Three issues related to improving basic skills in this nation are discussed in this paper: the definition of "basic literacy skills" and the number of Americans who are purportedly illiterate, what evidence exists that minorities in the United States really have a more serious problem than others in acquiring basic literacy skills, and…

THREE METHODS OF TEACHING READING, THE INITIAL TEACHING ALPHABET (ITA), THE DIACRITICAL MARKING SYSTEM (DMS), AND THE TRADITIONAL ORTHOGRAPHY (TO) METHOD WERE COMPARED IN 21 FIRST GRADES FOR THE THIRD YEAR. A FOLLOWUP STUDY WAS MADE OF THE NEW DMS GROUP FOR A SECOND YEAR. TWO HUNDRED NINETY-NINE STUDENTS OF AN ORIGINAL SAMPLE OF 393 STUDENTS WERE…

THE RESULTS OF THE CONTINUATION OF USOE PROJECT 2745 WHICH EVALUATED THE READING ACHIEVEMENT OF STUDENTS TAUGHT BY THE INITIAL TEACHING ALPHABET (ITA), THE DIACRITICAL MARKING SYSTEM (DMS), AND A TYPICAL BASAL READING SERIES (TO) ARE REPORTED. A NEW SET OF DMS MATERIALS WAS DEVELOPED AND USED IN SEVEN FIRST GRADES. THE READING ACHIEVEMENT OF THESE…

THE VIEW THAT READING IS A ROTE, AUTOMATIC, CONDITIONED, NONMEANINGFUL PROCESS WHICH PRECEDES (THUS IS SEPARABLE FROM) COMPREHENSION IS CORROBORATED IN A TWO-PART INVESTIGATION. IN PART I, EVIDENCE IS PRESENTED TO SUPPORT THE POSITION THAT READING IS A NONMEANINGFUL PROCESS. IN PART II, A STUDY OF THE EFFICACY OF AN AUDITORY APPROACH TO…

A STUDY WAS MADE TO DETERMINE THE EXTENT TO WHICH SCORES REPRESENTING PUPILS' STATUS ON CERTAIN DEVELOPMENTAL FACTORS CAN PREDICT THE ACHIEVEMENT IN READING, ARITHMETIC, AND THE MEDIAN OF THE BATTERY OF ACHIEVEMENT TESTS. THE STUDY COVERED A PERIOD OF 4 YEARS DURING WHICH THE SAME GROUP OF PUPILS WAS STUDIED IN THE THIRD, FOURTH, FIFTH, AND SIXTH…

THE EXTENT TO WHICH SCORES REPRESENTING PUPILS' STATUS ON CERTAIN DEVELOPMENTAL FACTORS PREDICTED THEIR ACHIEVEMENT IN READING, ARITHMETIC, AND THE MEDIAN OF A BATTERY OF ACHIEVEMENT TESTS WAS PRESENTED. THE STUDY COVERED A PERIOD OF 4 YEARS DURING WHICH THE SAME PUPILS WERE STUDIED IN THE THIRD, FOURTH, FIFTH, AND SIXTH GRADES. STUDIES OF THESE…

THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE OF THE LANGUAGE ENRICHMENT PROGRAM AT THE CHILD CARE CENTER WAS TO PREVENT FUTURE LEARNING DISABILITIES IN LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT. IT INVOLVED A GROUP OF OVER 41 PRESCHOOL, KINDERGARTEN AND FIRST GRADE CHILDREN. LESSONS IN THE PROGRAM EMPHASIZED AUDITORY AND VISUAL DISCRIMINATION SKILLS. THE ENVIRONMENT WAS ENRICHED THROUGH…

A 3-YEAR EXPERIMENTAL PRIMARY-GRADE READING PROGRAM CONDUCTED WITH A 50 PERCENT REDUCTION OF READING CLASS SIZE WAS EVALUATED IN THE RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA, UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR THE YEARS 1962-1965. TEST SCORES WERE ANALYZED FOR 656 CHILDREN IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WHO HAD 2 OR MORE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN THE EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM AND FOR…

BASAL READER SYSTEMS FOR BEGINNERS WERE ANALYZED TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF SPECIFIC SYSTEM FEATURES ON THE READING ACHIEVEMENT OF FIRST-GRADE CHILDREN OF DIFFERENT SEX AND LEVELS OF INTELLIGENCE. THE PROJECT COVERED THE FOLLOWING SYSTEMS--(1) THE LIPPINCOTT "BASIC READING" SERIES, (2) THE "EARLY-TO-READ…

Elementary school teachers acknowledge the need for better writing instruction, but seldom have time for it within their already crowded curricula. Writing instruction suffers from placing skills development before writing activities, from emphasis on reading, and because many teachers are not well prepared to teach writing. A low priority is…

The Academics Plus Program, which stresses basic skills, discipline and dress codes, homework assignments, promotion requirements, and special parent conferences, served more than 10,000 students in 29 elementary and middle/junior high schools in 1979-1980. There is a single-school model (Fitler) and a multi-school model (28 other schools). A…

As part of a study of the basic skills of secondary level education students, a study of prospective teachers' reading ability was conducted at Pennsylvania State University. Subjects were 47 students in secondary education. Two separate assessments of reading were used, the Nelson-Denny Reading Test and a criterion referenced test of reading…

This study explores the relationship between different home and school variables and reading achievement in bilingual children. The subjects of the study are 130 first- and third-grade children attending bilingual programs. Language proficiency and dominance tests were administered to the children and a questionnaire was sent to their parents. The…

This issue of "Forum for Reading" contains four essays of interest to reading instructors at two-year colleges. Joan Gregg, Beth Pacheco, and Serena Nanda discuss the benefits for students of providing thematic unity in reading courses. The essay considers the selection of a theme, such as rebellion, identity, or family, that will lend…

Stressing the need to match teacher behaviors, student characteristics, and learning environments for successful reading instruction, this review of research considers a variety of factors that can help and hinder student reading achievement. The factors discussed include the characteristics of good teaching, circumstances that hinder student…