A study compared performance on a silent informal reading inventory and achievement on a standardized reading test, focusing on students' individual skill needs and how effective tests were in identifying specific strengths and weaknesses in these skill areas. Subjects, 25 students entering fourth grade in a primarily middle class suburban…

This yearbook contains 59 selected articles from the National Reading Conference for 1988 which represent a diversity of topics explored through a variety of research paradigms designed to increase understanding of the critical issues of language and literacy. Included in the collection are "Political and Economic Dimensions of Literacy:…

A study investigated whether there is a difference in the self-concept of retarded readers and achieving readers at the high school level. Subjects, 30 retarded readers in a special education program and 30 normal or above achieving readers from two suburban high schools in Staten Island, New York, completed the Piers-Harris Children's…

Much debate is concerned with providing quality reading instruction to students who experience difficulty. This bulletin explores the various approaches advocated for teaching reading instruction to at-risk students, discusses the research underpinnings of these approaches, and examines the practical implications of the models. Two approaches…

The study investigated retention of gains in reading/language skills after one year by 378 eighth-grade students in 18 health studies classrooms. Six classrooms were assigned to each of three groups, two experimental and one control, taught by health science teachers who were: (1) trained in reading/language techniques; (2) not trained in…

A study investigated the relationship between reading achievement and predictive abilities for narrative text structure of 96 fourth grade and 70 sixth grade readers. The subjects (1) silently read incomplete stories and then told the rest orally, and (2) silently read stories that had parts deleted and then orally gave information they thought…

Divided into two phases, a study investigated the differential effects of text with and without logical connectives on college developmental readers' comprehension. In the first phase, 44 sophomores from two sections of a college developmental reading course were administered a cloze comprehension exercise along with a class of 50 regular…

Statistical evaluation indicated the effectiveness of 10 software packages used in a 3-year project to improve the reading and language skills of Limited English Proficient (LEP) Native American students. The project was implemented in four Rapid City (South Dakota) schools in which 79% of the Lakota (Sioux) Indian students (grades 3-6) were found…

This report concerns the setting of minimum standards for the New York City public schools. The commission recommends that a universal standard be set for all public schools with an improvement target of at least 50% reduction in deficits over a three-year period. Limited English proficient (LEP) students, special education students, and…

This study investigated the merit of using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale (P-HCSCS) for the purpose for which it was designed. The study originally planned to obtain information on the relationship of self-concept to reading achievement. Initial findings demonstrated an inconsistency in attitude in 59 of the 64 participating third…

To determine why ninth grade students taking the "Minimum Basic Skills Test" (MBST) and the "California Achievement Test" (CAT) performed differently in relation to reading achievement, a study investigated whether the noted discrepencies in reading achievement on the tests were due to differences in vocabulary and…

A study examined the relationship between reading and writing and the abstract thinking ability of college freshmen. It was hypothesized that (1) reading ability, writing ability, and thinking ability would be highly correlated; (2) instruction that improves either reading or writing would also improve thinking; and (3) reading, writing, and…

The reading development of six preschool children who learned to read at home without systematic instruction was studied in depth using the case study method. The main objective of the study was to ascertain (1) if there was an identifiable process by which these children learned to read and (2) the role of the parents in these children's early…

A study examined whether there is a relationship between students' reading grades and the amount of time they spend watching television. Subjects, seventh grade students from three classes (and four reading levels) of a public elementary school in Jersey City were given 84 charts to record their viewing habits for each of the three weeks of the…

In addition to determining the value of television viewing as a teaching tool for reading, a study examined the relationship between reading achievement and the amount of time spent watching television. During a 10-week period, 21 fourth grade students of various races and ethnic backgrounds recorded their television viewing schedule. The Step…