This handbook is designed to give background information on the Mini-Assessment of Functional Literacy, a criterion-referenced test designed to determine the extent of functional literacy among seventeen year olds in America. The five format categories identified for the test were passages; drawings, pictures, signs, etc.; charts, maps, graphs;…

A survey of research indicates that a high correlation exists between the attending behavior of beginning readers and their ability to learn to read. Level of attention can be associated with ability to ignore unrelated stimuli, interest in the reading material, perceptual problems, and the sex of the reader. It is suggested that sex differences…

Presents a framework for conceptualizing development of individual differences in reading ability that emphasizes the effects of reading on cognitive development and on "bootstrapping" relationships involving reading. Uses the framework to explicate some persisting problems in the literature on reading disability and to conceptualize…

Indicates that segmentation significantly aided the comprehension of narrative and expository materials for hearing impaired students who read at a second-grade level. (NKA)

Four experiments examined the spelling capability of students in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, and college. Results suggested that reading unit size increases with age and reading ability. Younger children, like adults, unitize common words, and unitization of less common words increases as word configurations become more familiar. (RWB)

This discussion of assessing students' reading abilities focuses on the need for developing better tests and better interpretation of test scores. Criterion-referenced tests versus norm-referenced tests are described, highlighting the Degrees of Reading Power and Metropolitan Achievement Tests: Reading, and the need for assessing the reading…

Explains how to administer and score a test of early spelling ability, how to assess what the test revealed at the beginning of the school year about 26 first graders' knowledge of the function of letters in written language, and how to use that information in "natural" writing projects. (HOD)

An intervention program, consisting of story grammar training and/or attribution training, was designed to remediate the failure of poor readers to use metacognitive skills. Using 42 fourth-grade poor readers in three different treatment groups, results showed strategic training produced dramatic gains in reading comprehension. (BS)

To investigate age-and ability-related differences in the effects of explictness reversibility, and clause order on children's comprehension of causal relationships, three experiments were conducted at grade levels three, five, and eight. Students read text in one of four formats. Several age differences, but no ability interactions, were found.…

The process of acquiring word meaning from context was investigated for high- and low-ability fifth-grade children. Findings demonstrated characteristics of processing that differentiate successful and less successful acquisition and underscore the complexity of the meaning-acquisition process. (HOD)

Early reading for deaf and hearing-impaired children using the natural reading method inspired by Doman is advocated. The Doman method is described. What educational research on deaf and hearing-impaired children says concerning the process of reading acquisition is discussed. (RM)

Reviews the 3-R's Test that measures achievement in three academic content areas: reading, language, and mathematics. Cautions that it lacks data supporting its validity and scaling. (HOD)

Offers examples of lessons in conflict in reading material that can lead students to read critically, to seek further reading, and to enhance their comprehension.(HOD)

Compares twelfth-grade students' performance on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) with their performance on the Metropolitan Achievement Test 1: Reading Survey or the Degrees of Reading Power Test, concluding that the findings challenge the notion that low SAT scores indicate a lack of basic reading skills. (HOD)

This study attempted to identify elements accounting for reading proficiency among poor Black children. The expectation that teacher's style was important was not supported. Important elements seemed to be early reading, family encouragement, teachers' positive expectations, and placement with other good students. (CJM)