A survey conducted individually with 50 retired adult readers (10 males and 40 females), who are middle or upper-middle class former professionals, was made in central New Jersey to determine their reading choices and to compare personal factors of sex, physical condition, and social activity with the number of books read in a six month period. Of…

In an attempt to identify criteria used by readers to select science news, a homogeneous group of women in the Philadelphia area was asked to indicate which of 48 science-news statements they would be interested in reading in their newspapers. The statements were condensed from stories selected from Philadelphia newspapers over a…

Comprehension and interest were high when children read stories where nontraditional sex role behavior was perceived to be appropriate to the action of the story. (MKM)

Describes activities involved in establishing a classroom library; stresses the value of experiences that require student involvement. (MAI)

Reports on a study that indicated that men and women generally prefer to read the same types of subject-matter content within newspapers but prefer to use different kinds of newspaper material for getting at this subject matter. (GW)

Studies in Minnesota and Maryland indicate an interaction between television and reading. Previous research cited suggests that the relationship is not exclusive. Educators should make use of such findings to support the use of technology. (Author)

A survey was conducted of children's reading interests in Sierra Leone in 1971. In 1972-73, another survey was carried out to determine if the reading interests of children in other parts of the world coincided with those of the Sierra Leonean children. A comparison with surveys of British children was also made. (SW)

Describes the benefits of assigning methods course students to conduct small-scale descriptive studies into literary response or reading interests. (DD)

Points out that Robinson Crusoe was originally addressed to adults and contained masses of moral ruminations that children have skipped with their usual agility in the avoidance of boredom. (MB)

Two related experiments were designed to investigate the reinforcement potency of children's reading materials. After determining the preferences of third graders for various reading materials, listening to recorded tapes of these materials was used as a reward for correct responses on reading exercises. Significant differences among materials…

Suggests that students cannot read because they are not allowed to read, presents ideas for engaging children's interest in literature, and describes three reading moods common to readers: familiar reading, literature for the pertinent present, and literature for tomorrow. (JM)

Lists books published for children in 1985 that are either unique in their language or style, deal explicitly with language, or invite child response or participation. (FL)

A shortage of materials with wide appeal that are suited to the needs of immigrant learners of English as a second language exists. Language teachers are best equipped not only to select, but also to author such materials. (Author/CH)

Reviews the censorship debate in light of three underlying assumptions: (1) reading influences the opinions and beliefs of the reader; (2) the effect of a book, article, or passage is universal, implying there is one correct meaning for a particular work; and (3) the effects of reading are context independent. (SRT)

A survey of over 1,300 newspapers shows major changes between 1979 and 1983 in content and layout. Several trends run counter to reader interests: (1) increasing the ratio of features to hard news, (2) reducing the balance of national/world news to local news, and (3) reducing the number of columns on specialized interests. (PD)