Understanding Adolescent Male Students' Reader Identities and Engagement in Reading Intervention Class

Abstract

This action research case study examined how adolescent male readers in reading intervention classes experienced and identified themselves as readers. Additionally, this case study was a self-study in that explored how I, a reading specialist, fostered student reading engagement and reader identity development. This study explored the research questions: (1) How do adolescent male students in reading intervention classes experience and identify themselves as readers? (2) How can I, as a reading specialist, foster student reading engagement and identity development? This research occurred in my classroom, a middle school reading intervention class with eight adolescent male students. I gathered multiple data sources and identified the following themes: (1) a co-constructed literacy learning space fosters student reading engagement and identity development, (2) literacy learning experiences impact student reader identity and engagement, and (3) text matters to support student reading engagement. The implications of this study can encourage teachers to adopt instructional strategies and measures to support striving secondary readers’ literacy growth, as well as their own professional advancement.