Children's lived experiences with reading: a phenomenological study

Coles, Linda (2008) Children's lived experiences with reading: a phenomenological study. Doctoral (PhD) thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

This study used a phenomenological research method to examine the question, "What are children's lived experiences with reading?" This question was explored through the perceptions of eight Grade Three children attending a rural school in Newfoundland and Labrador, where traditional print reading is being challenged by children's increasing engagements with new forms of texts and new literacies that include, but are not limited to, visual, informational, cultural, media, and digital texts. The purpose of this study was to glean an understanding of children's lived experiences with reading, through their articulations of their perceptions of these experiences within the context of the provincial reading curriculum and policies. Individual interviews, focus group discussions, and observation were used to gain access to children's experiences and to delineate themes emerging from their representations of their reading experiences. A view of the reading world of children that emerged from their perceptions contributes to a broader understanding of how children are experiencing reading and provides insight to facilitate future developments in reading policy and pedagogy. The findings extend our understanding of how children are experiencing reading and call on educators to be sensitive to the pedagogical significance of engaging children's insights in matters that involve them. Despite a curriculum that advocates for reading engagement, this study, through the lens of children's perceptions, presents children's lived reading experiences as passionless and disengaging.

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