“My reading-less days”: a descriptive qualitative exploration of reading attitudes, preferences, and habits of fourth-grade students with aliterate characteristics

Abstract

This descriptive qualitative dissertation examined aliterate characteristics in fourth-grade children within the context of their home and school environments. Its purpose was to explore how students understand and articulate their reader identity at school and at home. The study addressed the problem of declining voluntary reading engagement in elementary school students, which has implications for teachers, parents, and researchers. Drawing on situated expectancy-value theory and identity theory, this research asked how elementary children describe awareness of their reader identity, to include preferences, attitudes, and behaviors at school and at home. It also asked how elementary children perceive the value of reading at school and at home. To investigate these questions, the study employed a descriptive qualitative design with phenomenological methods. Participants were selected based on proficient standardized reading test scores and low self-reported attitudes toward academic and recreational reading. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews and participant journaling. Findings were derived using thematic analysis. These findings demonstrated that elementary children’s reading behavior could be influenced by a variety of factors. Specifically, children navigated competing demands for time, space, and access to opportunities to read, they experienced emotional resistance to reading, and they required internal and external affirmations to engage in pro-reading behavior. These results contribute to the field of reading research by highlighting the importance of autonomy, relevance, and choice in the formation of a positive reader identity and more broadly in childhood literacy development.