Explores the resources of television broadcasts for language instruction, particularly when they provide authentic models for the acquisition of communication skills illustrating the functional aspects of language, discourse strategies, and extralinguistic components of a situation. (MES)

Describes use of learning stations at elementary and secondary levels. Explains vocabulary, grammar, conversation, listening, reading and culture stations; materials and equipment for stations; management concerns. (BK)

Discusses difficulties physics students face in understanding physics formulas and equations as a result of placing too much emphasis on the mathematical formulation. Examples are cited to show that use of equations in physics should not be looked upon as primarily a mathematical exercise. (HM)

In five experiments, adults verified sentences by reading complex information in several technical passages. Both segmenting and indenting influenced performance; however, once a text had been meaningfully segmented, the addition of indentation cues did not affect response time. Implications for typographic design--line length and margins--are…

Two experiments investigated the impact of a reader's perspective on prose learning: (1) subjects read stories from one of two directed perspectives or with no directed perspective; or (2) readers organized and familiarized themselves with a perspective before the perspective was applied to a story. Perspective influenced recall and organization.…

Discusses the reasons for growing disenchantment with the language laboratory and introduces a novel approach to advanced listening comprehension exercises based on recordings of professional entertainers. Analyzes the sketches as examples of authentic discourse, as illustrations of different speech registers and regional variants, and as vehicles…

Examines a sampling of current ESL reading instruction practices, addressing the concern that the lack of a generally accepted theory of L2 reading constitutes a major obstacle to teaching and testing ESL reading skills. Summarizes the results of two studies and discusses their implications for ESL teachers. (MES)

Reports on a study that examined seventh-grade students' ability to recall prose passages to determine whether the size of the semantic processing unit increased across three orienting task conditions, thereby increasing comprehension and recall. (HOD)

The author, a college professor, cites specific instances in which his students misread examination questions. He considers his role in dealing with college students who have such poor reading ability. (SJL)

In two experiments, infants 9-17 months of age were probed for recognition of a previously unfamiliar trained name. Responses were videotaped and scored for gaze, gesture, and vocalization. Results demonstrate improvement in receptive language capacity over the age range studied. (RMH)

Once bilingual students have reached an elementary level of reading competence in their second language; a step-by-step procedure can be followed to improve their reading skills through exercises and techniques which develop reading speed, vocabulary, and comprehension. (SB)

Reports that in a low-risk reading lesson activity, individual differences among students appeared as a function of the type of verbal interaction pattern or "register" with their teacher, while in a high-risk standardized test condition, individual differences appeared as a function of reading ability. (Author/MKM)

Reports research results suggesting that teachers need to assess several facets of reading comprehension, such as vocabulary, comprehension of passages, and speed of reading, in order to obtain an adequate picture of students' reading skills. (AEA)

The relationship between writing and reading linking prescriptive and contrastive rhetoric, textual discourse analysis, ESP text research, and psycholinguistics and reading is examined. The chief axioms stressed for writers are planning and using discourse devices. How these can be translated into reading strategies is demonstrated. (PMJ)

In a six-week study involving seventh- to ninth-grade students in a summer corrective reading program, neither the holistic nor the subskill treatment had a significant advantage in improving student reading comprehension or attitude toward reading. (JT)