This dissertation is a phenomenological case study of two 12th grade English/language arts (ELA) classrooms where teachers used graphic novels with their advanced students. The primary purpose of this case study was to gain insight into the phenomenon of using graphic novels with these students--a research area that is currently limited.…

An experiment with random assignment examined the effectiveness of a strategy to learn unfamiliar English vocabulary words during text reading. Lower socioeconomic status, language minority fifth graders (M = 10 years, 7 months; n = 62) silently read eight passages each focused on an unknown multi-syllabic word that was underlined, embedded in a…

Recent studies have shown that children with mathematics difficulties (MD) have weaknesses in multiple areas of mathematics. Andersson, for example, recently found that children with MD perform significantly worse than other children on clock reading tasks. The present study builds on this recent finding and aims at a more profound understanding…

Early reading and spelling abilities in children from Ireland and Sweden with severe speech and physical impairment (SSPI) were studied and compared. The aim was to look for similarities as well as for differences that could be related to the different linguistic environments. Both group consisted of 15 children, and were matched on linguistic…

Very few studies have directly compared reading acquisition across different orthographies. The authors examined the concurrent and longitudinal predictors of word decoding and reading fluency in children learning to read in an orthographically inconsistent language (English) and in an orthographically consistent language (Greek). One hundred ten…

Examined whether age-related working memory deficits in learning disabled (LD) readers across four age groups (7, 10, 13, and 20) reflected retrieval efficiency or storage capacity problems. Found that LD readers' working memory performance was inferior to skilled readers' on verbal and visual-spatial working memory tasks across all ages.…

Skilled and unskilled readers from grades 3, 5, and 7 performed one of three memory tasks on a randomized list of primary word associates. Examined reading skill differences in relation to memory skills. (BD)

Matched groups of normal and retarded readers were required to perform same/difference judgments in which the interval between standard and comparison stimuli was either 0, 1, or 6 seconds. (BRT)

Groups of good and poor readers were tested on free recall of 10-word lists. The poor readers demonstrated as strong a recency effect as the good readers, but showed inferiority in immediate memory span. The results demonstrate a degree of dissociation between the recency effect and memory span. (Author/KC)

Investigated how working memory differences between learning-disabled and nondisabled children reflect a specific or generalized deficit and whether limitations in enhancement of learning-disabled student's working memory performance are attributable to process or storage functions. Results suggest that learning-disabled suffer generalized working…

Using kindergarten subjects, a study examined whether prereaders learned better with visual cues while novice readers learned better with phonetic cues. (HOD)

This study was designed to explore relations among reading skills, metareading, memory, and metamemory. Interactions among these skills were investigated as related to reading ability, operativity, and grade level. The effects of experience, operativity, and metacognition on reading and memory skills were discussed. (Author/DWH)

Two studies were conducted with English speakers to investigate (1) the facilitative effects of melodic features of speech, and (2) whether poor readers (without evidence of sensory defect) show a greater impairment than good readers when melodic features are made unavailable in the speech input. It was hypothesized that when melodic cues are not…

This study was designed to examine whether there is a relationship between phonological memory and reading ability in Greek-speaking children aged between 6 and 9 years. An additional aim of the study was to investigate whether training of phonological memory during preschool years enhances reading achievement during early school years. In…

A total of 168 fourth and sixth grade students participated in a study to examine two aspects of children's ability to apply structure while reading. The first part of the study investigated the amount of detail that must be provided in order for students to apply successfully a desired perspective (schema). Students were identified as either good…