Effectiveness of Readers Theatre and Art as Instructional Strategies to Enhance Reading Comprehension

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Date
2003
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University of Alabama Libraries
Abstract

This study examined the effectiveness of Readers Theatre and Art as instructional strategies to enhance reading comprehension. The purpose of this study is to examine the results of adding drama into the reading curriculum versus another activity such as an artistic activity. Readers Theater was developed as a convenient and effective means to present literary works in dramatic form. There is no memorization involved. Students have the literature in front of them the entire time. Art activities such as water coloring and tracing, similar to those used by the author of Ming lo Moves the Mountain, were used in the control method. Twenty fourth grade students were randomly assigned to one of the three groups; two Readers Theatre experimental groups of seven students each and one Art control group consisting of six subjects. Students participated in daily, 60 minute, small-group training sessions over a period of three weeks. A comprehension recall checklist of events of Ming Lo Moves the Mountain was used on each subject at the end of each week. Recall points were calculated and compared by teacher during the duration of the study. Students also wrote reflective narratives about experience in assigned groups. After data analysis, the findings suggest that the Readers Theatre groups' comprehension of Ming Lo Moves the Mountain was higher than that of the Art group. Over the course of the study, all students' recall improved. Qualitative data found in the students' writings suggest that the majority of students enjoyed either activity.

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Keywords
Reading comprehension--Study and teaching (Elementary), Fourth grade (Education)
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