The status of reading readiness practices in kindergarten and first grade was investigated in this study. A questionnaire based on reading readiness research was mailed to kindergarten and first grade teachers in randomly selected school buildings. Frequency of reading readiness practices utilized were tabulated and percentages determined. A…

A study identified the various teaching methods being used in a large university reading program and investigated the effect of the teaching methods on students' subsequent academic performance in social science courses at the university. Instructional methods were identified primarily through content analysis of instructor questionnaires and…

A study established the extent to which certain program materials and teaching methods were being utilized in elementary and middle grades schools in South Dakota. Each district that operated an elementary grades school, a middle grades school, or both was sent a two-part survey to complete. A total of 117 of 248 surveys were returned, for a…

Focusing on managing reading instruction related to the range of differences in the classroom, this paper includes a historical review of managing instruction beginning with examples from the 1800s. It offers a selective review of the literature on managing reading instruction and explores the following: (1) studies of organizational plans such as…

To determine if there was variability in scheduled and engaged time in reading among classrooms and in management style among teachers and to see if these factors accounted for differences on a standardized reading achievement measure, a study was conducted involving 13 fourth, fifth, and sixth grade reading classrooms. Pretest and posttest data…

Eighteen first grade reading classes in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn were studied for differences in teacher verbal behavior in various types of reading programs. Nine of the classes were using the Direct Instructional System for Teaching Arithmetic and Reading (DISTAR) and nine of the classes were using the less structured…

This is a report on the Kamehameha Early Education Program (KEEP), a research and development project designed to find ways of improving the school performance of educationally disadvantaged Hawaiian children. The project, implemented in a laboratory school setting and continuously monitored, is described as a reading instruction program for…

During a time of reform and accountability, school districts are closely monitoring teachers' instructional decisions, practices, and classroom environments. In this paper, we apply neocolonial theory to describe the experiences of elementary grade teachers in one California school district who are required to follow a scripted basal reading…

Intended to help teachers assess the effectiveness of their reading program, this paper suggests how teachers can emphasize comprehension in reading, what behaviors students demonstrate related to getting and creating meaning when reading, and how the classroom environment can promote reading for meaning. After describing effective teacher and…

This report describes the main field test of Minicourse 18: Teaching Reading as Decoding. The purposes of the main field test were: (1) to evaluate the effects of the course on the participating teachers, (2) to evaluate four reteach treatments on teacher skill acquisition, (3) to compare scores for central city and suburban teachers, and (4) to…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 22 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: development of a primary reading vocabulary; a strategy for teaching students how to identify main ideas and supporting details; reading readiness and reading…