Describes transactional strategies instruction, an approach to teaching reading comprehension in elementary classes that focuses on student and teacher transactions with text. Contends that the approach differs from traditional strategy instruction. Provides examples of transactional strategies instruction, including dialogs between teachers and…

Decoding, working memory, and domain-specific prior knowledge were studied as predictors of comprehension for 48 university undergraduate students after rewriting notes, rereading notes, or rereading a text. Working memory was most important for comprehension of text-implicit information, whereas knowledge was relatively more important for…

This commentary on a paper by Diane Sawyer (EC 602 748) on relations between various language skills and the development of reading ability addresses potential limitations in the implementation of structural equation modeling. The commentary concludes that the data presented by Sawyer do not support the interpretation that reading comprehension…

Reports a study which examined the effects of direct instruction on the think-aloud protocols of ninth grade readers. Students made think-aloud protocols on two stories before and after instruction. Although the instruction did not substantially affect students' interpretive operations in reading, some students were less submissive to the text.…

The development and evaluation of a series of hypermedia tools designed to help students learn to program in PASCAL or LISP are described. Classroom trials with 171 college students illustrate use of the developed tools. The use of hypermedia to foster integrated understanding is discussed. (SLD)

Analyzes some of the effects of advance organizers on text recall by seventh grade students. Finds that the advance organizer that allowed for oral presentation by the teacher with ensuing discussion resulted in the greatest and most resilient recall. Notes that discussion also affected scores. Shares teaching implications. (RS)

Investigates whether listening to stories in literary Arabic would have salutary effects on kindergarten children's emergent literacy skills. Finds that children in the experimental classes outperformed control classes on comprehension and active use of language. Concludes that children can acquire a second register through exposure in school…

Examines 14 studies involving the effectiveness of comprehension strategies (advance organizers, graphic organizers and mapping, structured overviews, and use of text structure) for developmental college students. Finds that many of the studies concluded that the strategies were not effective for promoting comprehension. Discusses several…

This article argues that poor reading achievement may be the result of restricted access to the kind of instruction that develops actively comprehending and achieving readers. Characteristics of low-achieving readers' instructional experiences are reviewed to support this argument. New approaches are called for in place of outdated beliefs about…

Investigation of ways to teach English reading comprehension strategies to Spanish-proficient students, focusing on the use of primary language strategy instruction, found that primary language instruction had a central role in improving reading comprehension and in teaching non-English-proficient students comprehension strategies. (38 references)…

This study found that 61 children (ages 8-12) with specific language impairment performed more poorly on a comprehension task in which children were questioned about a story, even after taking into account "comprehension age." The effects of mode of presentation (orally or pictorially) and question type were similar for subjects and controls.…

Study examined how second-language readers filter information from second-language texts through culture-specific background knowledge. Korean graduate students with advanced English read stories and answered questions. A think-aloud protocol assessing their understanding and inferences indicated an effect of culture-specific schemata and…

This study examined characteristics of multiple-choice reading comprehension tasks suspected of influencing their difficulty, through administration of the California Achievement Tests to 158 deaf college students. Problem components evaluated included manifest content, psychologically salient features, and processing demands. Variation in item…

This article presents and illustrates four text structure maps to help poor readers in comprehension. These patterns are: (1) the descriptive or thematic map; (2) the sequential episodic map; (3) the comparative and contrastive map; and (4) the problem/solution map. Guidelines are offered for sequencing instruction in the text maps. (DB)

This study evaluated Frith's 3-phase model of reading acquisition with 300 children in 2 cohorts who were followed from kindergarten through grade 3. Varying relationships were found among global language abilities, word recognition abilities, and reading comprehension depending on grade level. Implications for the study and treatment of…