Evidence from twin studies points to substantial environmental influences on intelligence, but the specifics of this influence are unclear. This study examined one developmental process that potentially causes intelligence differences: learning to read. In 1,890 twin pairs tested at 7, 9, 10, 12, and 16 years, a cross-lagged…

The studies reported here are part of a research program whose purpose is to increase the effectiveness with which students acquire knowledge from written instructional materials. The studies had both a basic and an applied objective. The basic objective was to obtain evidence upon which to base a theory of the processes involved in language…

Miscue analysis patterns of second, fourth, and sixth grade students of high and low reading ability show that miscues acceptable in context increase by grade level and ability. (CJ)

Competent middle school teachers must both extend students' abilities in the decoding and comprehending skills and stimulate their applications of these reading skills in content area texts. In considering this differentiation of instruction, teachers should be aware of an aptitude by treatment interaction (ATI)--no one technique will produce the…

Many students assessed as being weak in reading comprehension have no reading disability, but are being asked to read material above their language and conceptual levels of competence. (DD)

Describes an investigation of 35 secondary school students to examine the relationship among scores on 10 Piagetian tasks used to assess levels of concrete and formal reasoning and problem solving abilities and scores on a standardized reading examination used to measure reading ability. (Author/GS)

Through the meaningful interpretation of sensory data and a background in language experiences, an individual can build more effective knowledge structures. With more effective knowledge structures, one can react more discriminatingly to the written and printed word. Sound knowledge structures involve not only the ability to organize and…

Describes a study of the developmental ordering of syllable and phoneme segmentation abilities in preschool, kindergarten and first-grade children. Results indicate that both syllable and phoneme segmentation increased with grade level, but analysis into phonemes is significantly harder and perfected later than analysis into syllables. (Author/SDH)

In an exploration of the comprehension process of the beginning reader, 16 first and second grade students were each asked to listen to two stories--one a narrative account and the other an expository passage-- and then immediately to retell them. Recall protocols were compared by propositional analysis for text-related superordinate and…

Several case histories of hyperlexic children whose abilities in word recognition are at a level significantly higher than their general level of intellectual functioning are described, and the impact of such a condition on the child is suggested as an object of research. In the sever"l cases presented, the hyperlexia re"ulted in environmental…

Discusses a developmental approach to children's library services in which the communication element is essential to successful programing and reader's advisory, both of which provide opportunities for using communication techniques that are meaningful in the pattern of a child's intellectual development. The stages of development are outlined.…

Comparison of 80 "good" and 80 "poor" readers of either average intellectual ability or with mild mental retardation found relatively consistent differences between "good" and "poor" readers in each sample. The "poor" readers in each sample met the discrepancy standard for learning disability.…

AN EXPERIMENT WAS CONDUCTED IN A TYPICAL SCHOOL SITUATION TO DETERMINE IF VARIATIONS AMONG TEACHER PRESENTATIONS OF LISTENING TESTS (READING ABILITIES) HAVE DIFFERENT EFFECTS ON THE RESULTS OF THESE TESTS. LISTENING TESTS WERE ADMINISTERED TO PUPILS OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN FARGO, NORTH DAKOTA, AT THE HIGH SCHOOL, JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, AND…

Children in grades 1-3 were asked to retell and explain a series of riddles. Ability to recall riddles was not predictive of ability to explain them. Three cognitive factors seemed to determine level of riddle competence. Implications concern the relationship of riddle competence to reading ability and metalinguistic facility. (CHK)