Concludes, among other things, that teacher-set prereading purposes in a basal reader directed reading activity have a definite value and should not be treated lightly nor implemented casually by teachers as they do seem to facilitate comprehension and that basal reader teacher guides should do a better job with regard to such purposes. (FL)

Examines the tasks of authors, of readers, and of teachers in assisting readers to make use of prior information as they read. (FL)

Discusses a number of books requiring the reader to examine their illustrations and pictures closely and making a visual statement that could be lost if only surface meanings are considered. (FL)

Reports on a study that investigated both cognitive and affective outcomes of imposing a highly structured, repetitive, teacher-oriented routine for teaching decoding and comprehension upon a traditional basal reading program. (Author/GT)

Extends a previous study examining the relationship between reading comprehension and thinking skills by using an "on-line" reporting procedure in which undergraduate subjects reported on their reading during the process of reading. Reports that the extent of a reader's background knowledge affects the order of processing as well as the kinds of…

Compares the comprehension skill development of capable readers in two basal reading series to the prescribed basal skill hierarchies. Suggests that teachers select reading material which has value as literature; assess readers' skills so that they do not study what they have already mastered; and match reading selections to the skills being…

Lists four characteristics of strategic readers: establishing goals, selecting appropriate strategies, monitoring comprehension, and displaying a positive attitude toward reading. Discusses how these characteristics provide readers with the necessary skills to profit fully from the reading process. (MG)

Examines the influence of first-language reading-models on second-language reading-theory and research. Recommends a sharing and transfer of knowledge between related disciplines, such as first- and second-language reading, to increase understanding of the reading process, regardless of the target language. (PA)

Presents a discussion by dedicated teachers (who were taking a university course for reading assessment and diagnosis) about students' problems with vocabulary words that impede successful reading comprehension. Discusses how the interactive process of developing the strategies pushed the teachers' imaginations and created a challenge for the…

Discusses the evaluation and testing procedures schools use to evaluate and test reading achievement. Identifies three major categories of tests: achievement/survey, diagnostic, and informal reading inventories. (AEW)

Describes three instructional guides designed to raise students' thinking about short stories beyond factual recall to interpretation, application, synthesis, and evaluation of material, and to foster positive affective responses as concomitant reading behaviors. (RS)

Recommends research-based comprehensive changes in basal reading instruction. Points to the need for purposeful, direct, and text-related reading skill instruction, and for a change in the sequence of the reading lesson, with basal skills being taught prior to reading of the text. (ARH)

Reviews recent research on metacognition and presents some implications for its use in the classroom. (FL)

Concludes, among other things, that fluent oral reading is an important step toward reading for meaning and independent silent reading and that silent reading should be encouraged from the beginning of reading instruction. (FL)

Concludes that providing the reader with prior structure on which to map incoming material leads to increased comprehension of a related reading. (FL)