This article describes the use of "Ritalin" to calm overactive children. The drug's side effects are reported, and research on the effect of "Ritalin" on reading performance in the classroom is reviewed. It is concluded that use of stimulant drugs to help reading underachievers is not supported by research. (Author/JDD)

The purpose of this study was to determine if differences in the ability to prioritize information located in texts exists for 75 third- and 62 fifth-grade students of various reading achievement levels. Results are discussed, and implications for instruction are considered. (Author/MT)

This paper looks at the relationship between reading attainment and examination achievement of Black Afro-Caribbean students who formed part of a cohort of inner London schoolchildren included in a longitudinal study. The findings of the research are discussed in terms of policy implications for education. (Author/CT)

Convergent and discriminant validity of the Mental Processing Scales of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) were examined using 51 first-grade children. Results supported the convergent validity of the K-ABC; correlations with reading achievement were fairly large. The discriminant validity received only partial support. (Author)

Compared the Self-Concept of Ability Scale and the Self-Perception of Attainment Scale for their ability to predict reading achievement as measured by the California Achievement Test. Results from 187 eighth graders revealed that both scales were significant predictors of reading achievement. (NRB)

Examines the differences between beginning and skilled readers in the units used to represent the meaning of text. Compares reading times and recall of 50 third- and fifth-graders. Stimulus sentences all had the same number of words but varied in the number of underlying propositions. (Author/CB)

Analysis of scores of 1,664 hearing impaired students (12 years and older) on the Special Education for Hearing Impaired students of the 1973 Stanford Achievement Test revealed that growth in reading achievement of typical hearing impaired students over a five-year period was approximately one-third that of average hearing students. (CL)

Reports on a program that used older adults to tutor children in reading. Finds that the children made significant gains in reading as a result of the program. (FL)

Reviews 32 studies about the utility of the Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test (BG) as a predictor of reading, its relationship to reading achievement, and ability to differentiate between good and poor readers. Results question the use of the BG (scored using discrete error systems) in a diagnostic reading battery. (BH)

It was hypothesized that teaching poor readers to use a reflective cognitive style would facilitate their reading ability. An experimental group of children was taught to delay their responses and to use more efficient search and scanning techniques. Poor readers' vocabulary and comprehension scores and level of reflectivity improved following…

Discusses the problems of overusing workbooks, dittos, and basal assessment tests in beginning reading instruction. Proposes alternatives. (FL)

This report states that in 1998-1999 and 1999-2000 in Maine the number of Reading Recovery programs provided increased by 5% and 11% respectively, and that more than half of all Reading Recovery[R] students successfully completed the program. The report also states that students who successfully completed Reading Recovery[R] continued to improve…

The 1970 International Educational Achievement (IEA) survey had placed New Zealand's nine- and fourteen-year-olds first in reading achievement in comparison with all other participating countries. By the time the 1990 IEA survey took place, however, mean achievement levels had slipped somewhat, and by the mid-1990s New Zealand's reputation was…

Currently, an increasing number of states support school readiness programs, recognizing that high quality early childhood education positively affects all children's success in school and the quality of their future. Recent federal initiatives, including Good Start Grow Smart, the revised guidance for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)…

The latent structure of the reading test of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) Reading Literacy study was investigated. The use of latent class modeling for investigating the measurement properties of a large-scale reading assessment database is demonstrated. The study focused on response data from…