Testing language abilities is common in the context of migration. It has been observed that approximately 6.2 million adults in Germany are low literate and that approximately 47% of this group does not have German as their L1. Similar findings have been reported for other modern Western societies with compulsory schooling and a well-developed…

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to assess the overall effects of automaticity training of fundamental literacy component skills (i.e., letter names/sounds, individual words) on reading fluency and comprehension. Another purpose was to assess if the effects of automaticity training varied for reading fluency and comprehension. We identified…

Growing scientific literature provides a perspective of literacy that is at variance with traditional points of view, which see literacy as a unitary, dichotomous, psychological capability that is learned with the appropriate educational opportunity. However, an individual is not easily categorized as literate or illiterate. While the goal is to…

Notes that research has demonstrated the importance of parent-child interactions in developing literacy. Claims that parent literacy programs are effective in the children's literacy development. Proposes that research on the value of extensive interventions can suggest ways to improve parents' interactions with their children during the literacy…

Provides a model of the domains of preliteracy development that contains four components: an orthographic, phonological, meaning, and context processor. The relationship of subskills to prereading activities and later reading is discussed. Developmental progressions for various preliteracy skills are identified, and methods of assessing…

The medical model of reading diagnosis, which presumes something is wrong with the reader that can be diagnosed and remediated, needs to be reexamined. The ability to use writing as a communication tool, for example, must be considered as part of diagnosis if the purpose is to determine how literate someone is. Diagnostic tasks must also reflect…

This literature-based review examines the relationship between the acquisition of segmental awareness and the acquisition of alphabetic literacy. Cited studies show that the segmental analysis ability of most dyslexics is very poor and suggest one factor may be related to the conscious representation of speech on which the analytic capacity…

A review of the literature on assessing communications skills is presented. Communication skills are dividied into five areas: reading literacy, writing literacy, functional literacy, oral communication, and listening. Within each area, a definition is given, current assessment views are listed, and descriptions of relevant research are provided.…

Briefly reports on five out-of-school-studies and three in-school studies showing the value of free voluntary reading (FVR). The failure of direct reading instruction and its implications for developing reading skills, the components of a free reading program, and the role of writing are discussed. (34 references) (KRN)

The results of a multistep process to begin identifying best practices in deaf education are presented. To identify current practices, a survey was conducted of the literature, the Web sites of professional organizations, and states' education Web sites, which yielded a number of commonly discussed practices. Ten of the more highly cited practices…

Considers demands on the reader of printed material displayed on the video screen. Ways that electronic media can engender and foster reading skills are discussed, including use of graphics in video displays and ways educationalists may contribute to development of videotext and software to teach reading. (40 references) (MBR)

Two focuses of a discussion of literacy and vocational competence should be the need for a more profound understanding of literacy and the relevance of that understanding for studying reading in vocational settings. A developmental model of the acquisition of literacy considers reading a second signaling system for speech. People who become…

Concerned with what can be done to help produce more thoughtful, critical readers, this report first presents an historical overview of theories on the origin of language, referring to B. F. Skinner, Noam Chomsky, and Jean Piaget, among others. It then discusses biological reasons for the evolution of language and the impact of verbal language on…