The instruction provided by two beginning reading programs (the Ginn 720 and the Palo Alto 1973 reading programs) are analyzed and compared in this paper on the basis of such factors as phoneme-grapheme correspondence and phonics instruction, sight word learning, and the development of reading comprehension. The comparison focuses primarily on the…

Selected recent research studies are reviewed under the following headings: (1) perception pretraining for reading, (2) hierarchical arrangement of reading skills, (3) comparisons of suggested sequences of different basal series, (4) code versus meaning emphasis in beginning reading, and (5) the relative effectiveness of methods involving…

Some English as a second language students are not literate in their own language and require special instruction. Teaching procedures and activities are outlined for reinforcing the following reading skills: phonetic analysis, structural analysis, sight words, use of context clues, and comprehension. (SW)

This study investigated cross-language and writing system relationship in biliteracy acquisition of children learning to read two different writing systems--Chinese and English. Forty-six Mandarin-speaking children were tested for their first language (Chinese-L1) and second language (English-L2) reading skills. Comparable experiments in Chinese…

A study examined the relationship between reading instruction method, sex of learner, word learning proficiency and reading achievement in the first grade. Subjects were 78 males and 88 females chosen from two white, middle class suburban schools, one having a sight vocabulary instruction program, the other a phonic basal program. Students were…

A study examined how word recognition automaticity develops and its relationship to the acquisition of comprehension skill. Two different methods for teaching reading were used: (1) a global method using the Houghton Mifflin basal reading program, and (2) a code method using the New Reading System, which emphasizes word decoding skills along with…

A study of the effects of pictures and context cues in teaching sight word vocabulary used six high ability and six low ability first grade students for each of four experimental conditions: word alone, picture, sentence with no picture (context), and sentence plus picture. The procedures included acquisition and test trials, a retention test…

Three reading procedures for learning isolated words--whole-word, syllable-blending, and phonics-blending--were examined to determine which was the most effective for preschool children. The six preschool children in the study were divided into two groups to assess the effects of the length and number of different letters in a series of training…

Intended to help dispel several unsupported "myths" about reading instruction, this book analyzes a selected group of teaching practices that have been supported by reading experts but not by research findings. The "myths" discussed in the first 12 chapters of the book are as follows: (1) phonics hinders comprehension; (2) unpredictable spelling…

Twenty first grade children were videotaped during their first six weeks of learning to read in a study of the modified synthetic phonics program and the four progressive stages of oral reading behavior (emergence, contextual, nonresponse, and postresponse). The approach used by the teacher emphasized learning new words through the concurrent…

This study found that constant time delay was effective in teaching word reading to four students (ages seven to eight) with mild handicaps. Individual attentional response was more effective and efficient in learning to spell words than in choral attentional response. Observational and incidental learning occurred for all students. (Author/JDD)

A rationale for a novel approach to remedial reading for struggling readers, including students labeled with intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, attention deficit and behavior disorders, below average language development, and those described as reluctant or resistant readers is presented. It is suggested that struggling readers find…

An experiment in the teaching of reading in Spanish to second- and third-grade students, conducted by the author at the Ethel Phillips elementary school, utilizes a modified version of Dr. Laubach's "syllabic, analytic-synthetic" method of language instruction. In this approach, vowels are combined in succession with each of the consonants to…

A project was developed to teach literacy to adult students over 40 years old, using job-related materials in a computer-assisted approach with volunteer tutors. The project used the Penn State Adult Literacy Courseware, consisting of six computer-based modules and an Apple IIGS microcomputer. Volunteer teachers already working with adult students…

Designed to add to the existing knowledge base concerning the saliency of features used by children to identify isolated words, a study examined whether the method of instruction influences the extent to which various features are used for word identification and recall. Subjects, 117 kindergarten students from a suburban Buffalo, New York, school…