Reading comprehension is key to knowledge acquisition and to reinforcing memory for previous information. While reading, a mental representation is constructed in the reader's mind. The mental model comprises the words in the text, the relations between the words, and inferences linking to concepts in prior knowledge. The automated model of…

Second language (L2) learners comprehend more when they are prepared for novel vocabulary that they encounter in a text. Input-based incremental (IBI) vocabulary instruction (Barcroft, 2012) provides L2 instructors and learners with a means of achieving this goal by (a) presenting optimal input to learners at the right time during a…

A fundamental skill required for vocabulary development is word recognition ability. According to Perfetti (1985), word recognition ability relies on low-level cognitive processing skill to be automatic and efficient in order for cognitive resources to be allocated to high-level processes such as inferencing and schemata activation needed for…

This article introduces a way of seeing miscue analysis data through a "spider chart", a readily available digital graphing tool that provides an effective way to visually represent readers' complex coordination of interrelated cueing systems. A spider chart is a standard feature in recent spreadsheet software that puts a new spin on miscue…

There is a paucity of Vygotskian influenced inner speech research in relation to the reading process. Those few studies which have examined Vygotskian inner speech from a reading perspective tend to support the notion that inner speech is an important covert function that is crucial to the reading process and to reading acquisition in general.…

Are words read visually (by means of a direct mapping from orthography to semantics) or phonologically (by mapping from orthography to phonology to semantics)? The authors addressed this long-standing debate by examining how a large-scale computational model based on connectionist principles would solve the problem and comparing the model's…

This experiment employed the boundary paradigm during sentence reading to explore the nature of early phonological coding in reading. Fixation durations were shorter when the parafoveal preview was the correct word than when it was a spelling control pseudoword. In contrast, there was no significant difference between correct word and…

Discourse context may affect comprehension of a word in a text by facilitating lexical access or by facilitating integration of the target concept with the preceding text. In two experiments, we used eye tracking measures to examine contextual influence on the integration of role fillers in scripted narratives. In both experiments, context had an…

Raises problem of affective acceptance by teachers and student teachers of psycholinguistic formulations appearing to run counter to intuitive notions of the reading process. Presents three psycholinguistic formulations operationalized via several modified reading experiences. Demonstrates use by the reader of multiple information sources and…

The typical college student is unable to deeply comprehend what he or she reads. Most students have few, if any, intellectual tools that would enable them to read deeply, and then apply what they have read. The "Critical Thinking and the Art of Close Reading" series (which includes this column and the past three columns) focuses on some of the…

This article discusses different approaches to reading instruction for EFL learners based on theoretical frameworks. The author starts with the bottom-up approach to reading instruction, and briefly explains phonics and behaviorist ideas that inform this instructional approach. The author then explains the top-down approach and the new cognitive…

Television is of limited value to hearing-impaired children, who cannot benefit from the soundtrack. Traditional caption writing techniques, which involve editing of the audio track, have been based primarily on the captioner's empirical knowledge and intuition and aim the captions at a presumed average language and reading ability of the target…