Describes documents in the ERIC data base that review research on schemata and reading comprehension and discuss the implications of using the schemata paradigm in educational research and practice. (MKM)

Presents annotations of 15 documents in the ERIC database concerning reports on research findings that highlight practices and procedures that "work" in reading and literacy education. (RS)

Based on the best available research, this publication describes the most effective methods of vocabulary instruction for the improvement of reading comprehension. Examples of useful approaches to vocabulary instruction aimed at students past the initial stages of reading are presented for use or adaptation by classroom teachers. The publication's…

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…

The controversial field of semiotics has been criticized for its "unwillingness to respect boundaries" and its "conviction that everything is a sign." The central concerns of this wide-ranging field, however, can be defined, and its implications for teaching can be outlined. Semiotics is the study of signs (symbols, icons, and…

Research has indicated that current information about reading and the effective teaching of reading has not yet made much impact on content area textbooks. As a result, there is much room for improvement in how textbooks are written. Recent research has yielded a great deal of information about what makes a text more understandable and supportive…

Intended for teachers, this monograph encourages educators to think critically both about critical reading and about what constitutes instruction of critical thinking in schools. The book contains the following chapters: (1) "Crisis in Confidence: The Need for Learner-Centered Schools"; (2) "A Mechanistic World View: Knowledge as…

It appears that the value of providing students with strategies to activate their prior knowledge base or to build a base if one does not exist is supported by current research. Creating an opportunity to challenge students to call on their collective experiences (prior knowledge) is essential. Through this process, teachers move students from…

Addressing recent trends in eye movement research, this 24-item FAST Bib contains selections which date from 1973 through the 1980s. Selections are divided into sections on overview, perceptual processes, cognitive processes, and reading disability and dyslexia. (NKA)

Intended for administrators and policymakers as well as teachers, this digest explores the nature of students' metacomprehension, or their awareness of their own understanding, and the implications of this awareness for reading instruction. After defining metacomprehension, the digest discusses why this awareness is important to the learning…

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…

Designed to provide resources for educators who teach reading for students with learning disabilities (LD), this 26-item annotated bibliography contains selections published in the ERIC database between 1987 and 1989. The bibliography is divided into two sections: an overview of reading and research on learning disabilities, and strategies for…

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, 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…

Intended to help teachers, researchers, curriculum developers, and administrators develop improved policy in reading instruction and research, this book challenges several widespread assumptions about effective reading instruction and concludes with 20 policy guidelines which can be used to evaluate existing reading programs and redesign them to…