This study examined how knowledge of text structure may aid in comprehension and recall. One hundred forty-three students were assigned to read a canonical or a noncanonical text after half of them received instruction in text structure. Their written recall of the text was then evaluated for comprehension. Methodology and results are discussed.…

In studies on the effect of advance objectives on readers' comprehension of prose, reliable differences were noted in the areas of the passages students focused upon depending on the presence of objectives and the level of learning they required. No differences were observed in reading comprehension. (JD)

Two types of questions were inserted in reading material either before or after certain text segments to see how they affected learning. (MM)

At intervals during the reading of an article, college students were asked to stop and state how they were preparing to answer an unspecified question about the article. Those students who had attempted to discern the question had significantly superior performance to those who had not devised such a strategy. (JN)

Twenty-four college seniors summarized a 167-word text. Five days later, they completed a sentence-recognition task and described components of successful text summarization. It appeared that students who summarized efficiently also stored information in memory efficiently. (Author/CJ)

Eight factors were studied to determine their relationship to success in a beginning computer science course. Significant correlations were found between the final exam score and reading comprehension, sequence completion, logical reasoning, and algorithmic execution. (Authors/JN)

Results of a study involving 55 developmental studies college students indicate that regardless of reading competency levels, prior knowledge activation plus advance warning of possible inconsistencies in the text apparently facilitate students' comprehension of counterintuitive science text better than activation alone. (IAH)

Examines the effects of providing undergraduate learners with graphic illustrations of coordinate concept relationships to supplement text-based instruction. Half of those reading a specific passage received a graphic concept tree. That group outperformed those who did not, reporting significantly higher amounts of attenuation, confidence, and…

This article discusses findings from three studies investigating the effect of special instruction in sentence-combining on reading comprehension and writing skills. Results indicate significant gains among younger or still-developing students and focused gains among older students. (IAH)

Middle school students (N=35) who read and paraphrased an advance organizer prior to study, correctly answered significantly more lower-order study questions than did students not encountering the organizer. Middle school (N=26) and college (N=30) students who read and paraphrased the advance organizer constructed significantly better answers for…

Describes preservice teachers' selection and use of specific vocabulary and comprehension teaching strategies for a microteaching session in a field-based practicum attached to a required content area literacy course. Data from interviews showed that preservice teachers were clear on the sociocultural context of their practicum settings and the…