Describes the successful use of the beginning reading program called Sing, Spell, Read, and Write (SSRW) in Aberdeen (Mississippi) elementary schools. Using a whole language rather than basal reading approach and emphasizing phonics and total immersion, SSRW has been instrumental in dramatically improving achievement test scores and in combating…

A retired professor of English education recalls the challenge her student teachers faced at urban junior high school with reading norms two years below average. The student teachers based their instructional program on the particular characteristics of their students' lives and homes, rather than on formal learning theories, and brought the…

The impact of different elementary school curricula (grades three and six) on standardized achievement test scores at item and objective levels, and differences across curricula in generation of item factor loadings were studied. Specific and generally small differences in textbooks within a district were not significant. (TJH)

Tells a first grader's story of his struggles learning to read in a traditional school setting, where he experienced significant reading anxiety, and highlights the ease with which he learned to read at home and in the community as he proceeded through his day. (SM)

The cognitive and metacognitive knowledge of a proficient bilingual sixth-grade reader who was Latina was studied by comparing her reading processes with those of a marginally proficient bilingual reader and a proficient monolingual reader. Four key dimensions are identified that distinguish the proficient bilingual reader's performance. (SLD)

This follow up of 24 teenagers who had participated in a study of phonological analysis and reading and spelling abilities 11 years earlier found that phonological awareness in kindergarten was a significant predictor of later word identification and spelling skills. In contrast, socioeconomic status, vocabulary development, word recognition, and…

Delinquents (n=116) with reading disabilities were given daily multisensory (Orton/Gillingham approach) remedial reading instruction or regular reading instruction. One year after release, the treatment group had made significantly greater growth in reading and had a significantly lower rate of recidivism. (Author/DB)

This examination of reading in New Zealand classrooms found that deaf children (n=45, ages 5-10) spent very low amounts of time engaged in reading and were subjected to teacher interactions that may inhibit the development of meaning-based reading skills. Case studies showed that more time spent reading led to greater reading achievement.…

Relationships between reading comprehension (RC) and critical thinking skills, vocabulary, and cognitive ability were examined using 3 tests with 165 underachieving first-year college students in a remedial reading class. The Iowa Silent Reading Test's vocabulary subtest best predicted RC. The Developing Cognitive Abilities Test's three subtests…

Describes one New York City teacher's project to establish a book store in school offering quality, low cost titles to children. Covers the funding process, physical set-up, parent involvement, staffing with student workers, stocking the store, hours of operation, and positive student and parent response. (JB)

This study examined the early profiles of 270 kindergarten students screened for learning difficulties in kindergarten with SEARCH (an early identification measure) of which 32 had inadequate reading skills at the end of second grade. The SEARCH instrument tended to underidentify children from higher socioeconomic backgrounds and overidentify…

Study investigated relative merits of using teacher judgment and Slosson Full-Range Intelligence Test (SFRIT) to estimate students' math and reading achievement. Analyses of students enrolled in a remedial-reading program, showed that the SFRIT recovered more variance from the distributions of math and reading tests than did teacher judgment. (RJM)

Explores whether scale economies in a single statewide, nonproperty-tax-supported district differ from studies in more traditional settings. The sample consisted of 179 randomly selected Hawaiian elementary and middle schools enrolling sixth-grade students. Stanford Achievement Test scores for grades three and six were used. Smaller schools had…

Longitudinal analyses of individual growth curves and the aggregation of individual curves to describe institutional growth were studied using achievement scores from students moving from grade one to grade eight and their ability scores for one year. Complete data for 529 individuals (reading) and 527 individuals (mathematics) were used. (SLD)

Eighty children in first grade classes differing in the amount of letter-sound instruction daily were administered tests of phonemic segmentation, reading, and spelling three times during the year. No classroom differences in phonemic segmentation were found, but classrooms with more letter-sound instruction showed more spelling and reading…