A study was conducted involving two experiments to address the question "What effects do students' beliefs about the nature of knowledge have on comprehension?" Experiment one involved 117 junior college students and 149 university students as subjects. An epistemological questionnaire was administered to the undergraduates. Factor…

A study examined th phonics instruction that five basal reader series provide from kindergarten through grade six. The five basal programs (designated as Series A through E) that were examined are both similar and dissimilar in the recommendations they make for phonics. One series covers as many as 129 letter-sound correspondences; another covers…

A qualitative study examined the ways in which middle school and high school students create meanings when they are reading literary and non-literary texts. Subjects, 18 seventh-grade and 18 eleventh-grade students attending schools in an inner city or a suburban school district and judged by their teachers to be either above, at, or below average…

A study examined whether there was any difference in student achievement if students used computer-assisted instruction or traditional reading lab activities. Subjects, 42 students enrolled in 1988 in a 5-week summer early enrollment program, were placed in a reading improvement class based on performance on the Nelson-Denny Reading Test. Subjects…

A study was conducted to assess the values presented in American and Hispanic-American children's readers. The categories of primary interest on the value scale used include: positive behavior, positive feelings, negative behavior, negative feelings, traditional values, Judeo-Christian religious values, other religious values, and neutral values.…

Articles in this yearbook address the problems associated with how reading research informs practice. Articles, listed with their authors, are as follows: (1) "Reading Research into Policy and Practice: Practitioner's Viewpoint" (Deborah L. Thompson); (2) "Michigan's Reading Program: A Decade of Change" (Elaine M. Weber); (3)…

This yearbook contains selected papers presented at the twenty-third and twenty-fourth annual meetings of the North Central Reading Association, held in October of 1981 and 1982. Papers in the yearbook include: "History of Adult Reading Programs" (Clarence Anderson); "About Creativity and Study Skills" (Mark E. Thompson); "Recent Changes in…

Consisting of a selection of papers presented at the 1982 and 1983 meetings of the North Central Reading Association, this yearbook includes sections on computers, research, professional issues, and programs. Papers include: "The Computerized Broom Will Sweep Our Future Classrooms: But Not Necessarily Clean" (George E. Mason); "Beyond the…

A study examined the relationship between text schemata and comprehension monitoring to determine elementary school children's detection and remediation of internal inconsistencies in narrative and expository passages. Data were elicited (through computerized experimental reading passages containing internal inconsistencies) from 87 students in…

A study measured the effect of reading materials containing positive depictions of aging and the elderly on the attitudes of primary grade children toward aging and elderly adults. Subjects, 91 students from grades one to three enrolled in a Jacksonville, Florida public school, read stories selected from "aging/elderly positive"…

Research indicates that using the manual alphabet in classes of non-deaf students is effective both for spelling and vocabulary instruction. Teachers appreciate the way signing physically involves the students, acts as a self-cueing system, is inexpensive, and helps with writing problems like "b" and "d" reversals. Other advantages are: (1) it is…

A literature review examined research on the acquisition of word identification and vocabulary understanding. One of its major themes was that children's understanding of words is best understood from the perspective of developing sensitivities to the English language. A second major theme is that acquisition of word identification skills and…

A study investigated the readability of Norwegian law texts intended for both the legal profession and the public (e.g., laws regulating social insurance and public administration) that contained public information about tax payment. Six passages from the samples were rewritten by changing a number of specific morphological, lexical, and syntactic…

A practicum addressed the problem of reading comprehension skills in low achieving students by monitoring their progress utilizing precision teaching. Based on referrals from classroom teachers, guidance counselors, and parents, five students ranging in ability levels from kindergarten through grade 8 were accepted into the program for one or more…

A study investigated the influence of key factors (general comprehension ability, prior knowledge of passage topic, interest in passage topic, and locus of control) on training at-risk college students in the use of graphic organizers as a cognitive learning strategy. Subjects, 60 college freshmen required to take a developmental reading/study…