Purpose: Nearly 50 years ago, Durkin (1978-1979) conducted a seminal observation study on reading comprehension teaching in Grades 3 through 6. She reported that teachers rarely taught reading comprehension (less than 1% of instructional time). Since then, we have gained substantial knowledge about teaching reading comprehension. We aimed to…

In contrast to the large body of research investigating intervention for poor decoding skills, far fewer studies have evaluated interventions for reading comprehension. There is even less research on children with more specific difficulties with reading comprehension, often referred to as "poor comprehenders". Levels of effectiveness…

This longitudinal study used regression path models to predict the influence on students' reading comprehension ability of three self-perception variables (reading self-concept; reading/English effort; academic self-handicapping); three teacher rating behaviour variables (attentive behaviour; sociable behaviour; and settled behaviour) and past…

Purpose: We report findings from a survey of elementary teachers regarding reading instruction. The purpose was to examine teachers' beliefs about how children in the first 7 years of schooling develop reading comprehension skills and to characterize the self-reported practices and strategies they use to support children to comprehend connected…

In physical education, assessment is a fundamental component of purposeful and meaningful learning experiences for students, with the predominant goal to support and enhance student learning. Implementing the use of digital technologies in physical education can also contribute to improved engagement, motivation and student learning. While there…

The transition between arithmetic and algebraic thinking is challenging for students. One notable difficulty for students is understanding algebraic symbols--pronumerals. Researchers are exploring pedagogical approaches in seeking to address this issue. The current paper is contributing to this body of literature by illustrating how an online card…

Poor comprehenders are a significant subgroup of poor readers who, due to their ability to read aloud accurately, are often difficult to identify. This study aimed to determine whether assessment using two oral language tasks, mapped onto the two components of the Simple View of Reading, would provide an efficient approach to identification.…

Attention skills are strong cross-sectional predictors of reading comprehension from childhood through to adolescence. However, less is known about the developmental relations between these two domains across this period. This study examined the codevelopment of reading and attention in a community sample of 614 Australian school students (50%…

This longitudinal study aimed to determine changes in students' predictive reasoning across one year. Forty-four Australian students predicted future temperatures from a table of maximum monthly temperatures, explained their predictive strategies, and represented the data at two time points: Grade 3 and 4. Responses were analysed using a…

The present study was conducted to explore how the relationships between reading comprehension constructs change according to word reading accuracy, as measured in a large convenience sample (n = 857) of school-aged students (Years 3-6) with reading difficulties. Multiple regression analyses containing interaction variables were conducted, to…

Children need rich language learning experiences in school to build language and reading skills. Research suggests that various effective ways to support teacher provision of these experiences. The Classroom Promotion of Oral Language cluster randomized controlled trial (n = 1,360 students; 687 intervention, 673 control) examined whether a teacher…

Purpose: We report the qualitative findings from a survey of elementary teachers regarding reading instruction. The purpose is to extend on quantitative findings in a previously described survey to gain a more in-depth understanding of Australian elementary teachers' approaches to the literacy block in their schools: how this is used, who makes…

Self-report is seen as important in assessments of psychopathology but individuals with intellectual disability may have difficulty with standard questionnaires. This paper reports on the administration and subsequent modifications to several established self-report measures of mental health. Methods: The participants were 57 children with…

A critical review was conducted to determine the influence background knowledge has on the reading comprehension of primary school-aged children. We identified twenty-three studies that met our criteria and focused on the links between background knowledge and reading comprehension of children in the mid to late primary years. Review findings…

This is a position paper in which we argue for "Teaching for Mathematising" as a pedagogy that supports teaching mathematics for understanding in primary school. Mathematics education in Australia currently emphasises teaching for mathematical understanding, a shift that redirects children's learning from merely memorising computation…