Two hypotheses (selective attention and slot filling) of how schemata enhance the learning and recall of the initial comprehension of prose material were tested. Consistent with the attention-focusing hypothesis, readers spent more time on sentences containing information important to their assigned perspective. (Author/PN)

This case-study recounts an investigation of a barely literate 12-year-old boy and discusses some of the advantages of computer-assisted instruction for remedial aid--e.g., its impartiality, lack of emotional involvement, and instant and accurate feedback. The results may have implications for the slow undergraduate learner. (EAO)

First-, second-, and third-grade readers were asked to pick items that differed in terms of a rule-governed description of orthographic structure. Task performance improved with school experience. Reading ability was positively correlated with knowledge of orthographic structure for young readers. (Author/PN)

Concludes that a grapho-syntactic organization that divided sentences into meaningful units and random units was comprehended significantly better by both good and poor comprehenders than was the regular paragraph format found in basal readers. (FL)

Concludes that grade level scores on the Brigance Diagnostic Inventory of Basic Skills are consistent with those of the Wide Range Achievement Test. (FL)

Concludes that oral reading should be given additional emphasis in the elementary grades. (FL)

Argues that the perception of cohesion is an important factor in reading development. Suggests that teachers familiar with the devices that make text can help readers keep on track during comprehension. (FL)

Defines logical connectives as terms that link ideas within and between sentences. Describes a project that set out to identify the more commonly occurring terms and to measure secondary school students' difficulties in comprehending them. (FL)

This paper analyzes: (1) the task of learning to read, in the context of cognitive and linguistic tools a child has at his/her disposal; (2) how these tools change with further development and experience; and (3) how teachers can foster this development and growth. Eight research-based recommendations for classroom teaching are given. (PP)

The effectiveness of a measure of the processing capacity of working memory, called the reading span test, is demonstrated in predicting performance and understanding individual differences in reading comprehension. (Author/PN)

Reading and listening comprehension tasks were combined in exercises using related printed and taped texts. Linking the tasks enables the student to use whichever skill is stronger to boost performance in the weaker skill. The technique is outlined and methods of adapting it to other teacher situations are discussed. (MSE)

One hundred and two third graders were tested on match-to-sample, cognitive style tasks in the visual and auditory modalities as well as a visual-auditory cross-modal task. The results lend support to the relationship between cognitive style and reading performance. (Author/NQA)

A study investigated the hypothesis that poor comprehension or recall of task demands, rather than a putative lack of goal directedness, is a possible source of learning-disabled children's poor performance of experimental tasks. Clear instructions substantially facilitated performance by both normally achieving and learning disabled children of…

Examines the role of nontext social knowledge on elementary school children and college students' understanding of protagonist-antagonist stories, noting some developmental changes in the understanding of these stories based on knowledge of persuasion. (FL)

Potential uses of newspaper editorials for French instruction are presented, including interpretation of such elements as type style, layout, writing style, grammar, vocabulary and word usage, and punctuation as well as content and context. (MSE)