Found that standard readability indexes by themselves are not useful in measuring readability and comprehensibility of income tax material. Also casts doubt on the use of only readability indexes to measure insurance, labor, and real estate contracts. (PD)

Proposes a method for presenting language materials visually as a way of facilitating the teaching of reading and presents preliminary data suggesting that the method is a plausible one. (Author/RB)

Tax instructions suffer from vocabulary and concept loads, but make a useful teaching tool. (Author)

Reviews the literature in an attempt to show the effects of inattention upon reading achievement. (RB)

With the rise of the engagement perspective on reading, the concept of engagement has been increasingly applied in reading instruction and research without seriously questioning its underlying assumptions. By probing into the intellectual roots of the engagement perspective including Dewey's notion of reflective thinking, and Freire's critical…

This study examines the growing trend of reading movements in Japan and their origins. There are three main movements: Animacion a la Lectura; Ten-Minutes Reading in the Morning; and Reading Aloud by Parents in schools. This paper reports on the three movements from a review of the literature, personal observations, and practice. The paper…

This Spring 2003 issue of the "Learning Point," the North Central Regional Educational Lab's (NCREL) magazine, focuses on the theme "A Call for Evidence Responding to the New Emphasis on Scientifically Based Research." Articles and materials in the issue are: "Wake-Up Call: Facing the Challenge to Use Scientifically Based…

A study examined the extent to which adults engage in reading tasks to meet a variety of personal purposes and needs, asking when engaged reading is most likely to occur for types of text sources, reading purposes, reading settings, educational attainment groups, and occupational groups. Subjects included 159 adults who represented a wide range of…

Proposes a Gestalt version of the word family approach to phonics instruction as a way of reducing the number of phonetic units a child must learn to gain total phonetic control of the English language. (TO)

Points out that one flaw in statistical foundations of much reading research is that researchers neglect to consider whether their findings could be replicated using a different sample of materials. Also shows that many topics in reading research do not quite fit the model for the null hypothesis. (TO)

Reviews the literature on phonic generalizations and presents a formula measuring the usefulness of word recognition, concluding that further research is needed. (RB)

Develops three lines of reasoning relating to the proposition that performance in reading, after the basic decoding skills are mastered, is primarily an indicator of the general level of the individual's thinking and reasoning processes rather than a set of distinct and specialized skills. (TO)