Experiences from the author's education in teaching, dating from 1949 through the acquisition of his ED.d. degree, are the subject of this paper. Included are a model for reading instruction at the elementary school level, a review of problems of teaching English as a second language to seventh-grade students in Jordan, and a list of the major…

A study assessed how literacy professionals acquire knowledge as well as what knowledge they possess and value. A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of K-12 teachers, reading specialists, administrators, library-media specialists, and teacher educators in the United States. Results were based on 1,519 responses and are discussed in terms…

For one educator, her career as a researcher probably began when she was 7 and arranged her own "library" on the back wall of the family laundry room. During the summer between her junior and senior years of college, she worked at a state institution for the mentally retarded and found herself questioning why the "clients" were…

This booklet delineates the actions and attitudes of successful teachers who typically produce skilled readers. Presenting a variety of approaches, the booklet emphasizes that needs created by beginning readers' diverse backgrounds can only be met through a curriculum marked by equal diversity. The booklet outlines those identified characteristics…

This book presents a debate between "reasonable" educators who either claim that there is evidence for the effectiveness of whole language, or who challenge the claim that whole language works across the broad spectrum of learners. The book presents the debate in the form of formal debate resolutions, opening "statements,"…

Recognizing that classrooms are complex settings in which effective teaching cannot be the end result of merely following a list of rules and regulations, this monograph provides practicing reading teachers with appropriate information based on current teacher-effectiveness research so that they can be informed by the best of current thinking to…

Designed to differentiate preservice and inservice teachers according to their theoretical orientation to reading, the TORP consists of 28 items reflecting practices and beliefs about reading instruction. The items, which require a Likert-type response, fall into three categories: phonics (smaller than word emphasis), skills (whole words with…

Like Humpty Dumpty after the fall from the wall, language does not work effectively when it is not whole. For many students, the reading problems they begin to experience in the third or fourth grade are caused by the basic skills manner in which beginning reading is taught. Recognizing the limitations of basic skills instruction and the genre of…

A study examined the theoretical orientation of infant school and infant department teachers in England. The Theoretical Orientation to Reading Profile (TORP) was used to determine the teacher's orientation to reading instruction. TORP applies a Likert scale response system to a series of statements about how reading should be taught. Subjects…

Because parents of upper elementary school students are less likely to attend school conferences, reading teachers at this level must find unique ways to communicate with the home. Techniques for improving communication include the following: (1) holding workshops at the start of the school year to explain classroom goals and procedures, (2)…

The best way to help improve reading teacher instruction during the 1980s is through inservice emphasis upon efficient instructional practices and management techniques. However, many inservice programs are ineffective due to lack of coordination. An effective inservice program can be organized by using the following sequence: (1) a steering…

Research indicates that when taking a standardized test that is not timed, students who have been coached to revise answers profit more from their changes than do those who receive no instruction at all. Some study skill books written for high school and college students give misleading advice not to change answers while some newer editions are…

Thirty-eight college students were the subjects of a study designed to examine the efficacy of training graduate reading specialists through a diagnosis simulation program versus the use of a traditional child study approach. The major task of this investigation was to compare, by way of univariate or multivariate analysis, various combinations of…

This guide presents a classroom problem solving model designed to help teachers conduct their own classroom research. It suggests developing a procedure for identifying the instructional problems influencing reading achievement. The model is presented in steps that can be used independently or in concert with other steps. Practice activities are…

Two studies are reported which represent an attempt at operationalizing the first step of a seven-step strategy for validating reading-teacher competencies. That step is to develop a procedure whereby the profession might identify the components of reading maturity at various levels. The paper discusses and explores the following three assumptions…