Background: Second language (L2) reading is a complex process in which two languages constantly interact. L1 reading and L2 proficiency are two well-acknowledged factors contributing to L2 reading comprehension. Other factors, such as strategy use and anxiety, might also predict L2 reading comprehension, but their roles have not been examined in…

Background: Previous meta-analyses have shown that feedback targeting text comprehension given when students perform a reading task positively influences learning from text. So far, differences in the effects of feedback were explained by design features, such as the timing and richness of feedback. In the present study, we aim to investigate…

Background: A significant number of secondary school students struggle with comprehending texts proficiently. Enhancing their reading comprehension requires knowledge about how this ability is related to various motivational and behavioural characteristics. The central aim of this study was therefore to investigate the (in)direct relationships…

Background: Reading comprehension is a multifactorial process, but one of its features has been relatively under-investigated--it is the strategy used when answering reading comprehension questions. In order to find the correct answer, children can either respond to questions about a text relying on their text memory or look back at the written…

The present research explored the awareness that readers have of the difficulty of negative text and aimed to determine whether rereading could impact comprehension and metacomprehension. Participants read passages that sometimes contained negative words such as 'no' and 'not', rated their comprehension, and answered a comprehension question about…

Background: Digital literacy instruction is increasingly common in contemporary practices and can accommodate learners with a range of needs. This systematic review explores the use and effects of technology during reading comprehension instruction involving school-aged children learning English as an additional language (EAL). Our aim was to…

Background: Physically manipulating objects according to texts can improve reading performance. This study examined whether these benefits can also be achieved via observing these manipulations or whether, because of an additional involvement of an action system, the physical manipulation might induce larger effects. Methods: In total, 134 second…

Background: Connectives, such as "because" or "although," explicitly indicate how to semantically link individual segments of a text. Knowledge of connectives has been shown to significantly contribute to variance explanation in comprehension of English and Dutch texts, particularly amongst monolingual students and students…

Low-achieving adolescents are known to have difficulties with reading comprehension. This article discusses how reciprocal teaching can improve low-achieving adolescents' reading comprehension in whole-classroom settings (as opposed to small-group settings) and to what extent intervention effects are dependent on teacher behaviour. Over the course…

This study investigated note-taking during multiple-text reading across two different task conditions in relation to comprehension performance and self-reports of strategy use. Forty-four undergraduates read multiple texts about climate change to write an argument or a summary. Analysis of students' spontaneous note-taking during reading…

This study examines the relationship between types and sequences of self-regulated reading activities in task-oriented reading with quality of task achievement of 51 low-achieving adolescents (Grade 8). The study used think aloud combined with video observations to analyse the students' approach of a content-area reading task in the stages of…

This study relates to the results obtained in the development of reading comprehension (RC) and self-concept as a reader in students who participated in "Llegim en parella" ("Reading in pairs"), a Catalan peer tutoring programme. The research combines a quasi-experimental design with the use of comparison groups and…

The present study examined whether observed differences in naturally occurring classroom instruction of reading comprehension strategies were reflected in students' independent use of strategies to comprehend expository text. Based on a descriptive classroom study in 4 ninth-grade language arts classrooms, participants were divided into two groups…

There are many established reading strategy training programmes, which explicitly teach strategic and meta-cognitive knowledge to improve reading comprehension. Although instruction in strategy knowledge leads to improvements in meta-cognitive skills, the effects do not always transfer to reading comprehension. Therefore, to investigate…

This study explored the development of meta-cognitive knowledge and control, the relationship between the two constructs, the types of strategy knowledge Chinese students consider valuable and comparisons with US children's knowledge of strategies at the third-grade level. One hundred and twenty students were randomly sampled from third-, fifth-…