Discusses recognition of cognates used in teaching materials prepared by the English for Specific Purposes Project for academic courses. Presents suggestions based on theoretical considerations of cognate recognition. Examines, by way of protocol studies, how foreign students of English make use of cognate recognition. Suggests that strategies for…

Presents an interview with reading researcher James F. Bauman, Associate Professor at Purdue University. Discusses research findings which indicate that there are identifiable teacher behaviors and instructional environments that promote learning, and that reading comprehension skills can be taught. Discusses implications of findings for…

Recent doctoral dissertations on the gifted are reviewed. Sample topics include learning styles and self-concepts of underachievers and achievers; an identification model; gender distribution; effects of Junior Great Books literature discussions on reading comprehension; correlations among above-average ability, creativity, and task commitment;…

Proposes that secondary school literature teachers specify goals for students and teach students to ask themselves a series of broadly applicable questions to focus on literary content. (NKA)

Presents results of tested theoretical models of the development of print concepts and word reading. Indicates that children expand their knowledge in each of the following print components with age: print, graphic awareness, phonemic awareness, grapheme-phoneme correspondence knowledge, and word reading components. (NKA)

Examines different approaches to reading acquisition used in four first grades of a suburban elementary school. Supports the use of a language experience approach as a viable alternative to the basal reader approach for teaching reading and writing. (JK)

Scholastic Aptitude Test skills of dyslexics can be enhanced through use of special test administration arrangements and a structured program of vocabulary development, test-taking strategies, and a pattern of analysis to improve reading comprehension. Two case studies illustrate the impact of drill and reinforcement, multimodal imagery…

Cites research supporting the theory that young children need several exposures to a story for complete understanding and reports on a study involving six rereadings of one book to a five year old over a two week period in an effort to guide "literary" development. (NH)

Maintains that learning to read must take advantage of the child's natural playful tendencies. Shows how stories in widely-used school primers make use of trick themes based on puns, figures of speech, or metaphors. Concludes that such stories should be used to reinforce the relationship between reading and natural language. (JDH)

Describes a directed reading and writing lesson that uses the power of the composing process throughout content area lessons to enhance reading comprehension. Uses a fifth grade science lesson as a model. (FL)

The recall protocol procedure can be used as an alternative measure of foreign language reading comprehension and as a diagnostic tool. Protocol use encourages students to attend to the meaning of a foreign language passage and helps teachers to instruct students in the complex art of meaning construction. (CB)

Provides rationale for using trade books rather than textbooks for instruction in content areas. Describes a specific teaching strategy, which includes readiness, reading, and responses for encouraging the development of thinking skills and independent learning. (DST)

Describes six types of illustrations most frequently used in elementary-level content area texts. Presents ideas to teachers for effectively using illustrations to support children's learning and to develop children's abilities to verbalize the information acquired from illustrations. (DST)

Assesses students' responses to and production of story conventions in detective or mystery stories and explores students' responses to literature as potential connections between comprehending and composing text. (MM)

"Harvard Education Letter" is published bimonthly at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. This issue of "Harvard Education Letter" contains the following articles: (1) Early Childhood Education at a Crossroads: Access to Preschool Has Come a Long Way, but Critical Choices Lie Ahead (Deborah Stipek); (2) Bridging the…