ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

BRIDGET PETERSON
MAT 729

EDUCATIONAL SETTING

Full day Kindergarten class

25 students
Varying reading ability levels
Boys and girls

Fernbrook Elementary School in Maple Grove, MN

Student demographics
Free or reduced lunch 18.4% (Minnesota Department of Education, 2014)
White 75.4% (Minnesota Department of Education, 2014)
Black 10.9% (Minnesota Department of Education, 2014)
Asian 7.4% (Minnesota Department of Education, 2014)
Hispanic 5.2% (Minnesota Department of Education, 2014)
Native American 1% (Minnesota Department of Education, 2014)

CLASSROOM PROBLEM
Researchers have found a significant association between early cultivation of

childrens reading habits and their future success (Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development, 2007).
The National Assessment for Educational Progress reports that the more you read the

better your vocabulary, your knowledge of the world, your ability to read and so on
(NICHD, 2000).

RESEARCH QUESTION
Will the implementation of daily Sustained Silent Reading affect the growth of students

reading stamina as measured by classroom observations?

Reading stamina will be defined as the students ability to concentrate and engage

independently in silent reading while displaying on-task behavior.

SUSTAINED SILENT READING

The objective of Sustained Silent Reading is to encourage students to read self-selected materials

silently without interruption for an extended period of time (Bylut Ermitage & Van Sluys, 2007).
SSR includes student self-selection of materials, teacher modeling (the teacher is reading along

with the students), and no accountability for what has been read (Langford & Allen, 1983; Yoon,
2002).
The purpose of SSR is to raise student reading achievement and foster positive perspectives

toward reading (Bylut Ermitage & Van Sluys, 2007).

RESEARCH QUESTION RATIONALE

The National Assessment for Educational Progress reports that the more you read the

better your vocabulary, your knowledge of the world, your ability to read and so on
(NICHD, 2000).
SSR provides time for students to develop knowledge of spelling, vocabulary, and

complex sentence forms (Bylut Ermitage & Van Sluys, 2007).

It is crucial to provide students with time to connect and investigate texts on their own.

Utilizing SSR allows students the chance to be in charge of their own learning and
provide them with the opportunity to work independently.

ACTION RESEARCH PROCEDURES

Prior to Implementation
Discussed what SSR looks and sounds like with students.
Used students to model examples and non-examples of SSR with the fishbowl method (Marzano &

Simms, 2013).

Daily Implementation
Students utilize their individual book boxes which include self-selected and curriculum materials.
Books
Poems
Songs
Scholastic News articles

Consistent procedures and routines are used each day.

DATA COLLECTION
Data is collected and analyzed daily.
Tally sheet categories:
Looking around/not reading
Talking
Playing
Initiating conversation with the teacher
Other (any additional off task behavior)

ANALYSIS OF DATA
Measures of central tendency are being used to interpret the data recorded on the tally

sheet from classroom observations.

Mean identify the average amount of daily student distractions.
Mode identify the most frequently occurringdisruptive behavior displayed by students during

throughout the week.

MEASURABLE OUTCOMES
Outcome #1
The mean of daily student distractions will decrease between weeks throughout the

duration of the research. For example, the mean of daily distractions on Week 3 will
be lower than the means of Week 1 and Week 2.
Success Criterion Success will be determined and achieved if the mean of daily student

distractions each week is less than that of the previous weeks.

Planned Artifact Tally sheet to record the total amount of distractions each day.

MEASURABLE OUTCOMES
Outcome #2
The most frequently occurringcategory of off task behavior displayed by students

during SSR will decrease between weeks throughout the duration of the research as
measured by the mode. For example, the mode of disruptive behavior displayed on
Week 3 will be lower than the modes of Week 1 and Week 2.
Success Criterion Success will be determined and achieved if the mode of most frequently

occurring disruptive behavior displayed by students each week is less than that of the
previous weeks.
Planned Artifact Tally sheet to record and categorize disruptive behavior each day.

RESEARCH DATA
Weekly Off-Task Behaviors
25

Not Reading/Looking Around

Initiating Conversation with Teacher

Talking with Peers

Playing
Other
20

20
15
12

11

11

10
6
5

4
2

6
3

3
11

1
0

11

10
8

55

4
2

5
3

6
4

3
1

10

00

10
7

5
11

RESEARCH DATA
Weekly Mode of Most Occurring Off-Task Behavior
25
20
15
10
5
0

Mode of Most Occuring Off-Task Behavior

RESEARCH DATA
Daily Number of Off-Task Behaviors
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

RESEARCH DATA
Daily Mean
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Daily Mean

CONCLUSIONS
The reading stamina of students has increased slowly, but steadily.
Daily sessions have increased from 2 to 7 minute durations.
Daily mean has remained in the range of 3.0-6.75 throughout the weeks.
The most occurring off-task behavior is not reading.

FUTURE PLANS
Continue with action research implementation as conducted in the past 11 weeks.
There is no immediate need to adjust any procedural and/or environmental factors.
Continuously utilize daily and weekly data to determine appropriate times to increase daily

reading session durations and identify any adjustments that need to be made.
I predict to see similar results to that of the past 11 weeks throughout the remainder of the

school year.
Next year I will consider implementing SSR earlier in the school year.

REFERENCES
Bylut Ermitage, J. & Van Sluys, K. (2007). Reading, learning, relaxing and having fun: Third-grade perspectives on sustained silent reading..
Illinois Reading Council Journal, 35 (2), 11-21.
Langford, J.C. & Allen, E.G. (1983). The effect of U.S.S.R. on students attitudes and achievement. Reading Horizons, 23, 194-200.
Marzano, R. & Simms, J. (2013). Coaching classroom instruction. Bloomington, IN: Marzano Research Laboratory.
Minnesota Department of Education (2014). 2014 Enrollment Demographics [Data file]. Retrieved from
http://rc.education.state.mn.us/#demographics/orgId--10279689000__p--3
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (2000). Report of the National Reading Panel. Teaching children to read: An
evidence-based assessment of the scientific

research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction (NIH Publication No. 00-

4769). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (2007). Literacy skills for the world of tomorrow.
http://www.oecd.org/document/49/0,3343,en_2649_33723_
2997873_1_1_1_1,00.html (accessed July 5, 2013).
Yoon, J. (2002). Three decades of sustained silent reading: A meta-analytic review of the effects of SSR on attitude towards reading. Reading
Improvement, 39, 186-195.