The amount and structure of prose learning derived from vocabulary definition and graphic post-organizer construction methods of independent study tasks is examined. Undergraduate subjects (n=144) read a 2000-word passage in a 20-minute reading period. Two subject groups performed text information tasks while a third acted as a control to measure…

In three experiments subjects (college and high school students) read passages which described psychological principles and answered either adjunct application or factual questions while reading. Questions were presented either before, after, or both before and after the parts of the passage that answered the questions. Subsequently subjects took…

From ancient stories of creation to contemporary poetry and prose, this volume ranges through thousands of years of the literature of the American Indian. Chapter One of the book deals with pre-Columbian religions and features accounts of the Creation by the Cheyenne, Navajo, Omaha, Yakima, Zuni, and Uitoto. Chapter Two has as its theme folk…

THE PURPOSE OF THIS ANALYSIS WAS TO DISCOVER CERTAIN ASPECTS OF STYLE (BOTH LEXICAL AND GRAMMATICAL) WHICH COULD BE COUNTED AND WHICH WOULD, WHEN COMPARED, DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN THE WRITTEN PROSE OF TWO AUTHORS. THE SUBJECT SELECTED FOR ANALYSIS WAS "THE O'RUDDY," BEGUN BY STEPHEN CRANE AND COMPLETED BY ROBERT BARR. SINCE THERE WAS NO…

The purpose of this study was threefold: to determine whether adding a mnemonic to systematically designed instruction would improve verbal retention, to establish whether retention is better for concrete or abstract information, and to determine whether mental imagery or verbal elaboration is more effective for learning concrete or abstract…

This annual publication of the Australian Association for the Teaching of English contains reviews of books in ten categories: teaching principles and practice; source books; composition, writing, rhetoric; language; poetry and prose; drama; criticism; mass media/general studies; multi-media kits; and the retarded reader. Also included are an…

The basic requirements of all good prose are clarity, accuracy, brevity, and simplicity. Especially in public prose--in which the meaning is the crux of the article or speech--concise, vigorous English demands a minimum of adjectives, a maximum use of the active voice, nouns carefully chosen, a logical argument with no labored or obscure points,…

The works of Eudora Welty challenge the abilities of the oral reader who wishes to interpret them properly. Her novel, "Losing Battles," requires careful attention to the narrative point of view as a guide to its various dimensions of meaning. The narrative shifts through the consciousnesses of various characters of four generations in a rural…

Three performance problems encountered in storytelling are: subordinating the perspective of individual characters to that of the storyteller; the role of the audience; and the undefined boundary between reader and audience. The concept of "Gestus" as espoused in the dramatic theory of Bertolt Brecht offers an approach to the performance…

This book discusses a program for learning how to write fiction and poetry as well as reports, lectures, and memos. The program can be used in writing classes or by individuals who want to improve their writing ability. The first chapter discusses the value of "freewriting exercises," the production of unedited, non-stop written work. Chapter two…

This book was written with the intention of helping non-specialist teachers of English in the middle school range. Part One: The Teacher's Resources contains chapters on: (1) The Linguistic Resources; (2) The Literary Resources; and (3) The Resources of Craftsmanship. Part Two: The Teacher's Art deals with (4) Some Preliminary Considerations; (5)…

Quantitative and qualitative aspects of the reading of narrative and expository materials were studied in a sample of 47 eighth-grade students. Informal Reading Inventories were developed from narrative and expository materials in use in the students' school, as were longer narrative and expository passages for miscue analysis. Passages were…

Argues that instructors might have more success in teaching analysis and exposition--public forms of writing--if the autobiographical writing of undergraduates were viewed primarily as a private way to find ideas, not always as material itself to be shaped into public autobiographical prose. (MS)

Describes pilot study in a high school which assessed the qualitative and quantitative changes which occurred in two severely disabled readers' cognitive processes during strategy training. Results suggested that a qualitative shift in verbal strategy reports occurred during prose recall. Introduction of cognitive training increased recall of…

Recent research in the area of prose comprehension is reviewed, including factors that affect amount of recall, representations of text structures, and use of world knowledge to aid comprehension. The need for more information processing models of comprehension is emphasized. Elaboration is considered important for comprehension and retention.…