CLC Reading Survey Team White

	Assessing Adolescents’ Motivation to Read (Jen’s Article)	The current state of motivation to read among middle school students (Justin’s Article)	Young People’s Reading: The Importance of the home environment and family support (Amy’s Article)
Sample	384 adolescents from continental US and the Caribbean	1196 sixth through eighth grade students in a large suburban middle school in Central Florida	17,089 students 8 to 16 years old from 112 different schools from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales
Eating Habits	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey
Attitude Towards Reading	Generally boys would indicate on the multiple choice form that they did not like to read, but this was a discrepancy as they told interviewers they loved to read articles, etc. on the internet or a high interest magazine, such as Field and Stream.  Their definition of reading tended to include books assigned in English class, or a textbook, not extracurricular reading which also included the internet and magazines.	From sixth grade to eighth grade, there was a significant decrease in motivation.       The self-concept score made up 52% of the reasons for motivation to read and did not seem to change much in each grade level.  A student’s attitude toward reading directly impacted their motivation to read.	The study looked at students who were encouraged to read by either parent.      Student’s attitudes towards reading differ slightly depending on what parent was encouraging them to read. If their mother was encouraging those to read 95.1% students felt that reading is very important to prosper in life.         When students feel their father encourages them to read 95.2% felt reading is important to thrive in life.
How many books student owns	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey	The study indicated that 73% of students have their own books at home.
Why students read	According to the AMRP (Adolescent Motivation  to Read Profile), many adolescents read throughout much of their life- more than they report because they do not consider non-academic writing as a part of “reading”. However, when told students are reading when they text, IM, read something in a magazine, they acknowledged they were reading. Additionally, students reported reading because of their teacher’s enthusiasm toward reading, and parental support in reading. Students will read more if given choice in the matter. They will often choose something relevant to their life or interests.	Not obtained in the survey	According to the study, students who see their parents read embrace more of a positive attitude towards reading. Clark and Hawkins (2010) found that 1 out of 6 students, who see their parents read, enjoy reading for pleasure. Other students reported that they only read in class or when they have too.
The motivation for reading a piece of literature	Students are motivated reading a piece of literature if the teacher “sells” it to them.	Not obtained in the survey	Students are motivated to read a literacy piece if their parents demonstrate a passion for reading. Also if parents take the time to discuss what they are each reading on a frequent basis.
Reading likes/dislikes	Students report reading materials that interest them, whether it be a book, magazine, or newspaper article. Conversely, students report disliking reading that seems irrelevant or boring to them. Often, this is reported in a school setting, which is why students do not necessarily classify themselves as readers, though they do read leisurely at home.	Females shared that they like to share their favorite books with other people, especially other females.  On the other hand, males were more isolate with their reading activities.	Not obtained in the survey
Reading at home	The sample of adolescents stated that they tended to read quite a bit at home, though not on an academic level. Rather, they read on the internet regarding issues or information they needed for their personal life.	The survey showed that females read more often at home than males.  About 25% of males said that they read often at home, while more than 35% of females did the same.	The study revealed that students who were encouraged by their parents to read were twice more likely to read at home compared to students who were not urged to read by their parents.
Family attitude toward reading	There were several instances when students declared their family’s support of reading through a shared interest, like a newspaper article on a sports team, or a mother buying high interest books for her daughter. This increases motivation to read.	There was no direct connection to a family’s attitude toward reading; however, the idea of females reading more often at home than males seems to perpetuate the self-concept of females being readers rather than males.	The data collected showed that 80% of students agreed with getting some inspiration to read from their mother. Where 70% of students agree that their fathers encourages them to read.
Feelings about digital text/eBooks	Students generally did not think about electronic text as a form of reading- whether it be surfing the internet, instant messaging, or sending email, however the reading survey did account for these. Students are very interested in electronic texts. There was no data regarding eBooks.	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey
Differences in gender	Females scored higher throughout the survey. Females motivation increased with age, while males interest decreased with age.	Females statistically valued reading more and saw themselves more as readers than males.  While both tended to have less motivation to read in the later grades, females’ interest stayed higher.  In the same light, females on average said that knowing how to read was very important, while males said it was “sort of” important.      As stated above, there were 10% more females reading often at home.      Females were found to share books sometimes, while males almost never shared books.  This shows a concept of reading within a community with girls, while guys saw the activity as an isolated task.	There was a significant difference in females reporting to have their own books and/or access to magazines than boys. There was not a big difference in the two genders having access to a newspaper.
Differences in race	Afro-Indo-Trini had much higher motivation in reading than all other ethnicities	Although the article does outline the ethnic breakdown of this large, suburban middle school, there were no discussions of how race played a factor.	Students who were of different ethnic origins indicated that their mothers encouraged them to read more compared to students who were Caucasian. Also more Caucasians revealed that their fathers did not urge them to read.
Differences between students with and without LDs	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey
Teacher and Instructional Strategies	Students report a higher level of interest in reading academic texts when they were given proper scaffolding by teachers. Many students also reported an interest in reading based on the enthusiasm of their instructors, and suggested book titles from these same instructors.  The teacher was a clear role model to facilitate motivation to read for many students.	Not obtained in the survey	Not obtained in the survey
Limitations of the Survey		Since the survey was given with complete anonymity, it was hard to connect students’ responses with their actual achievement in the classroom or on reading tests.      In addition, this survey was given one day only, so make-up surveys were not given.  For this reason, students who may be routinely absent may not have been reflected in this survey.      Although the research was extensive on the differences between gender and grade level, other factors were not contributed like LD, race, and income levels.	This survey looked at students as a whole and did not look at the differences between the genders or by ages.