Visual representations of the main ideas of information text (frames) help middle-grade students learn from reading. A study investigated frame development by middle-grade teachers. Twenty-seven teachers worked alone and collaboratively to frame experimental passages that had been selected from content area textbooks in social studies and science.…

A study examined and specified the effects of selected variables on adults' reading strategies and comprehension. Subjects, 20 adults in an adult basic education group, 20 students in a "high-risk freshmen" group, and 18 students enrolled in a senior level reading methods course, were administered an informal reading inventory (IRI), an…

The development of a prototype computer-assisted second language listening comprehension test is reported. The project investigated the feasibility of computer-adaptive second language listening tests using microcomputer equipment and developing model testing software. Tests for French and for English as a Second Language (ESL) were developed. The…

Undertaken as part of a larger study, the experiments described in this report examine various aspects of the relationship between pictures and text and of the methodology for examining that relationship. Each of the 11 experiments described in the report involved college students and deals with the effects of storyline and texture on the reading…

Within the framework of storytelling (rather than story reading or listening) as a classroom technique for foreign language instruction, a wide range of classroom activities and over 70 story outlines are proposed. The activities range from introspective to highly interactive, from beginner to advanced, and many are offered as alternatives to…

A study investigated connections between reading difficulties and short term memory processes in order to explore the psychological basis for some individual differences in reading comprehension skills. Drawing on previous research indicating that poor readers were inferior to normal ones in judging whether two patterns of long and short tones…

A study was conducted to test the hypothesis that metaphorical thought develops according to the principles governing other categorizing processes. Of particular interest were the questions of whether preschool children possess the categorical flexibility to comprehend metaphorical statements and, if they do, whether this flexibility manifests…

Publishers of basal reading series claim that beginning reading materials must contain primarily high frequency words and that new words must be introduced gradually. Inherent in their argument is the position that reading is based on the student's ability to recognize words and that short, phonetically regular words are easier to read. To examine…

Proposing that teachers can help children learn more effectively by promoting metacognition and the acquisition of problem solving strategies, this report describes research studying the effectiveness of the experimental curriculum, Informed Strategies for Learning (ISL), in increasing third and fifth grade students' reading comprehension skills.…

Several issues in science education are examined, including those related to the current concern about science education in schools, the basis for a reform in science education, technology in the science curriculum, redirection of the science curriculum, uses of knowledge, decision making in human affairs, organization of the curriculum, and…

Supported is the argument that cognitive development should not be studied alone, in isolation from wider questions about the history of thought in the scientific community. Interest in the topic resulted from dissatisfaction with British secondary school Language-for-Learning movement assertions that learners' active use of their own speech and…

The content of essays written by randomly selected samples of 1500 U.S. and 500 British secondary students on the topic "What have I learned about Adolf Hitler?" were partitioned into theme-related assertions and analyzed. An experimental group of 150 9th- and 11th-grade male students who had studied the Holocaust also contributed papers…

An instructional manual for reference use in college and university teaching is presented, based on a 2-year study of the specific difficulties that students have in receptive communication (listening and reading) in introductory courses. Although the investigation focused primarily on the disciplines of psychology, physics, and philosophy, many…

One area explored in the second (in-depth) phase of the Learning in Science Project was "children's science," defined as views of the world and the meanings for words that children have and bring with them to science lessons. The investigation reported focuses on the concept of "energy" held by 52 Form 1 to 6 students. Data…

In an attempt to improve general instruction at the college level, a study investigated the adaptability of the cloze procedure for use in undergraduate courses, specifically examining the relationship between cloze performance tests and student achievement. In the first portion of the study, six cloze procedure tests based on selections from five…