This monograph is one in a series of semiannual reports that focus on research related to reading in secondary schools. The four reports collected in this monograph examine the following topics: (1) attitudes of preservice secondary school teachers toward reading in the content areas; (2) the effects of a content area reading institute upon…

This research review identifies parental roles and practices that have been shown to promote reading readiness, receptivity to reading instruction, and increased achievement in reading. Reviews studies of intervention and involvement programs designed to expand or alter parental practices in improving children's reading attitudes and achievement.…

Examines research on effects of reading aloud to children in areas of reading and listening comprehension, vocabulary and language development, and attitudes toward reading. Outcomes of reading aloud and results of teacher survey concerning ways in which the school library media specialist can contribute to read-aloud programs are discussed.…

Reports on several studies that examined the use of newspapers in classrooms. Cites research supporting the conclusions that newspaper training programs improved teacher attitudes toward using newspapers in the classroom and newspaper use influenced students' reading attitudes, reading interests, reading achievement, and classroom verbal…

Questions the validity of Munby's (1978) approach to analyzing learners' language needs. The results of a study at Hasanuddin University (Indonesia) suggest that a two-stage analysis may be appropriate to explore an organization's complexity and dynamism, and then to target the specific language needs of the constituent units. (Author/CB)

Defining aliteracy as the problem of persons who are able to read but choose not to, the conference papers in this compilation focus on whether aliteracy is a significant and growing problem, whether literacy is an important value, and how the survival of literacy can be ensured. Following an introduction to the purpose of the conference, the…

Three weeks of programing on a major television network during probable children's viewing times was subjected to content analysis to determine the number and types of reading and writing activities performed by television characters and newscasters. The purposes of this analysis were to discover whether television treats reading and writing as…

Distinguishes between interest in reading and attitude toward reading. Discusses the development of reading interests and attitudes. Notes problems with teacher perception of students' attitudes and interests. Discusses the influence of teacher attitude toward reading and teachers' reactions to students. Presents suggestions for assessing student…

Studies and practices in which parents help children with oral reading are reviewed. The paper argues against techniques which focus on only the mechanical aspects of reading. The paper describes a program for training parents as tutors which uses transcripts of parent/child interactions during the reading process to show reading development.…

Focusing on the social nature of reading instruction provides another direction to research and study that both differs from and adds to cognitive research. H. Mehan's theory of social constructivism emphasizes that the development of cognitive processes occurs within the individual through the internalization of interactions between learners and…

The major articles in this journal issue deal with various aspects of young adult literature. Specific topics covered in the articles are (1) questions worth asking students about young adult novels, (2) the five major functions of adolescent literature in high school literature programs, (3) Southwestern literature for adolescents, (4) teaching…

This document provides an overview, in table form, of research pertaining to the effects of reading aloud to preschool children, and stresses the important benefits that reading aloud to children has on language development, reading interest, and social attitudes and values. A reference list is included to allow teachers to locate the 12 original…

Results of a quantitative analysis of empirical evidence related to parent-preschooler reading support the hypothesis that parent-preschooler reading is related to outcome measures such as language growth, emergent literacy, and reading achievement. Book reading apparently affects acquisition of the written language register. (SLD)

This paper addresses the study of children's reading interests and their attitudes toward reading as these factors relate to leisure-time reading. The problem of poor performances on measures of reading achievement by African-American children from low-income families has been studied for over 3 decades. Additionally, sociocultural and…

A discussion of adult learners and a description of instructional reading strategies--based on thinking--for adult learners are presented in this paper. A definition of adulthood and the nontraditional learner in the paper highlights adults' cognitive skills, interests, and literacy levels, while the metacognitive awareness of disabled and good…