An adequate description of the total reading process would have to deal with reading in at least three dimensions comprising three different sets of relationships. A model of the process might well take the form of three concentric spheres: an outer, sociolinguistic shell in which text and reader respectively could be related to a particular…

A study was undertaken to discover the reading strategies of successful and nonsuccessful second-language readers. Forty students' reading strategies were elicited, and a "reading map" constructed for a successful and a nonsuccessful reader. A procedure is suggested for using the "think-aloud" technique in the classroom. (KM)

Compares the reading processing strategies of native and proficient nonnative speakers of Chinese. At the word level natives show a phonological strategy, while nonnatives mix phonological and visual processing. At the sentence level natives mix visual and semantic strategies, and nonnatives prefer visual processing. (LMO)

Analysis of reading comprehension and recall of text by college students studying Spanish indicated that three components of background knowledge--context, transparency, and familiarity--affected the way learners read, comprehend, and recall passages. Interaction between these components and the reader is extremely complex. (CB)

Elucidates the reading problems of nonnative English speakers, noting reasons for the problems, giving signs of the problems, and demonstrating results of the problems. (HOD)

Reports on an investigation into the reading processes of English-as-a-Foreign-Language/English for Special purposes students with respect to research articles in their specialty area: Biology. Specially explored how metacognitive strategy training influenced a group of readers' declarative and procedural knowledge and their choice and use of…

Reviews basic procedures and theories supporting the Language Experience Approach as it applies to second language learning and literacy instruction. (Author/VWL)

Reviews multidisciplinary research on second culture and second language reading comprehension to support the claim that second language reading is an interactive process, involving the interrelationship of cultural schemata and discourse structure. Argues for the roles of cultural schemata and discourse structure in an interactive model of first…

Study examined how second-language readers filter information from second-language texts through culture-specific background knowledge. Korean graduate students with advanced English read stories and answered questions. A think-aloud protocol assessing their understanding and inferences indicated an effect of culture-specific schemata and…

Three experiments examined initial fixation position effects for Hebrew readers. Experiment 1 found the preferred viewing location for Hebrew readers to be to the right of the center of words and not modulated by inflectional morphological constraints. Experiments 2 and 3 indicated that derivational morphological constraints do modulate the…

Fifty-nine English-as-a-foreign-language students in Saudi Arabia took a cohesion test in which they identified four types of cohesive ties in a reading text, including conjunction, reference, substitution, and ellipsis. Incorrect responses were analyzed. It was found that substitution was the most difficult cohesive tie to process. (Author/VWL)

The paper explores the manner in which written texts are selected and used in the adult English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) classroom. Taking a sociocultural view of the reading process and of the nature of text, it argues that ESOL students have potentially rich textual resources, which are typically not acknowledged in the classroom:…

This study investigated whether significant differences exist between first and second language readers in their metacognitive awareness and perceived use of specific strategies when reading for academic purposes in English. Three hundred and fifty college students (141 US and 209 Moroccan) completed an instrument designed to measure their…

This book remains a comprehensive, myth-debunking examination of how L1 features (orthographic system, phonology, morphology) can influence English L2 reading at the "bottom" of the reading process. It provides a thorough but very accessible linguistic/psycholinguistic examination of the lowest levels of the reading process. It is both theoretical…

The major purpose of this study is to assist college students in constructing mental representation of referential resolution in a computer system. Ninety students were asked to draw mental maps indicating the relationships between references, take reading comprehension tests, and fill out open-ended questionnaire. Results showed that the…