Proposing that teachers can help children learn more effectively by promoting metacognition and the acquisition of problem solving strategies, this report describes research studying the effectiveness of the experimental curriculum, Informed Strategies for Learning (ISL), in increasing third and fifth grade students' reading comprehension skills.…

In an attempt to improve general instruction at the college level, a study investigated the adaptability of the cloze procedure for use in undergraduate courses, specifically examining the relationship between cloze performance tests and student achievement. In the first portion of the study, six cloze procedure tests based on selections from five…

This guide to the ninth-grade French test for Alberta students describes the testing program, provides examples of the type of test to be administered in June 1990, and includes an answer key. Information about the testing program includes general objectives, an overview of the program type, students exempted from the test, testing for students…

The 1988-89 Compensatory Language Experiences and Reading--Reading Recovery (CLEAR-RR) Program of the Columbus, Ohio, public schools was implemented to provide early intervention to 283 underachieving first-grade pupils who appeared unlikely to learn to read successfully without intensive instruction. The program's two major goals were to develop…

A study investigated whether presenting scientific information about seasonal change in a narrative which is also a refutation text will promote learning of the information more than presenting it in an expository text which is either a considerate refutation text or an inconsiderate non-refutation text. Subjects, 123 seventh grade students and…

A study investigated the role of phonemic (sound-based) information during silent reading to determine whether the visual tongue-twister effect occurs only when readers make judgments of sentence acceptability or whether the visual tongue-twister effect is due to the way sentences are represented in memory. Data were collected from 45 university…

The current state of computer assisted instruction (CAI) in kindergarten through grade 12 is discussed. Four formats for CAI--drill, practice, tutorial, and simulation--are defined, and a set of criteria for distinguishing between effective and ineffective CAI are described. Comparisons are made between human and computer tutors. In response to…

This study was designed to develop effective and time efficient assessment techniques for self-appraisal of science text and science reading and to assess middle grade students' metacognitive knowledge about science text and science reading. Standardized interviews, word associations, concept maps, and objective examinations were administered to…

Noting that children evaluate their reading comprehension more effectively when they are informed about the standards of evaluation they should use, a study examined whether training in the use of certain standards would show generalization from one level of processing to the other, and also maintenance of standard use. The study also examined…

A practicum was implemented to improve the sight-word vocabulary and attitudes toward reading among 22 second-grade students reading below grade level. The program took approximately 45 minutes a day, 2 days a week. The language experience approach was used in conjunction with word processors. The different types of activities included dictated…

Intended for reading professionals, this yearbook contains 13 articles dealing with reading and allied fields divided into 2 sections: "Issues" and "Practices." The following articles focus on issues: "Wish Fulfillment and Other Dangers in Reading" (Joan Develin Coley); "Emergent Reading Research: Synthesis and…

This study investigated young children's development of understanding of two written genre registers, story and information books, by analyzing 5-year-olds' repeated pretend readings of a typical text of each genre. Ten female and 10 male kindergarten students were read 3 books in each genre during their kindergarten year. At each child's reading…

After an informal study of 589 college freshmen enrolled in reading courses at Bishop State Junior College (Alabama) revealed that most students read out-of-class assignments only sometimes because of the degree of difficulty of the reading tasks, a series of directed and structured activities was developed to promote reading comprehension. The…

This study investigated the effect of timed testing on developmental students' scores and developed data that might better reveal students' reading and testing behaviors. Three tests were administered to provide six variables, including the Cooperative English Test, Form 1A (Coop 1A); Cooperative English Test, Form 1B (Coop 1B); and Degrees of…

A study was conducted to identify strategies used by successful readers in comprehending and interpreting various kinds of texts. Seventy-three graduate students were asked to keep a journal (unedited and freely written) of what they were thinking as they were reading Umberto Eco's novel "The Name of the Rose." Selected journal entries…