The purpose of this research was to determine whether music training is correlated with increased reading comprehension skills in young adults. In addition, an attempt was made to replicate Patson and Tippett's (2011) finding that background music impairs language comprehension scores in musicians but not in nonmusicians. Participants with musical…

This paper presents several "tips" for Spanish speaking adults who start a reading comprehension course in English. The document is the product of my twenty-five years of experience as a language teacher. By using these practical pieces of advice, learners understand the differences between English and their own language, are able read,…

This article presents 34 characteristics of texts and tasks ("text features") that can make continuous (prose), noncontinuous (document), and quantitative texts easier or more difficult for adolescents and adults to comprehend and use. The text features were identified by examining the assessment tasks and associated texts in the national…

FIFTEEN FIFTH GRADERS FROM SCHOOLS IN MCHENRY, ILLINOIS, TOOK PART IN A STUDY TO DETERMINE WHETHER FIFTH-GRADE CHILDREN WITH AVERAGE READING ABILITY WOULD INCREASE THEIR READING RATES WITHOUT LOSS OF COMPREHENSION WHILE USING AN ADULT RAPID-READING METHOD. SIXTEEN O. HENRY-TYPE STORIES RANGING FROM THIRD- TO SIXTH-GRADE LEVELS OF DIFFICULTY WERE…

Though adult students have rich and varied backgrounds which enhance their reading, too often teaching methods have focused on the print on the page rather than the ideas presented. There is a range of strategies for teaching reading comprehension which is applicable to any material. (JOW)

How successful are speed reading courses for adults? Author, who teaches speed reading and improvement of reading comprehension, backs up his assertion of their effectiveness with test result tables showing businessmen in particular benefit from such training. (PD)

Presents 10 strategies designed to assist adult disabled readers to move from decoding and word calling to active meaning making. (FL)

A study of the reading rate and comprehension of 10 aerospace engineers and analysis of the readability of sample company communications were undertaken. The Nelson-Denny Reading Test comprehension scores for the engineers, when compared with scores of a norm group provided by the Nelson-Denny Test Manual, were nearly the same in mean and standard…

Dialect differences are a significant factor in learning to read for English-speaking adults. These differences can be used constructively to help students learn about various features of formal and nonformal English. Emphasis should be on helping students use their experiences to make global sense of the passages they read. (Author/CH)

THE EFFICIENCY OF MACHINE VERSUS NONMACHINE INSTRUCTION IN READING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS WAS APPRAISED. PRETESTS AND POST-TESTS WERE USED TO MEASURE RATE, VOCABULARY, AND COMPREHENSION FOR 60 RANDOMLY SELECTED ADULTS ENROLLED IN FOUR CLASSES. SUBJECTS FOLLOWED INDIVIDUALIZED PROCEDURE WITH PRESCRIBED MATERIALS, PREPARED HOME ASSIGNMENTS,…

A consideration of reading potentials could produce a more balanced outlook concerning the future of reading in our society. In working with students on the improvement of reading, we find that comprehension problems are often related to attitudes about language, facts, and accuracy that are opposed to the requirements of the learning situation.…

This document offers "reciprocal questioning" as a technique that promotes active learning and that is a practical and powerful way to help students improve their reading comprehension. First, the technique is described in detail. Steps include selection of four to five paragraphs of text; preparation of 10-12 questions over the material,…

The relationship of reading ability to passing the Interpretation of Reading Materials sections in social studies, science, and literature of the General Education Development (GED) test is assessed in this paper, and procedures for developing reading skills related to the test are suggested. Information about types of questions asked,…

In this paper, we discuss the Functional Adult Literacy Program (FALP) that we have developed in Turkey. FALP, which is taught by volunteer instructors, focuses on individuals who have had very little or no schooling. The two evaluation studies of the first three cohorts of the program indicate that FALP is significantly more effective than the…