficient teacher (Outlaw, 2004) (Voehrig, 2006). The twins’ results were not incorporated in the study computations therefore the teachers’ quality results were not established by the twins’ accomplishments.

There have been many studies organized and statistics shown involving teacher quality. The hypothesis was confirmed by the study; ineffective reading teachers’ make a difference when it comes to student success. Nonetheless, the study has difficulties, flaws, and prejudice. Some of those flaws are due to the minority and poor children. Teachers' qualifications has increased along with the growth of student population and the way society views them (Saylor, 2002). It has been proven that regardless of the student demographics or curriculum change, the most important factor in being an effective teacher is being prepared.

Initially, this particular study validates the important impact of teacher quality and how it has an effect on student achievement however; there are additional issues, such as peers, resources, and the physical school setting, which could help motivate the level of reading success among children. Next, the measure of teacher quality has been a problem (Voehrig, 2006). The value-added model was utilized in this study by the researchers; the progression of how the students’ performed throughout time, but there are additional methods that can determine teacher quality (classroom performance, etc.). Finally, circumstances such as the teachers’ intelligence, approach, values, viewpoint, and knowledge may limit the capacity of the study or may alter the result and cannot be regulated by the researcher. If teachers can address the student’s educational needs by creating an equally supportive educational environment.

Due to the fact, the contributors were from only one state (Florida) and a specific school district limited this study. If this study was performed somewhere else the discoveries would probably be different because of the school district or vicinity.

Particular issues that restricted the capacity of the study was the trial size, age, and classification of the students. The students that were included in the study age and grade were limited because the students were younger children. The study may encounter different outcomes if there were older students involved. In conclusion, the existing matter in the study is that observing unrelated children cannot discuss whether the results relate to heredity or within the environment or schools. This study presumes that assigning high-quality teachers in the classroom may not guarantee proportionately high achievement from students although the role of the teacher is pertinent to the classroom setting which influences students’ reading success. Even though the study demonstrated the hypothesis, more research needs to be done.

References

1. Brown, K. & Medway, F. (2005). School environment and teacher beliefs in a school effectively serving poor South Carolina (USA). African American students: a case study. Teaching and Teacher Education, 22, 530-541.
2. Capers, R. (2010). The role of the teacher and classroom atmosphere in reading motivation. Illinois Reading Council Journal, (39), 21-26.
3. Darling-Hammond, L. & Pall. D. (1996). Teaching for high standards: What policymakers should know and be able to do. CPRE Joint Report Series. Retrieved April 23, 2019, from http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/negp/reports/highstds.htm
4. Enriques, D., Jones, S., & Clarke, L. (2008). Changing our perceptions and practices, then our readings. The Reading Teacher, (63), 71-75.
5. Drager. A. M. (2011). Helping preservice reading teachers learn to read and conduct research to update their instruction. Adolescent & Adult Literacy Journal, (42), 200-209.
6. Mines, Z. (2007). Some highly qualified teachers may not be so qualified. District Administration, 43, 20-20.
7. Outlaw, T, Clements, M. & Outlaw, N. (2004). Then and now: Evolving highly qualified teachers. Kappa Gamma Bulletin, 75, 22-26.
8. Saylor, B., Person, D. P., Peterson, D. S. & Rodriguez, M.C. (2002). Reading development in high poverty classrooms; the affect of teacher practices that encourage cognitive engagement in literacy learning. The School Journal, 101, 5-31.
9. Voehrig, T. J., Hanushek, E. A (2006). Teacher Quality. NCBI. What makes a teacher “effective”? USA Today. (2007). Retrieved on April 22, 2019, from Academic Search Complete.