Explores how several kinds of metadiscourse that convey interpersonal meanings affect readers. Describes results of an immediate recall test given on two informative paragraphs which contained some modality markers. Discusses possible roles of modality markers in discourse processes. (KEH)

Hypothesizes that typographic cues structured according to a defined set of common attributes within textbooks enable readers to discriminate between various levels of information and to make generalizations about the information contained in each level. Proposes a method of identifying and ranking categories of information. (KEH)

A method is presented for using a restricted latent class model--a binary skills model--to determine skills required by a set of test items. Results from the method's application to reading achievement data for about 63,000 fourth graders indicate that the model offers useful information on test structure and examinee ability. (TJH)

Discusses the need to modify visual media for hearing-impaired students and describes a study of college students that examined the effects of modifying captions and providing supplementary instruction on the comprehension of a technical film. Effects of instruction, levels of captioning, test types, and reading ability are examined. (25…

Attempts to answer the question whether indentifiably separate levels of reading comprehension exist by judgmentally using 9 teachers at the University of Lancaster and empirically using 100 students from Bombay university. (Author/VWL)

Describes a model self-improvement reading course for teachers incorporating the communications model, the skills model, and the sustained silent reading model. Concludes that basic reading skills instruction led to improvement in reading skills and that lesson plans incorporating course objectives were produced. (RS)

Describes study conducted in West Germany that investigated the effects of presentation features and content on learning from television news. Recall, recognition, and comprehension are discussed; illustrated news items are examined; dependent and independent variables are described; and suggestions for further research are given. (33 references)…

How prior knowledge influences short-term non-verbal and verbal memory and long-term retention was studied in 32 seventh and 32 eighth graders of high and low reading ability. Greater knowledge of the text's subject resulted in improved recall and retention. No interactions were found between prior knowledge and reading ability. (SLD)

In a study of first-language transfer and second-language (L2) acquisition of reflexive binding, the interpretation of English reflexives by native speakers of Serbo-Croatian was investigated using two types of written sentence comprehension tasks. Results support the transfer hypothesis and suggest learners have access to Universal Grammar in L2…

Examines strategies of native and non-native listeners of French in phoneme-monitoring experiments requiring subjects to detect the presence of word-initial /t/ in liaison and non-liaison phrases. The performance of natives suggests the segmentation routine is based on identification of the critical word; non-natives rely on guessing strategies.…

Discusses the role of higher education institutions and training schools in the education of foreign language teachers in the United Kingdom, focusing on the importance of teaching methods, didactics, and pedagogy at these respective institutions. (six references) (MDM)

This study investigated the effects of autobiographical writing before reading on ninth graders' discussion and understanding of two short stories. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of audiotaped class discussion revealed that students who had written about relevant personal experience before reading were more substantively engaged in…

Students' experiences of revision were used to clarify the concept of understanding for 24 undergraduates through interviews describing the nature of their understanding and how it was reached. Contrasting forms of understanding were discovered. Implications for teaching and learning in higher education are discussed. (SLD)

Twenty-four resource room teachers were trained in either teaching Question-Answer Relationships (QARs) or traditional methods of reading comprehension instruction, including literal questions, locating supporting details, and drawing conclusions. Results indicated that QARs readily accommodated to content area reading material and elevated…

Interviews with 16 deaf high school students and 9 teachers found that teachers underestimated the extent of students' independent comprehension of 3 types of text. The text perceived to be most difficult by both teachers and students was the most interesting to students (but not teachers) and fostered use of a greater variety of metacognitive…