Integrating metacognitive skills into classroom instruction can help students to develop into active, independent readers and learners. B. Armbruster, in a summary of research on metacognition, examined reading to learn from a metacognitive perspective as it related to four variables: texts, tasks, strategies, and learner characteristics.…

This digest discusses children with reading difficulties and how these children can be helped to read and learn more effectively. The digest offers a definition and discussion of dyslexia, examines instructional conditions that help the reading comprehension of children labeled as learning disabled, offers suggestions for choosing helpful reading…

Schema theorists have advanced the understanding of reading comprehension by describing how prior knowledge can enhance a reader's interaction with the text. Accordingly, comprehension occurs when a reader is able to use prior knowledge and experience to interpret a text's message. Educators and researchers have suggested numerous instructional…

Research on second language learning has found similarities between the reading strategies of first and second language readers. These findings are being applied by second language instructors and researchers in reading classrooms through a variety of strategy-use activities. Most foreign language reading specialists view reading as interactive…

Based on the idea that word knowledge has particular importance in literate societies, this Digest finds that most people feel that there is a common sense relationship between vocabulary and reading comprehension, i.e., messages are composed of ideas, and ideas are expressed in words. The Digest considers several viewpoints on teaching…

The number of limited-English proficient (LEP) students in U.S. schools has increased dramatically in recent years. One type of instructional approach that offers promise in helping LEP students develop academic competence while also developing English proficiency is sheltered English. Students in these classes are "sheltered" in that…

Two basic approaches to teaching children to appreciate literature at any level are the structural (traditional literary analysis) and the reader response approaches. Structural analysis provides the terms and concepts that help readers interpret and discuss literature, while reader response emphasizes the integrated experience an individual has…

This digest discusses some of the ways basic skills instructors can help students become real learners. The digest argues that the "learning specialist" (a term preferable to "remedial/developmental" reading specialist) should operate from a philosophical perspective stressing strategic approaches to reading-to-learn as driven…

This digest, based on a book of the same title, summarizes relevant research and promising practices in the strategic processing of text, both narrative and expository, by students with learning disabilities. For narrative text, it cites studies on improving students' ability to use narrative structure and the effectiveness of teaching students to…

This digest discusses using strategy instruction to assist students with learning disabilities. It begins by describing strategy instruction as teaching students about strategies, teaching them how and when to use strategies, helping students identify personally effective strategies, and encouraging students to make strategic behaviors part of…

This digest summarizes ways to help young American Indian and Alaska Native children become fluent readers. There are numerous reading intervention programs, each with its own set of claims and counter-claims. Phonics approaches are designed for standard English speakers, and students with limited English abilities end up parroting what they read…

This digest examines reading approaches, identifies characteristics of fluent readers, and makes suggestions for developing reading instruction for adult English language learners. The reading instruction methods described include the phonics, psycholinguistic, interactive, and critical literacy approaches. Fluent readers are defined as those who…

For Mexican American students, grade-level reading and overall academic achievement decline, as measured by standardized tests, as they progress through the educational system. By grade seven, 65% of Mexican American students fail one or more grade levels below expected achievement. To reverse this trend of academic failure, teachers need to use…