Impact of Integrating a Literacy Intervention in a Pre-Kindergarten Physical Education Class
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (Ed.D)
Department
Curriculum and Instruction
Date of Award
Summer 2021
Abstract
Professional education associations, educators, policy organizations, and educational administrators agree that expanding academic time can improve achievement in core academic subjects. However, increasing academic time often comes at the cost of physical activity. Interdisciplinary instruction could be the solution to this problem. Interdisciplinary instruction involves combining 2 or more content areas in a lesson. Thus, the opportunity for students to learn other curriculum content through their physical education classes exists. As the research shows, when planned correctly, physical education classes can evoke and aid learning at all levels.The purpose of this mixed method study is to examine the impact of the integration of literacy concepts in a physical education curriculum on the academic achievement of prekindergarten students. This study utilized a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest method to test the literacy intervention (independent variable), to determine its impact on the students’ academic achievement (dependent variable). Semi-constructed interviews with students, teacher interviews, and the researcher’s field notes were the qualitative data to support the quantitative results. The researcher hypothesized that there would be a statistically significant difference between students’ pre- and post-intervention word awareness and identifying rhyme literacy TOPEL scores after they experienced the literacy intervention in their physical education class for 6 weeks. Based upon the statistical analysis, the researcher rejected both null hypotheses because there was a statistically significant difference between students’ pre-intervention and post-intervention TOPEL word awareness scores (p < 0.01), and because there was a statistically significant difference between students’ pre-intervention and post-intervention TOPEL identifying rhyme scores (p < 0.01).
Advisor
Joyce E. Miller
Subject Categories
Curriculum and Instruction | Early Childhood Education | Education
Recommended Citation
Johnson, Marcus Alan, "Impact of Integrating a Literacy Intervention in a Pre-Kindergarten Physical Education Class" (2021). Electronic Theses & Dissertations. 285.
https://digitalcommons.tamuc.edu/etd/285
