Science has greatly enhanced what we know about reading and writing. Drawing on this knowledge, researchers have proffered recommendations for how to teach these two literacy skills. Although such recommendations are aimed at closing the gap between research and practice, they often fail to take into account the reciprocal relation that exists…

The authors outline the basic structure of akshara, the basic unit of writing in Indic writing systems used widely in South and Southeast Asia; present preliminary studies relating to reading, assessment, and instruction of akshara; and outline recommendations for future studies.

Research is failing to consistently report theoretical frameworks, increasing the gap between research and practice, and increasing the difficulty teachers face in effectively matching interventions with student needs. However, this lack of theoretical understanding has not been well documented in the current literature. The purpose of this…

Literacy is the ability to read and write. Being able to read and write is an important skill in modern society. Deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) students' literacy achievement has been reported as lower than that of hearing students. This research focuses on the literacy skills of D/HH students, aiming to determine their reading/writing skills and…

Reading and writing development begin in early childhood and are linked in daily function and in classroom activities from kindergarten or prekindergarten through high school and beyond. There is little research addressing that relationship, or when and how best to integrate these two critical areas instructionally. The report presents an experts…

Explicit strategy instruction combined with student-directed self-regulation in conjunction with cognitive strategies has proven effective in supporting low-achieving students' reading comprehension. Experts have extended 1 such approach, self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) for the expository reading comprehension Think before reading,…

This practical, teacher-friendly book provides indispensable guidance for implementing research-based reading instruction that is responsive to students' diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Structured around the "big five" core topics of an effective reading program--phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension--the…

Based on a review of literature, the premise is developed that summary writing is an extremely complex task that is not appreciably enhanced through trial and error methods. Argues that some direct instruction is necessary and offers a writing strategy that integrates five steps from a direct instruction model with six rules for summarizing text.…

Investigates the teacher's role in a whole language classroom. Asserts that explicit written guidelines concerning the teacher's role in directing and supporting student learning should be available for novice teachers in training and for experienced teachers who want to shift from a conventional approach to a whole language approach. (MM)

Critical lessons that share a transactional view of early literacy development are synthesized. A transactional view of reading and writing means that literacy as a meaning construction process, and that within a given literacy event, both the text and the reader are changed.

Suggesting that, as a field of research, reading-writing relationship is still in its infancy, this paper examines how the field has developed over time and where it is currently heading. Using different decades (beginning with the 1960s) as a guiding time frame, the paper (1) delineates major shifts in the conception of reading and writing, and…

Reviews reading research conducted to show the benefits of closed-captioned television. Demonstrates how it presents an interesting alternative for reading and writing instruction. (MG)

Suggesting that the process of reading, however complex, is knowable, and that the scientific study of reading is both necessary and possible, this book brings together what has been learned through the scientific study of reading by carefully observing readers in the act of reading. The book looks at reading in the real world, at how readers and…

A study of the growth of seventh grade students' writing ability after targeted discussions of children's literature was based on the assumption that active comprehension of a distinctive model of literature would provide an awareness of the structure of narrative prose that would transfer to the student's own writing. Eight students participated…

Contrasts the views of teachers and students concerning topic work, finding that teachers see it as more valuable than do children. (FL)