Reading services and the classification of students in two school districts
Title:
Reading services and the classification of students in two school districts
Author:
Hyde, Arthur A. Moore, Donald R.
Appeared in:
Journal of literacy research
Paging:
Volume 20 (1988) nr. 4 pages 301-338
Year:
1988
Contents:
This article presents the key findings of a research study conducted in two school districts. Three intertwined policy issues were investigated: (a) the classification of students for various educational services, (b) the impact of these practices on the way students are taught to read, and (c) the implications of the classification-reading relationship for efforts to provide a quality education for all students. One cannot understand school practices in isolation from the particular, dynamic context in which they occur. The two districts in the study erected somewhat different configurations of reading-related programs and services that were found to bear critically on classification practices. This “service structure” was created from an interplay of beliefs, politics, and rationalizations about the validity of past practice. Although reading instruction was a major aspect of each program, administrators responsible for creating the service structure had limited knowledge of reading instruction. Reading coordinators with such knowledge had very limited influence upon the service structure. At the school and classroom levels, wide variations in practices were found both within schools in the same district and within classrooms in the same school. These variations stemmed from the broad discretion allowed school-level staff in certain aspects of program implementation, student classification, and instruction. This discretion was found to cause particular practices that adversely affected children-at-risk.
Journal description