Distinguishes between two meanings of literacy that have been conflated: the ability to read and write, and the broader concept of being educated. Presents three arguments: literacy is not social; literacy is not political; and the comprehension part of literacy is a relative matter, while the ability to decode is not. (RS)

After training in the Strategies Intervention Model, 27 correctional educators found that word decoding was successful with youth offenders, goal setting less effective. Paraphrasing and test taking were inconclusive. Academic teachers had greater success than vocational teachers, who suggested that job analysis would help determine the most…

Seymour Chatman's kernel/satellite theory is used to analyze the plot of John Galsworthy's short story, "The Japanese Quince." The theory considers the distinction between major events (kernels) and the minor supplementary ones (satellites) in a narrative as an easily proven psychological reality. (six references) (LB)

Two young autistic children exhibited normal reading comprehension but reading speeds considerably faster than controls. The effect of randomizing word order was minimal for the older of the two autistic boys. Results indicate that efficient grapheme-phoneme conversion is primarily responsible for the fast reading of the autistic children.…

Investigates the relationships among pronunciation level (decoding), verbal level (listening), and accuracy level (reading) in grades 1 to 6, and for students who are in the advanced phase of decoding. Finds that the level of reading accuracy of students can be improved the most throughout grades 1 to 6 by emphasizing instruction that will improve…

Explores early stages of reading acquisition, specifically the relation of phoneme blending and letter recoding to individual differences in word decoding. Examines the ability to recode letters, blend phonemes and decode words in Dutch children. Indicates that results are consistent with the self teaching hypothesis and other theories that imply…

This study evaluated the effect of sound-symbol association training on visual and phonological memory in children (n=24) with a history of dyslexia. Comparison with controls matched for either age or reading level found children with dyslexia or whose dyslexia had been compensated demonstrated a variety of visual and phonological memory deficits,…

The aim of this study was to elucidate how prelingual deafness affects the ability to process written words. An experiment designed to reveal possible differences in the word-processing strategies and efficiency of a sample of prelingually deafened students (n = 18; mean grade = 5.1) and a task-matched hearing control group (n = 28; mean grade =…

Walter Dean Myers, a writer, believes that a primary cause of lack of inspiration in readers is their difficulty decoding meaning because of language and societal differences. Myers especially wants and strives to reach the uninspired readers, particularly those living in the inner city, by writing, using their language and contexts.

This article examines the discursive shifts in the story "The Fairy Who Wouldn't Fly," written and illustrated by Pixie O'Harris in 1945 and then retold by David Harris in 1974. The article examines the changes between the 1940s and the 1970s in the broader social world, in particular the ways the correction of children (or bringing children into…

This article first examines recent theoretical and empirical research on reading development and instruction in English-speaking countries. Then, a study is described that examines the effects of a synthetic phonics-emphasis Direct Instruction remedial reading program on the phonological processes of students, with teacher-identified serious…

Background: While spoken language deficits have been identified in children with developmental dyslexia, microanalysis of sentence production proficiency in these children is a largely unexplored area. Aims: The current study examines proficiency of syntactic production in children and young adults with dyslexia and typically developing…

The ability to read aloud fluently is a reflection of one's ability to automatically decode words and comprehend text at the same time (Samuels, 2006), a task which may be difficult for many intermediate elementary students with learning disabilities (LD) (Ferrara, 2005). Previous research shows that audio-assisted repeated readings and…

This study is part of a broader project aimed at developing cognitive and neurocognitive profiles of adolescent and young adult readers whose educational and occupational prospects are constrained by their limited literacy skills. We explore the relationships among reading-related abilities in participants ages 16 to 24 years spanning a wide range…

Although there is evidence for a close link between the development of oral vocabulary and reading comprehension, less clear is whether oral vocabulary skills relate to the development of word-level reading skills. This study investigated vocabulary and literacy in 81 children aged 8 to 10 years. In regression analyses, vocabulary accounted for…