A study compared results of an informal test of word recognition and a qualitative assessment of word knowledge with 32 adult basic education students. Results showed that adult spelling development is similar to that in children. The spelling-by-stage assessment instrument may be a useful substitute for word recognition tests. (SK)

Considers reading research that establishes phonological awareness as a predictor of reading success. Examines the research that seeks to teach phonological awareness to children who lack linguistic sensitivity. Identifies classroom practices that may have merit in encouraging phonological awareness in children. (RS)

Compares the reading attitudes of students with reading difficulties to teachers' impressions of their students' reading attitudes. Finds that teachers underestimate their students' positive attitude toward reading activities and that structured observation by teachers may increase teachers' knowledge of students' attitudes. (RS)

Explains eight categories of friendly text features: text organization, signaling, discourse consistency, cohesion, explication, conceptual density, metadiscourse, and instructional devices. Extratext determinants of readability (reader, goal, teacher) are also examined. Within the context of two models of reading, the interaction of these…

Investigates the functions of reading across diverse cultural settings by examining children's purposes for reading in 13 countries and then identifying functions of reading common across age levels and nationalities. Finds three common factors identified by 10 and 13 year olds: utility, enjoyment, and escape. (KEH)

Investigates prediction instruction in three basal reading series. Finds that many basal reader materials do not contain explicit definitions of predictions, nor do they provide rationale statements related to prediction instruction. Discusses implications for prediction instruction in basal readers. (RS)

Uses four case analyses to develop a historical, composite portrait of highly proficient college freshman readers, providing a data base from which reading behavior, attitudes, interest, and experiences can be described, discussed, and analyzed. Confirms all that has been learned, through current research, regarding language and the reading…

Analyzes over 2200 written responses from ballots for the "Young Adults' Choices List" which indicated that the students "really liked the book." Finds that most students were able to articulate their preferences, that they liked "problem novels" and books with teen protagonists, and that subjects of interest were…

Reports results of cloze tests in reading and listening given to Scottish children. Indicates a continuing interdependence of reading and listening ability up to age 14. Concludes that success in comprehending narratives may not necessarily transfer to comprehending information. (RS)

Determines the concurrent and predictive validity of a cloze-based scoring procedure which is sensitive to semantic and syntactic language performance, as well as to the traditional responses to deletion. Finds the scoring procedure possesses acceptable concurrent and predictive validity for a variety of passages and grade levels. (RS)

Compares the comprehension skill development of capable readers in two basal reading series to the prescribed basal skill hierarchies. Suggests that teachers select reading material which has value as literature; assess readers' skills so that they do not study what they have already mastered; and match reading selections to the skills being…

Describes a program for preschool children which focuses on: (1) reconstruction and analysis of different texts; (2) development of effective language experience; and (3) modeling and sequencing. Finds that students' attention span increased, their reading strategies were more diverse and appropriate, and attitudes improved noticeably. (MG)

Examines the usefulness of the Salience Imbalance Theory of metaphor processing to aid in understanding how children comprehend metaphors in written text. Supports the prediction that the measure of salience of features is affected by the topic order and vehicle (asymmetry), but also reports children's responses not explained by the theory. (KEH)

Reviews the research on how readers or listeners construct mental models of the situation a writer or speaker is describing. Narrative components and spatial models are discussed. (YP)

Examines the readability levels of two current children's periodicals and two nineteenth-century periodicals. Finds the language skills used by children writing poetry and letters to the editor have not declined over the last century. Finds nonfiction and recreational fiction articles to be more difficult in the nineteenth century. (RS)