The literature reveals that no adequate instrument exists to measure college students' attitudes toward academic reading even though such attitudes are crucial for reading compliance and learning from text. To remedy this, the authors created and refined an attitude survey, administering it to 855 university students across four iterations. The…

Concerns about adolescent literacy continue to be highlighted in regards to the challenges of reading and learning from academic text. Recent efforts to address these concerns have led to an examination of the disciplines and their specialized ways of thinking and using language. In this article I discusses a metalinguistic protocol in a…

Provides practical, research-based suggestions for improving reading and writing skills of college science students. Describes characteristics of skilled science readers. Explains how to select reading materials that make sense and what teachers can do to improve reading assignments. Lists traits of skilled science readers and offers suggestions…

The orientation of this paper is toward conceptualizing the ideal study guide. Preliminary sections discuss the general functions of a study guide--to map out a course, breaking it down into assignments of manageable size, and to direct and assist the student in learning the content of each assignment. The general role of an assignment also is…

Extracts from four case studies of student readers describe how students approached the reading of the same text, the students' general approach to academic reading, and their feelings about reading and being a student. Suggests that the normally neutral or pleasurable private activity of reading is disturbed in the academic context by the threat…

A rhetorical analysis procedure assists upper-division students in any academic field to learn how to read, interpret, and evaluate disciplinary arguments, and how to communicate this thoroughly and thoughtfully in a well integrated essay. In a warm-up exercise, the class discusses a representative article, research study, or essay in the…

To help achieve success, students must construct purposes for reading so that they can gain the appropriate kind of information while reading. After a student has set a purpose for reading, she/he may preview the material to be read. The next step is to read the material at an appropriate speed considering the purpose for reading and the nature of…

It is generally assumed that students possess the ability to apply abstract reasoning to content material in a variety of disciplines when they enter college. Yet many college students have not reached the level of formal operations defined by Jean Piaget; thus they experience difficulty in coping with their work. A solution to this dilemma can be…

Reemphasizes the connection between reading and writing and the benefits of reading activities as assignments in the composition class. Suggests situations where readings in the composition class can facilitate reader-writer interaction. (RL)

Examines patterns in college students' text markings using texts from three content areas: history, political science, and sociology. Indicates little differential marking between various text-types. Concludes that students seem to have little idea how to mark text efficiently. (MG)

Suggests individualized reading as a solution to the problem of varied interests and ability levels in large introductory college courses. Details how directed individualized reading followed by oral reports presented to the professor was used successfully in an introductory psychology course. (ARH)

Reviews eight reading-across-the-curriculum textbooks, showing that four treat academic discourse only in its generic form, while four go beyond that level to look at the audience, purpose, and genre specific to particular disciplines. (RBW)

Describes a unit in a writing-intensive course on reading in the content areas in which students take a familiar fairy tale and rewrite it in a modern context. Describes the four class sessions, including class activities and writing assignments, noting figurative language, elements of fairy tales, and critical reading, thinking, and writing…

Describes the use of fictional literature in a college-level developmental psychology class. Focuses specifically on Maya Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" and its relation to several child development topics. Contends that literature should be used more often as part of instruction, especially in the sciences. (CFR)

After describing the development of a listening component in a university study skills curriculum, this paper presents ten assignments on effective listening skills for use as college study skills. The listening assignments are presented in a sequence beginning with focusing attention and following oral instructions precisely and ending with…