Changing Attitudes Toward Content Area Reading: The Content Area Reading Project

Abstract

This study investigated a model inservice program in content area reading, focusing on changing secondary content teacher attitudes toward teaching reading in their content classes and improving their knowledge of reading skills. A competency-based format was used in biweekly workshops conducted by university faculty. Staff members consulted with teacher participants between workshops. A pre- and posttest design was employed, using an experimental group of workshop teachers and a comparison group. Three instruments were employed, yielding five scores, including three different attitude components plus two assessments of reading skill knowledge. Results indicate that teachers in the experimental group changed their attitudes significantly more than those in the content group during the study on all three attitude assessments. Their knowledge of reading skills improved significantly, as well, as did their perception of their skill in teaching reading. Staff members’ ratings of teachers’ integration of reading instruction into content teaching supported these findings. Conclusions include the validation of the inservice model, the resulting state-wide network for applying the knowledge gained through this study, and the importance of a long-term commitment to effective inservice instruction.