Browsing by Subject "Inference-making"
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Item The influence of student engagement on the effects of an inference-making intervention for middle school students with reading difficulties(2019-09-19) Martinez-Lincoln, Amanda; Clemens, Nathan H.; Barnes, Marcia A., 1958-; Powell, Sarah R; Toste, Jessica RDespite the generally positive effects of evidence-based reading comprehension interventions on students’ outcomes, not all students respond adequately. Moderation analysis provides a statistical approach to examining responsiveness to intervention as a function of student characteristics. The current study was conducted within a parent project that investigated the effects of computer- and teacher-led interventions to improve inference-making for middle school students with reading difficulties. The aim of this dissertation study was to examine factors that affect student engagement, which, in turn, might influence response to an inference-making intervention. Specifically, language status (i.e., monolingual student, English learner), anxiety (i.e., clinical anxiety), mind-wandering (i.e., internal control of attention while reading), and mindset (i.e., motivation and attitude towards reading ability) were tested as potential moderators of effects of an inference intervention in middle school students with reading difficulties. Data was collected with sixty-six middle school students across two Texas schools who were randomized to a computerized version of the intervention, a teacher-led version, or a business-as-usual control. Results indicated a positive relation between anxiety and mind-wandering. In addition, anxiety, mind-wandering, and language status moderated the effects of the computer-led intervention treatment effects for some reading and inference outcomes, but not others. In contrast, no moderator effects were found for the teacher-led group compared to the business-as-usual group. These findings suggest that a consideration of the interaction of students’ characteristics with instructional elements may be important for understanding the effectiveness of reading interventions for middle school students. In particular, the computer version of the intervention was beneficial (i.e., increased inference-making) for students with high levels of anxiety and mind-wandering. Conversely, the computer version of the intervention was not favorable for English Learners