This article proposes a four-component framework for understanding the literacy of individuals with visual impairments, and defines two levels of literacy--basic (or academic) and functional (or practical) literacy. Implications are drawn for development of self-advocacy skills, development of standards for judging literacy in this population, and…

A study compared child and adult dyslexic readers to normal readers. Results indicated that dyslexics do not acquire appropriate levels of phoneme awareness, regardless of their age or reading levels. However, their awareness of onsets and rimes developed as their reading skills developed. (BG)

Investigates factors measured by several tests of reading comprehension. Four different factor analyses consistently resulted in Efficiency Level factor when there was one factor; when there were two factors, one was interpreted as Accuracy Level and the other as Rate Level factor. Finds that the most important factor involved is Efficiency Level,…

Describes emergent literacy behaviors of five year olds and correlates them with scores on a standardized reading readiness test in kindergarten and a reading achievement test in third grade. Finds significant correlations, thus supporting the validity of literacy-related interpretations arising from these emergent literacy tasks. (SR)

This study examined the sustained effects of methylphenidate on reading performance in 42 boys (ages 8 to 11) with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, either with or without conduct disorders. Only the subgroup of those with conduct disorders responded, and significant reading improvement was exhibited in only a subgroup of these students.…

Surveys elementary and secondary teachers' attitudes of the Reading Framework, a document that articulates the rationale for the 1992 National Assessment of Educational Progress in Reading. Deals with authentic texts, three reading situations, assessment of cognitive aspects of reading, open-ended items, special studies, and state-by-state…

Reports results from a study of middle school students composing from self-selected sources and presents a times-stage model of the research process. Finds that strategies used were influenced by the research stage and time left to completion; research processes were recursive rather than linear; and good readers used somewhat different strategies…

Sums up new integrated approaches to teaching reading that are needed to help troubled college readers cope with advanced academic material. Presents two case studies that show how these approaches can work with very different at-risk students. (RS)

This case study examined the reading and writing progress of a first grade boy. Predictions that the boy would have learning difficulties were based on data from tests, expert assessments, reading and writing samples, and school instruction. Progress in first grade reading indicated that there was no relationship between test results and the…

Examined nine measures of short-term memory (STM) used by school psychologists with group of learning-disabled (n=48) and educable mentally retarded (n=34) special education students. Results indicated that not all STM tasks were significant predictors of reading. Sentence memory task was best predictor for learning-disabled students; letter…

Reviewed academic records for students who attended public school, completing secondary education between 1982 and 1986. Students who experienced most difficulty in mastering first grade reading and arithmetic had much higher probability of leaving high school without graduating and of experiencing serious academic problems while in high school…

This study analyzed the efficacy of sensory integration treatment by combining data from a study of 96 Canadian children (29 from Alberta and 67 from Ontario children and all aged 5-8). Results indicate that the therapeutic effect of sensory integration treatment is not greater than other, more traditional methods of intervention. (Author/JDD)

Extends earlier studies that surveyed educators about their use of and reaction to classroom literacy portfolios. Finds that a growing number of professionals are actually using portfolios. Finds also that educators agree that portfolios should be used for assessment purposes in the language arts and to help place individual students in special…

The study examined word recognition abilities of readers at instructional and frustrational reading levels with 32 learning-disabled readers in grades 2, 5, 8, and 11. Findings indicated that only in the category of linguistic acceptability (syntactic and semantic) did readers produce significantly fewer acceptable responses when reading…

Pupils (N=1,755) in 232 elementary school classes in Tennessee participated in a 3-year longitudinal study of the effects of reduced class size on reading and mathematics performance. The small-class setting increased performance significantly in both mathematics and reading, and it had an especially strong impact in inner-city schools.…