Research on subject matter instruction across the 20th century (e.g., Stevens, 1912; Bellack, 1966; Hoetker & Ahlbrand; 1969; Gall, 1970; Langer, 1999; Mehan, 1979; Nystrand, 1997;) reveals a preponderance of teacher-directed lecture, recitation, and round-robin reading of text in place of instruction that focuses on reading-to-learn, thinking,…

Since becoming president of the Alliance for Excellent Education in February 2005, the author has learned a great deal about the vital role that high-quality literacy research plays in improving teaching. Education researchers know how critical it is that they serve the needs of educators. As a former governor of West Virginia and member of the…

College students with either high or low prior domain knowledge (PK) read a text chapter presented in short pages on a computer monitor. Half of the participants read with headings present and half with headings absent. The computer recorded time spent reading and rereading each short page. Learning was assessed through a structured recall task.…

The "Auditory Discrimination in Depth (ADD) Program[R]" (currently called the "Lindamood Phonemic Sequencing (LiPS) Program[R]") is designed to teach students skills to successfully decode words and to identify individual sounds and blends in words. Initial activities engage students in discovering the lip, tongue, and mouth…

One of the key requirements of the Common Core State Standards for Reading is that all students must be able to comprehend texts of steadily increasing complexity as they progress through school. By the time they complete the core, students must be able to read and comprehend independently and proficiently the kinds of complex texts commonly found…

Bringing together leading scholars, this book describes proven ways to enhance early literacy skills in 3- and 4-year-olds, especially those from low-income families. Presented are scientifically based methods and approaches that are being applied in Early Reading First programs around the country. Important topics include promoting oral language…

A study explored 97 less proficient fifth graders' use of imagery when given oral prompts to image or general memory directions (control) and when reading explicit or implicit texts. The effects of imagery on story comprehensions and affective responses were measured by immediate and delayed story recalls, cued recall questions, and an open-ended…

A study investigated the transfer effect of three different word recognition strategies. Subjects were 90 first- through fourth-grade children randomly drawn from an elementary school population to serve in the experimental group and a like number assigned to a non-instructed control group. Strategies taught to subjects were a graphophonic…

A longitudinal study investigated the effects of leisure time reading (reading at home for pleasure or fun) on pupils' reading achievement in school. Subjects, 736 students in grades 3, 4, 5, and 6 in 30 schools located throughout the Netherlands, had their reading achievement determined five times: at the beginning and end of grade 3 and at the…

This edition of "NAEPFacts" highlights findings from the first attempt by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to measure elementary students' oral reading on a large scale. This article presents data on 1,136 fourth graders' oral fluency and its relationship to 3 other aspects of reading ability: comprehension,…

This paper describes and reports on the performance of six related artificial neural networks that have been developed for the purpose of readability analysis. Two networks employ counts of linguistic variables that simulate a traditional regression-based approach to readability. The remaining networks determine readability from "visual…

A study determined if a correlation existed between the use of predictable materials and the enhancement of reading skills. The specific reading skills in question were oral vocabulary, visual discrimination, letter and word recognition. Data were drawn from a group of first graders that represented a cross section of social, economic, and…

This document presents case studies and information related to the United States patent on a method of and structure for improving the reading efficiency of persons with specific dyslexia in which the reading matter is presented with a brightness substantially greater than the background of the reading material. The paper begins with a description…

A study examined the ability of 204 students in nine Illinois high schools to process and recall information contained in four newspaper elements: story texts, graphics, index boxes and pullout quotes. Students were randomly assigned to read the front page of one of 20 newspapers and answer questions based on information in the stories. Students…

A study investigated the reading skills of entering students at the Open University. Just over 2,000 of the 3,000 students (representing 10% of all students taking courses at the foundation level) completed questionnaires that were mailed to them. Subjects completed 3 cloze tests, graded in difficulty, and a vocabulary test. Results indicated that…