The problem of evaluating instructional materials in foreign language courses in terms of educational relevance is examined in this survey of a third-semester, college, Spanish class. Students were given reading materials in the social sciences in lieu of the more traditional literary selections and asked to evaluate them through an attitudinal…

This course is designed for independent students to improve their reading skills and their ability to interpret literature. The course should enable students to understand and use highly idiomatic vocabulary and grammatical structures of present-day English that interfere with comprehension. Excerpts from contemporary novels, short stories,…

One of the goals of the Oral Literature Workshop was to point out to parents the "humanizing" experience that can be found in folk literature and to suggest some ways of using this literature in the lives and development of the child. This report of the Workshop contains: the workshop summary, reading aloud to children, some techniques…

The three papers in this resource guide are oriented to the needs of Spanish-surnamed and Indian children. The first paper points out three concerns to be examined before selecting reading materials: (1) the population for whom selection is planned, (2) criteria emphasizing children's needs, and (3) apparent trends in reading instructional…

Describes a reading course offered to the first-year economics majors studying English at La Sapienza University in Rome, Italy. The reading materials were taken from authentic texts, journals, and articles about economics from English language publications. Sample passages with pre-reading and post-reading exercises are included. (CFM)

Describes the lack of substantial knowledge base about the nature of adult reading schemata and adult skill acquisition processes, posits reasons for the lack, and points out areas in adult reading that need to be addressed by researchers, such as materials, programs, and instructional methods. (SKC)

The authors of a popular secondary school level-speech communication textbook that has frequently been removed from schools or attacked because it discusses values defend their book and assess the effects of censorship. (NKA)

Reports on the observation of a group of kindergartners in their classroom library twice a week for eight weeks to learn more about how the nature of the texts--familiarity, predictability, and size--influence the children's use of books. (NH)

This article contains eight principles for teaching the adult beginning reader. Each principle is based on classical, established, or new research and learning theory related to the adult reader. With each principle, a brief rationale for its development is presented and practical instructional strategies are indicated. (Author/CH)

Presents the fifth in a series of six modules designed to give beginning teachers an opportunity to become familiar with the styles of authors and illustrators representative of the various genres of children's literature. (NKA)

Surveys 254 teachers in Texas and Kansas to determine their favorite books for reading aloud to children. Shows that their preferences included twice as many male protagonists as female and that these males were portrayed more positively than the females. (FL)

Describes a project in which parents were asked to write comments about the picture books their children were reading at home. Contains samples of parent comments. (DF)

Surveys the textbook censorship picture over the past decade with particular attention to the activities of Tim LaHaye and Norma and Mel Gabler. Suggests 10 steps teachers can take to try and protect controversial texts from censorship. (RBW)

This paper explores reading for pleasure, its importance, and its impact on literacy attainment and other outcomes and reviews much of the research on the importance of reading for pleasure. A debate has been rife in the UK over the past few years as to how best to teach children to read, which culminated in an "Independent Review of the…

Picture books that depict the variety of ethnic, racial, and cultural groups within U.S. society (known generally as multicultural picture books) allow young children opportunities to develop their understanding of others, while affirming children of diverse backgrounds. This paper discusses the possibilities and the pitfalls involved in the…