A study explored the use of a text-copying task for the determination of syntactic constituent structure. It was predicted that the task would be a naturalistic, reasonably direct, and sensitive psycholinguistic research method. In two experiments, 70 subjects wrote out copies of typed passages. The points where they paused and looked back to the…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 21 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) creativity as a mediating variable in inferential reading comprehension; (2) teacher questioning and student response interaction during portions of reading…

Experience with a number of teachers has shown that when they became aware of the uses of the categorizing processes, their teaching became more focused, they took account of student prior experience to a greater extent, and they allowed more time for students to practice the language needed to complete a task. A study was conducted to determine…

As part of a larger study of the oral reading of elementary school students representing eight linguistic populations in the United States, a study was conducted to discover why readers make the same miscues at the same point in a text and to discover factors in the text that contribute to this phenomenon. Subjects were second, fourth, and sixth…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 49 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: reading instruction for elementary school children, the significance of the teacher or teacher aide in reading instruction, reading achievement, reading…

From the perspective of a reading consultant, the processes of thinking and reading apply to efficient learning. Language teachers should know: (1) the difference between surface structure and deep meaning of an utterance, (2) the importance of "affect" on learning: the reader's personal involvement with the material and with its presentation,…

This study examined the following issues: (a) If vocabulary effects are minimized, will there be SES differences in the use of conditional forms by Caucasian children who have reached the fifth grade? (b) Even if SES differences occur in the use of recognizable conditional forms, will children within the same SES be able to transmit conditional…

Explores cloze sensitivity to global comprehension by means of retrospective interview techniques. No significant differences were found between English as a second language (ESL) college students (N=14) and native English-speaking students (N=14) in their processing strategies. (Author/CB)

Reviews research on the cognitive and affective processes engaged in by learners as they read which determine reading effectiveness and addresses implications of findings for college level study skills instruction, particularly remedial instruction of distance learners. Suggested features of a study skills program, its presentation, and program…

This study tested the hypothesis that effortful interaction with a computer tool that provides reading-related guided interaction on a meta-cognitive level results in the internalization of the guidance and later improved reading comprehension. Results with 25 seventh graders in Tel Aviv using a specially designed tool--the Reading…

Discussion of several modes of understanding in the cognitive approach to information processing focuses on heuristic (discovery-based) scientific understanding. Topics covered include how students seeking heuristic understanding in a process-oriented school library media program look at information, use preconceptions to guide their searches,…

This study investigated whether top-down or bottom-up cognitive processing was more important in listening comprehension in large-scale English-as-a-Second-Language tests administered to secondary school students in Hong Kong over a period of seven years. Results suggest that bottom-up processing was more important than top-down processing in…

Middle school classrooms are a natural laboratory where the relationships between science, reading, and writing can be developed and strengthened to provide a foundation for students' learning and future career success. Teachers do not need to know "everything" about science and reading to raise student achievement. Rather, they need to know a few…

A review of the literature in science education shows that most students have difficulties in hypothetico-deductive reasoning. The author's objective in this study was to investigate the abilities of high school teachers and university teachers to understand the difference between the terms "hypothesis" and "prediction" in the…

Predictions derived from the central processing and script dependent hypotheses were assessed by measuring the reading ability of 116 Grade 2-5 Herero-English bilingual children in Namibia ranging in age from 7 to 12 and investigating possible predictors of word reading among measures of cognitive/linguistic processes. Tasks included measures of…