Presents three examples of how basal reading programs miss opportunities to build word and world knowledge: lack of focus on systematically building essential knowledge and vocabulary during teacher read-alouds and discussions aimed at building background knowledge; wasting time by including too many lessons on formal reading comprehension skills;…

Used a nontraditional approach to assess teacher acceptance of (1) seven reading comprehension strategies; (2) six sets of published materials that promoted comprehension strategies; and (3) reciprocal instruction. Favored strategies were prior knowledge activation, representational imagery, and question generation. (DG)

Examines how vocabulary knowledge, the familiarity of words, and analytical reasoning affect sixth-grade students' ability to learn word meanings from passages in basal reading textbooks. Finds that general and passage-specific vocabulary knowledge are important variables that influence learning from context. Finds that analytical reasoning was…

The reading achievement of students with learning disabilities (N=24) who received DISTAR instruction was compared to that of similar students using basal reader materials. The overall reading scores were not significantly different following one and two years of instruction, although DISTAR students had somewhat better word attack skills. (DB)

Draws a parallel between the experience of learning to read and write in a first and a second language. Notes that the experience of learning through an approach that permits talking, reading, and writing freely is satisfying whereas the experience with a text-based approach to learning is much less satisfactory. (RS)

Investigates whether second- and fifth-grade children already know the meanings of reading vocabulary presented as "new" vocabulary in their basal readers. Finds that, on average, children already knew more than 70 percent of the "new" words in basal readers one and two years beyond their grade level. (SR)

Investigates whether analogical reasoning is included in four major basal reading series and, if so, the nature of such instruction. Finds that three of the four series examined taught analogical reasoning directly, but that the nature and extent of each series' instructional recommendations varied widely. (RS/JAD)

Investigated whether positive female traits were attributed to male main characters in six basal readers. Although positive female traits appeared in the male characters, the overall composite and depiction of individual characters indicate that male personalities are dominated by male-linked virtues such as independence and a willingness to take…

Describes a listening lesson plan to teach in conjunction with the basal story "Sam Clemens of Hannibal." (MM)

Reports on a study which examined students' attitudes toward reading basals as opposed to children's novels. Notes that children overwhelmingly preferred novels over the basal series. (MM)

The study found that revising basal reader stories to improve text coherence resulted in improved comprehension for hearing impaired readers. Findings suggest that current efforts to control readability through stringent syntactic guidelines may result in texts that are more difficult, rather than less difficult, for hearing impaired readers to…

Discusses three trends in approaches to reading and literacy instruction: (1) the move from basal to literature-based instruction; (2) the move from emphasis on product to emphasis on process; and (3) the trend away from teacher as technician toward teacher as decision maker. States that these trends will result in profound and lasting changes in…

Examines the instructional practice of using predictable books exclusively to increase the reading comprehension of average first grade students. Compares the efficacy of this practice with traditional basal instruction. Finds that using predictable books improves overall reading comprehension, and that literature webbing strategy resulted in…

Compares Possible Sentences with traditional vocabulary instruction to examine the effect on student ability to pronounce and define targeted basal words. Finds that subjects were able to correctly pronounce many terms when they were presented in story context prior to actual instruction, but they could not define them. Encourages supplementing…

In three series of state-adopted parallel English and Spanish basal readers, comprehension questions most frequently assessed literal comprehension, followed by inference, evaluation, and appreciation. Readability level was higher than stated for second and third grade English texts and higher for Spanish than English texts. Contains 24…