Monitoring the effectiveness of reading education is central to the appraisal of the productivity of schooling, yet most measures currently being used do not take into account the full range of processes which lead to successful reading education. A model of indicators relevant to reading education (outcome, process, and input) can be used to…

A study investigated whether the use of reading games would result in greater improvement in the reading skills scores of a sample of fourth grade students as compared to a control sample taught by a traditional basal method of instruction. The subjects, 20 heterogeneously grouped students (10 for the experimental group and 10 for the control…

Underlying virtually all of the basal reading series available in the United States today is the assumption that learning to read is a skill-by-skill and word-by-word process. This part-to-whole approach to teaching reading is based on principles of behavioral psychology and "scientific management" developed a half century ago and treats…

In light of criticisms that teacher preparation programs do not adequately prepare prospective reading teachers and specialists for actual classroom problems, a study was conducted to determine the accuracy of teacher diagnoses and planning for reading difficulties and to examine differences in coursework preparation and classroom experience.…

The vocational reading demands of the plumbing trade were investigated to compare the curricular reading demands encountered by apprentices in the educational setting and the occupational reading demands encountered by journeymen in the actual job situation. A secondary purpose of the study was to examine the role and treatment of reading, as both…

Aliteracy, the ability to read but the unwillingness to do so, is a growing problem in American society. Aliteracy crosses all socioeconomic levels, thereby allowing autocratic, charismatic leaders to influence thinking and decision-making. Social changes that have contributed to the problem of aliteracy include the influence of television on…

The reading objectives and measurement specifications in this paper are provided for teachers and other educators responsible for pupil instruction and for test development specialists involved with the preparation of the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills. Following lists of objectives and general specifications, the paper outlines a…

This report evaluated the third year of operation (1984-85) of the Chapter 2 All-Day Kindergarten Program. The goals of the program were to (1) promote growth in reading readiness and mathematics skills for educationally disadvantaged children; (2) further the affective growth of these children; and (3) encourage parents' increased participation…

Focusing on the classification decisions that affect a student's opportunity to learn to read, this document outlines a study analyzing the classification practices in two urban elementary schools in Illinois. Chapter one defines the issue of student classification and its impact on how students are taught to read, examines implications for…

The concept of metacognition involves two processes: an awareness of certain skills--strategies and resources that are needed to perform a task effectively--and the ability to use self-regulatory mechanisms to ensure the successful completion of the given task. A review of the literature suggests that (1) metacognitive development differs among…

A study was conducted to determine the benefits of an approach to teaching inferential skills that combined an explicit attempt to sensitize children to why and how one should draw inferences to prior knowledge with substantial practice in drawing such inferences during story discussions. Subjects were 20 good and 20 poor fourth grade readers who…

Designed as a component of the Navajo Bilingual Bicultural Curriculum, "Ch'al" is the first book in a series of three initial readers composed of a teacher's guide and student reader-workbook. Lessons are introduced the second semester of kindergarten or whenever the teacher feels the children are ready to begin reading and should not be longer…

The second book in a series of three initial readers designed as a component of the Navajo Bilingual Bicultural Curriculum, "Chaa'" builds on the vocabulary introduced in "Ch'al" (the first book of the series). The second reader introduces all the remaining consonants (16), except "x," in the Navajo alphabet; 11 vowel…

Reading educators stress the importance of teaching reading study skills in college content area classes. Thus, a freshman level reading education course offered the opportunity simultaneously to model effective practices for preservice teachers and to conduct a study of the gains in both content knowledge and reading study skills for students who…

Two experiments were conducted to determine whether a meaning emphasis or a word identification emphasis would give better results in a third grade reading lesson. The results investigated more than 30 factors and their two-way interactions. In the first experiment, 259 children were placed into reading groups arranged either homogeneously or…