by Dr. Janet Allen
Here are a few aspects of the extensive research base included in the program’s collection of sources that are critical to understanding the significance of each component of Plugged-in. While all the studies listed in the Selected Readings and Citations section influenced our work, the studies briefly described here formed the foundation on which all elements of the Plugged-in programs are based.
Reading To, With, and By: Plugged-in is a blend of teacher-directed instruction, peer-supported learning, and independent reading and learning. This three-step instructional model has Margaret Mooney’s “to, with, and by” model of reading as its foundation (Reading To, With and By Children, Mooney, 1990). The premise is that these varying degrees of teacher support and student ownership lead students to become lifelong, independent readers. Each level of support has a critical function in the balanced literacy classroom.
To Connect: During the to stage, the teacher reads to the students and chooses to connect direct instruction to this reading based on the teacher’s assessment of what students need. Mooney regards this as a time when “the teacher acts on behalf of the author, presenting the writing with as much enthusiasm and commitment as if it were his or her own” (Developing Lifelong Readers, 1988, 24). I believe that acting “on behalf of the author” also includes illuminating those aspects of the text that students might not see on their own. In Plugged-in, this is where we provide teachers with multiple ideas for teachable moments that can be chosen to match the needs of their students and their instructional goals.
With Reading: The with stage gives students the opportunity to learn from their peers as they participate in Power Strategy Groups (nonfiction) or Literature Circles (fiction). Vacca, Vacca, and Gove (1987) remind educators that there is no reason for teachers to know every single thing a reader is taking from a text. If we have carefully chosen the texts for Literature Circles, for example, and if we believe that reading is an active, meaning-constructing process in which each reader takes from the text in proportion to what he or she brings to it (Rosenblatt, 1976), then we can trust that—with some framework—Literature Circles provide an intermediate step toward full independence. As students learn together in these book study groups, they are learning with each other and—on some occasions—with the teacher, as the teacher may join each of the groups at times. In this way, the strategies taught during the teacher-directed, whole-class reading are reinforced and used to negotiate a new text.
By Choice: Finally, reading strategies solidify and reading volume increases as students participate in the by of independent reading. It has always seemed to me that there is a fine balance between supporting choice and helping students develop both breadth and depth in their reading. The three stages of reading (to, with, and by) characterize what P. David Pearson notes as a “gradual release of responsibility.”
Students gradually take on more responsibility for their reading lives through reading aloud, shared reading, guided reading, and independent reading with—and eventually without—audio support.
Plugged-in is designed to improve students’ literacy levels not only through the gradual release of responsibility but also through the reading time invested in the various components of the program. Time spent reading correlates to building vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency—three keys to reading success (Allington, 2001, 26). There is an enormous difference in the volume of reading done by higher- and lower-achieving students. (See chart below.) Plugged-in is designed to engage all readers but is especially beneficial for those struggling readers who need significant increases in volume and diversity of reading.
Teacher-action research sponsored by Recorded Books in school districts across the country demonstrates the above chart’s data. Struggling eighth-graders in summer school who read print text while listening to the audiobook logged almost twice as many pages of reading as their peers who read the print text only (Boston public schools, summer 2003).
Beating the Odds: The final piece of research I want to highlight here is Langer’s Beating the Odds study (2000). This study investigated the characteristics of instruction that accompany student achievement in reading, writing, and English. It focused on English language arts programs in schools that have been trying to increase student performance, comparing those whose students perform higher than demographically comparable schools with schools whose scores are more typical. The study took place in four states and included 25 schools, 44 teachers, and 88 classes studied over a two-year period each.
This study is comprehensive in its findings about the instructional elements that increase literacy achievement for middle and high school students. Those schools where students received test scores anticipated by officials based on demographics were cited as typical schools. Those that scored above the test score expectations of testing officials were cited as beating the odds schools. Researchers then continued by documenting instructional patterns that differed between the two types of schools. They determined that there were six instructional elements that could move a school from typical to beating the odds: skills instruction, test preparation, connecting learning, enabling strategies, conceptions of learning, and classroom organization.
Beating the Odds has had a significant impact on the design of the Plugged-in programs.
