Automaticity in recognizing the words in a text is fundamental to comprehension. If the number of words readers need to stop and decode exceeds their ability to retain their understanding of a narrative's plot or an expository text's description, their comprehension suffers. The conventional intervention for students who lack the automaticity to…

A key instructional goal of English language arts instruction is teaching students to read and interpret complex literary texts. This report reviews the literature on the development and pedagogy of literary analysis skills. It analyzes literary analysis skills as a "key practice," a bundle of disciplinary skills and strategies that form…

This review examined the effects of self-questioning (SQ) strategy instruction on reading comprehension outcomes for students with learning disabilities and struggling readers in Grades K-12. Our literature search, encompassing the past 53 years (1965-2018) of research, found 10 studies that fit our inclusion criteria. Reviewed studies included…

In this review of literature we examine empirical research of individual differences in younger readers' knowledge and use of expository text structures. The goal of this review is to explore the influence of reader and text characteristics in order to better understand the instructional needs of elementary school readers. First we review research…

Decontextualization, referring to the abstraction of a written text from all of its contexts, is a flawed concept. Rather than viewing writing as an isolated abstraction, a text's involvement with the human world should be acknowledged. Two major questions arise when dealing with the concept of decontextualization: (1) Can written discourse be…

Examines the nature of listening assessment and recent developments of appropriate tests. Shows listenability to be a function of orality in language and offers a summary of discourse characteristics for selecting materials appropriate to listening instruction. (FL)

Reviews the literature relevant to investigating the effects of textual phrasing on the efforts of children to comprehend and addresses the issue of whether the use of a word processor can have an impact on helping children improve comprehension. (FL)

Despite research and theory to the contrary, approaches to the teaching of reading continue to reflect a transmission model of reading, focused on the retrieval of information from a text. It is argued that writing should be fully integrated with reading to give students experiences of engagement and connection with texts. (66 references)…

Reviews current approaches to the assessment of the great variety of retellings encountered by teacher and tutor. Proposes a set of three criteria by which teachers can judge whether approaches to retellings developed by researchers are likely to be useful in classroom settings. (JK)

Describes the basic components of Iser's theory, then suggests ways to get students to interact with texts. (FL)

Highlights an elementary school where teachers help children build good reading lives by teaching reading through literature circles. Discusses five essential strands of thinking that guide the teaching of reading through literature study: building community, reading literature, having choices in reading, participating in open and lively…

Research discoveries over the past 15 years concerning reading comprehension have had a significant impact on reading instruction, particularly schema theory. This theory, based on prior learning, which states that the reader uses the text to construct a meaning within his or her own mind, affects what teachers can do to help students improve…

Examines some of the intentions that guided research into story structure, considers some of the validity problems inherent in the research, and outlines some flaws in instructional practices resulting from misinterpretations of it. Concludes with some suggestions for using story structures as a teaching tool. (FL)

Considers the possibilities of critical literacy curricula in elementary classrooms. Discusses the development of children's texts; underlying principles of critical literacy; suggested starting points for developing critical literacy in the classroom; and the implications for reading and assessment of emotionally charged texts. Argues for…

Examines the relationship between recent research on metacognition and schema theory. Provides practical teaching suggestions, showing how these concepts can be used as a framework for language instruction and for analyzing tasks students are asked to perform. (RAE)