This study analyzed English language tests administered in Brazil as part of a university entrance examination, focusing on the authenticity of its tests of second language reading comprehension, the concept of reading as an interactive process between reader and text, a proficiency-based view of language instruction, and the psychometric…

This guide provides practical and specific step-by-step methods for developing and using curriculum-based assessment (CBA) in an educational setting. It is organized into six basic skills chapters. Chapter 1, "Assessment: An Overview" (Carroll J. Jones), includes the basic reasons for assessment and types of special education assessment, as well…

A study examined the "Summer Opportunity to Accelerate Reading" (S.O.A.R.) program, which provided early intervention to accelerate literacy learning for at-risk students entering grades 1-3 in the fall of 1998. Subjects were 388 students enrolled in 3 S.O.A.R. campuses from 37 Austin Independent School District (AISD) elementary schools…

An action research project described a program for expanding multiple intelligences to increase reading comprehension in both English and math. The targeted population consisted of ninth, tenth, and eleventh grade students located in a south suburb of Chicago, Illinois. The problem of reading comprehension was documented through data revealing…

This book presents essays that offer a guide to understanding the elements necessary to bring good reading instruction to all children. It includes a list of follow-up actions accompanying each essay to assist administrators, teachers, and parents in applying this knowledge to their own instructional objectives. Essays in the book are: (1)…

A study investigated the strategies used by learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) to comprehend texts written in English. Subjects were 15 student teachers enrolled at a state university in Indonesia. Data were gathered using think-aloud tasks, retellings, a reading comprehension test, in-depth interviews, and casual observation. Two…

A study examined the competence of English teachers in an Anglophone country (Nigeria) and the types of classroom interaction in a Nigerian university. Subjects, 240 randomly selected first-year undergraduates who registered for a Use of English course, were divided into an experimental and a control group. The experimental group was taught by two…

This teaching guide was developed by the Summer Program Academic Resources Coordination Center (SPARCC) in Loudonville, New York. SPARCC was a migrant education grant that developed and helped implement model summer migrant education programs in New York, Virginia, and Florida. This guide provides directions for preparing learning packets to…

This paper presents a new computer program called Zigzag, suited for investigating readers' mental activity during text processing. The program permits data collection of two different kinds, namely reading time and reading errors for each of the words read. The second dependent measure, reading errors, provides a better control of the readers'…

A study was designed to examine the effectiveness of repeated reading in fluency and comprehension. A cross-age reading program was used to give students a purpose for rereading material. The children in a second-grade classroom in a private school in suburban New Jersey were randomly assigned to two sample groups. The experimental group read to a…

A discussion of reading instruction in college English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classes presents an overview of reading instruction theory, looks at the role of reading strategies and metacognitive awareness in reading, describes the SQ3R study skills method of instruction, and examines how the method can be used for developing independent…

Current theory posits that comprehension and meaning involve not only text but also what the reader brings to the text and the contextual elements of the reading. A study investigated how eight students in grade 9 read and created meaning from short story assignments in their English classrooms. Concurrent think-aloud protocols from four short…

The purpose of this research was to determine whether a computer assisted instruction (CAI) program increased the reading and math standardized test scores for selected sixth grade high risk students in a rural school district. Fifty-four randomly selected students' scores on the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) Series were compared before and…

One of a series of semi-annual reports, this publication contains 25 articles which report the status and progress of studies on the nature of speech, instruments for its investigation, and practical applications. Articles are as follows: "Acoustic Shards, Perceptual Glue" (Robert E. Remez and Philip E. Rubin); "F0 Gives Voicing…

This study explored the enhancement of comprehension of expository text by three specific types of embedded explication--etymological, causal, and analogical--together with momentum effects from sequencing. Four factors were examined: (1) the experimental effects of presenting the section of the script containing explications of new terms before…