This study investigated the association between college students' engagement of learning strategies and their academic performance in a freshman psychology course. Three groups of students participated in the study: 22 at-risk freshmen who were taught learning strategies in a linked strategy-instruction course; 22 students who had previously taken…

Aligned with its 1998 standards for first- and second-language learning, Alberta Learning has published lesson plans that aim for a closer relationship between learning and evaluation. Each volume in this series presents a specific task for students that involves planning, carrying out and evaluating their work. The task for eighth grade students…

Emphasizing both the blend of theory and practice and especially the interrelatedness of the language arts, this book presents a practical approach to help teachers effectively implement a dynamic language arts program. New to this sixth edition: each chapter begins with objectives and is followed by a scenario that sets the stage for what is…

The five bibliographies included here were selected from those of a graduate-level class in methodology for teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). They were selected based on the quality of research and writing, interest the topic might have for other English-as-a-second-language teachers, and student permission. They include:…

A checklist of criteria for determining a text's appropriateness is provided. Suggestions assume four needs: current methodology, guidance for nonnative teachers, students' special needs, and relevance to the sociocultural environment of instruction. Criteria cover general considerations, speech, grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing, and…

A variety of methods for testing students' Russian language proficiency before, during, and after study in the Soviet Union are compared and discussed, including U.S. government-developed and other standardized examinations, interviews versus written methods, pretests-posttests, and testing emphases and problems. (MSE)

Eight learning disabled children participated in an integrated program of motor and cognitive tasks over a six-month period. Compared to eight control subjects, the treated group showed greater improvement on tests of motor and cognitive skills. A physical activity program can influence basic cognitive as well as motor skills. (Author/RD)

The effects on reading comprehension of prior cultural experience were assessed in a study of 72 advanced ESL students reading about Halloween. Prior cultural experience was found to be helpful, but exposure to meanings of target vocabulary words had no significant effect on comprehension. (Author/MSE)

Tested whether a relationship existed between the method of presentation of statistical data and (1) reader retention, (2) reader reaction, and (3) reading time. Found that reader retention was highest for reports with tables; reader reaction was most favorable for reports with graphs; and reading time was shortest for reports with tables. (PD)

The literature on individual differences in cognitive processes that operate at the text level is reviewed. Poor readers display comprehension deficits independent of word-decoding skill, due to deficient syntactic abilities and to more general metacognitive strategies. The general conclusions from this review and from Part One (ED 150 706) are…

Describes a reading program that features systematic instruction in comprehension that has been developed for Polynesian and Hawaiian children identified as educationally high risk. (AEA)

A city-wide elementary school reading program that emphasizes mastery learning and continuous progress in Chicago, Continuous Progress--Mastery Learning, is blamed for the declining reading test scores of high school students there. The program's origins and evolution are described along with a new program, Chicago Mastery Learning Reading, which…

College students were trained on a hierarchical mapping technique designed to facilitate prose processing. The students studied a geology passage and five days later were given four types of tests. The treatment group significantly outperformed a control group; the major differences were attributable to concept cloze and essay exams. (Author/RD)

Explores the hypothesis that the background knowledge effect, that is, familiarity with the topic, that enhances reading comprehension in a foreign language occurs only between two thresholds. Findings indicate that a lower threshold may exist, whereas the existence of an upper threshold is an open question. (50 references) (Author/CK)