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Research Views: Purpose and Text Structure.
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Guthrie, John T. – Reading Teacher, 1979
Reviews research which indicates that children should be taught to consider their purpose for reading and should receive feedback on whether they have achieved their purpose. (MKM)
Descriptors: Discourse Analysis, Elementary Secondary Education, Paragraph Composition, Reading Comprehension
The Effect of Passage Organization on Main Idea Comprehension at Three Response Levels.
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Van Blaricom, Ginger; White, Sandra – 1976
In this study, the effect of a passage organizer (topic sentence) on the ability to identify main ideas was tested. The second purpose of this study was to determine whether main idea comprehension is affected by the type of main idea question asked. Thirty third- and thirty fourth-grade children selected on a random basis from a semi-rural…
Descriptors: Intermediate Grades, Paragraph Composition, Reading Ability, Reading Achievement
Effect of Position of Information in a Passage's Organizational Structure on Recall.
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Meyer, Bonnie J. F.; McConkie, George W. – 1974
The purpose of this study to determine if information high in the logical structure of a passage tends to be recalled better than information low in the structure. Two groups of 24 Cornell undergraduates participated in the experiment. Subjects in each group read and recalled three passages. Group one read the Breeder Reactor High, Schizophrenia…
Descriptors: College Students, Paragraph Composition, Reading Ability, Reading Comprehension
The Paragraph as a Semantic Unit: Theory into Practice.
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Colwell, Clyde G.; Helfeldt, John – Reading World, 1983
Argues that the paragraph represents a semantic unit, not just a grammatical convention. Presents original research to establish the types and frequencies of certain paragraph formats found in expository material. Discusses the most appropriate time for teaching students the ideational relationships within paragraphs. (FL)
Descriptors: Cognitive Processes, Linguistic Theory, Linguistics, Paragraph Composition
First vs Second Language Comprehension: Some Evidence from Text Summarizing.
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Kozminsky, Ely; Graetz, Naomi – Journal of Research in Reading, 1986
Tests the hypothesis that second language (L2) students' approach to text reflects a top-down processing strategy in contrast to first language (L1) students' approach that is more text-driven. Results confirmed L2 subjects studied the texts less efficiently than L1 subjects. (HOD)
Descriptors: Cohesion (Written Composition), Comparative Analysis, Content Analysis, Notetaking
The Effects of Instruction in the Organizational Patterns of Writing on Comprehension.
Lee, Carolyn – 1986
A study examined whether writing instruction focusing on organizational patterns has a significant effect on reading comprehension. Writing samples were obtained from 18 second graders, nine of whom received no instruction, while the other nine received instruction on the purpose and use of the topic sentence, adding details to the topic, and…
Descriptors: Comparative Analysis, Grade 2, Organization, Paragraph Composition
The Secondary Student's Approach to Expository Text Processing: A Preliminary Study of Written Paragraphs Based on a Four-Word Category.
Gerhard, Christian; Smith, Laura J. – 1985
Recognizing the need for some form of evaluation of students' ability to understand the organization of ideas in different subject areas, a study was conducted to evaluate 450 paragraphs written by students aged 12 to 17. Students chose one of three groups of four words each to write on. Each group represented a category, the subjects being…
Descriptors: Age Differences, Cognitive Development, Cognitive Processes, Developmental Stages