This volume links theoretical and instructional approaches on how reading is motivated and assessed, and examines the interrelationship between reading motivation and achievement among boys and girls in culturally and geographically different settings. Much of the research on children’s reading has focused on cognitive processes; however, reading is an activity that also requires interest and motivation. These attitudes are generally defined as readers’ affect toward reading and their consequence is that children with more positive attitudes are more motivated to read. Taking into account the variability that exists within the notion of gender and age, this volume aims to examine and scrutinize previous research on the topic, as well as test theories on how the different dimensions of reading motivation vary with gender, in relation to cultural issues, motivational constructs, such as engagement and classroom climate, the role of emotions, interests and attitudes towards reading, among others. The book will be of interest to researchers, educators, graduate students, and other professionals working in the area of literacy, reading motivation, reading achievement and gender differences.

This new collection of both landmark and current essays provides a comprehensive overview of the major themes and questions that shape literacy studies today. Literacy: A Critical Sourcebook is an indispensable reference tool for anyone interested in the field of literacy studies and ideally suited for use in a wide range of upper-division and graduate classes.

This book comprises a synthesis of current directions in reading research, theory, and practice unified by what has been referred to as the engagement perspective of reading. This perspective guides the research agenda of the National Reading Research Center (NRRC), a consortium of the University of Georgia, University of Maryland, and affiliated scholars. A major goal of the book is to introduce reading researchers to the engagement perspective as defined by the NRRC and to illustrate its potential to integrate the cognitive, social, and motivational dimensions of reading and reading instruction. Engaged readers are viewed as motivated, strategic, knowledgeable, and socially interactive. They read widely for a variety of purposes and capitalize on situations having potential to extend literacy. The book is organized into four sections representing key components of the NRRC research agenda and the engagement perspective. This perspective emphasizes contexts that influence engaged reading. Accordingly, the first section of the volume focuses on the social and cultural contexts of literacy development, with chapters devoted to examining home influences, home-school connections, and the special challenges facing ethnic minorities. The engagement perspective also implies greater attention to the role of motivational and affective dimensions in reading development than traditional views of reading. Therefore, the second section examines motivational theory and its implications for reading engagement, with special attention to characteristics of classroom contexts that promote motivation in reading. The engagement perspective embraces innovative instructional contexts that address the cognitive, social, and motivational aspects of reading. Thus, the third section includes chapters on current directions in promoting children's learning from text, on the value of an integrated curriculum in promoting reading engagement, and on the challenges of assessing students' development as engaged readers. Finally, the broader conception of reading implied by the engagement perspective requires an expanded array of research approaches, sensitive to the complex and interacting contexts in which children develop literacy. The concluding section focuses on these important contemporary issues in literacy research and educational research, with chapters examining the variety of alternative modes of inquiry gaining prominence in literacy research, teacher inquiry, and ethical issues of collaboration between university and teacher researchers. Intended for university-based researchers, graduate students, and classroom teachers, this volume brings together researchers who think about students and their literacy development in school and home communities in distinctly different ways. The cooperative and collaborative inquiry presented contributes to a richer understanding of the many factors influencing engaged reading.

Reading for pleasure urgently requires a higher profile to raise attainment and increase children’s engagement as self-motivated and socially interactive readers. Building Communities of Engaged Readers highlights the concept of ‘Reading Teachers’ who are not only knowledgeable about texts for children, but are aware of their own reading identities and prepared to share their enthusiasm and understanding of what being a reader means. Sharing the processes of reading with young readers is an innovative approach to developing new generations of readers. Examining the interplay between the ‘will and the skill’ to read, the book distinctively details a reading for pleasure pedagogy and demonstrates that reader engagement is strongly influenced by relationships between children, teachers, families and communities. Importantly it provides compelling evidence that reciprocal reading communities in school encompass: a shared concept of what it means to be a reader in the 21st century; considerable teacher and child knowledge of children’s literature and other texts; pedagogic practices which acknowledge and develop diverse reader identities; spontaneous ‘inside-text talk’ on the part of all members; a shift in the focus of control and new social spaces that encourage choice and children’s rights as readers. Written by experts in the literacy field and illustrated throughout with examples from the project schools, it is essential reading for all those concerned with improving young people’s enjoyment of and attainment in reading.

This volume links theoretical and instructional approaches on how reading is motivated and assessed, and examines the interrelationship between reading motivation and achievement among boys and girls in culturally and geographically different settings. Much of the research on children's reading has focused on cognitive processes; however, reading is an activity that also requires interest and motivation. These attitudes are generally defined as readers' affect toward reading and their consequence is that children with more positive attitudes are more motivated to read. Taking into account the variability that exists within the notion of gender and age, this volume aims to examine and scrutinize previous research on the topic, as well as test theories on how the different dimensions of reading motivation vary with gender, in relation to cultural issues, motivational constructs, such as engagement and classroom climate, the role of emotions, interests and attitudes towards reading, among others. The book will be of interest to researchers, educators, graduate students, and other professionals working in the area of literacy, reading motivation, reading achievement and gender differences.

Drawing on the professional literature of many fields, this book provides an interpretation of the available research on motivation and describes instructional approaches in classroom contexts. The book aims to help teacher educators, researchers, and graduate students understand the research literature in motivation and use in their efforts to enhance children's literacy development. After an introduction, "Reading Engagement: A Rationale for Theory and Teaching" (John T. Guthrie and Allan Wigfield), chapters in the book are: (1) "Children's Motivations for Reading and Reading Engagement" (Allan Wigfield); (2) Developing Self-Efficacious Readers and Writers: The Role of Social and Self-Regulatory Processes" (Dale H. Schunk and Barry J. Zimmerman); (3) "Motivation, Volition, and Collaborative Innovation in Classroom Literacy" (Lyn Corno and Judi Randi); (4) "The Pull of the Text and the Process of Involvement in Reading" (Diane Lemonnier Schallert and JoyLynn Hailey Reed); (5) "Teacher Perceptions of Student Motivation and Their Relation to Literacy Learning" (Anne P. Sweet); (6) "The Role of Responsive Teaching in Focusing Reader Intention and Developing Reader Motivation" (Robert B. Ruddell and Norman J. Unrau); (7) "Characteristics of Classrooms That Promote Motivations and Strategies for Learning" (John T. Guthrie and Ann Dacey McCann); (8) "Integrating Science and Literacy Experiences to Motivate Student Learning" (Roger Bruning and Barbara M. Schweiger); (9) "Ownership, Literacy Achievement, and Students of Diverse Cultural Backgrounds" (Kathryn H. Au); (10) "Starting Right: Strategies for Engaging Young Literacy Learners" (Julianne C. Turner); (11) "Incentives and Intrinsic Motivation to Read" (Linda B. Gambrell and Barbara Ann Marinak); and (12) "School Change and Literacy Engagement: Preparing Teaching and Learning Environments" (Carol Minnick Santa). (RS)

Presents research into the differences in boys' and girls' experiences of the reading and writing curriculum at home and in school. The book includes an outline of the theoretical debates on gender difference and academic achievement.