An effective adolescent literary program : two case studies of adolescent non-readers

Abstract

The main purpose of this five-month study was to follow the progress of two students in order to identify the characteristics of an adolescent literacy program and the most effective instructional strategies for high school students who struggle with reading and writing. The two students I followed were fifteen years old and reading at grades one and two. Throughout the study I kept field notes to record specific observations related to student behavior, student progress, and the effectiveness of each instructional strategy and the framework for which they were applied in this program. Since my students struggled with writing, I interviewed them asking for continuous feedback about the program. Those interviews took place upon completion of each instructional strategy in order to gain the students' perspective of the effectiveness of each strategy. Through my own journal I reflected on the happenings of my class. In the end I gained a greater understanding of how to better teach non-readers at the high school level.