Abstract:
This thesis describes a research study that resulted in an instructional model directed at
helping fourth grade diverse students improve their science knowledge, their reading
comprehension, their awareness of the relationship between science and reading, and
their ability to transfer strategies. The focus of the instructional model emerged from the
intersection of constructs in science and reading literacy; the model identifies cognitive
strategies that can be used in science and reading, and inquiry-based instruction related to
the science content read by participants. The intervention is termed INSCIREAD
(Instruction in Science and Reading). The GoInquire web-based system (2006) was used
to develop students’ content knowledge in slow landform change.
Seventy-eight students participated in the study. The treatment group comprised 49
students without disabilities and 8 students with disabilities. The control group comprised
21 students without disabilities. The design of the study is a combination of a mixedmethods
quasi-experimental design (Study 1), and a single subject design with groups as
the unit of analysis (Study 2).
The results from the quantitative measures demonstrated that the text recall data analysis
from Study 1 yielded near significant statistical levels when comparing the performance
of students without disabilities in the treatment group to that of the control group. Visual
analyses of the results from the text recall data from Study 2 showed at least minimal
change in all groups.
The results of the data analysis of the level of the generated questions show there was a
statistically significant increase in the scores students without disabilities obtained in the
questions they generated from the pre to the posttest. The analyses conducted to detect
incongruities, to summarize and rate importance, and to determine the number of
propositions on a science and reading concept map data showed a statistically significant
difference between students without disabilities in the treatment and the control groups
on post-intervention scores.
The analysis of the data from the number of misconceptions of students without
disabilities showed that the frequency of 4 of the 11 misconceptions changed
significantly from pre to post elicitation stages. The analyses of the qualitative measures
of the think alouds and interviews generally supported the above findings.
