Questions the value of classic literature in teaching secondary school students to read for pleasure. Suggests that a better vehicle for the same goal is young adult literature like "The Outsiders." (TB)

Reviews reasons why many teachers are moving away from the basal approach to teaching reading. Describes literature-based instruction, and suggests the adjustments that teachers and students will need to make. Describes two plans for literature + basal partnerships as an intermediate step between the basal and a totally literature-based approach.…

What students do after school depends on where they go, their gender and family characteristics, and with whom they spend time. Most students go straight home, play or watch TV, and are unsupervised, but not alone. Schools equalize learning opportunities for poorer students. Time at home affects recreational reading opportunities. (Contains 10…

Describes a questionnaire study of Australian undergraduates and a community sample that investigated the reading of books as a recreational activity and considered individual characteristics. Topics include the amount and nature of reading, attitudes toward reading, measures of social resources, scores on the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire,…

Notes that teachers need to demonstrate a love of reading in order to pass it on to their students. Discusses ways to encourage a love of reading through book groups, reading goals, daily oral and silent reading, and sharing the impact of reading with students. (SC)

Two studies focused on children's reading but employed very different procedures and techniques. The first study examined the link between the levels of children's reading comprehension and the quantity of reading they did. Subjects, 198 children chosen at random from years 5, 6, and 7 of a single elementary school in Adelaide, Australia,…

An action research project described a program for improving elementary children's recreational reading habits through a combination of modeling by the teacher plus incentives to enhance students' intrinsic motivation to read for enjoyment. The targeted population consisted of three suburban public schools, grades 2 and 4. Analysis of probable…

Statistics on the reading habits of adult Americans are grim. Surveys of teachers reveal inadequate and unimpressive figures in recreational and professional reading and awareness of children's literature. Studies show that, as a whole, teachers are not avid readers. Furthermore, older teachers tend to be more prolific readers of both recreational…

A practicum was developed to increase the frequency of recreational reading and improve students' attitudes towards reading. Subjects were 22 third grade students. Literacy activities incorporated included: daily recreational reading periods either with a buddy or alone, reading to children daily, incorporating children's books into content area…

Originally developed for the Department of Defense Schools (DoDDS) system, this learning package on television viewing and reading is designed for teachers who wish to upgrade or expand their teaching skills on their own. The package includes a comprehensive search of the ERIC database; a lecture giving an overview on the topic; the full text of…

The reading interests of a group of older adults were examined. Subjects were 16 adults between the ages of 50 and 85 who read five stories from "Readers' Digest" short story collections and who responded to a questionnaire about their preferences for the stories, their reading habits and interests, and the appealing elements of the stories. The…

This study investigated the relative importance of the major factors associated with the habit of reading or nonreading. Some 2,731 seventh-grade students were the subjects of the study; from these, 487 were identified as either readers or nonreaders, and, from this group, 22 students were selected for additional in-depth case studies. From over…

This study was designed to consider whether, by introducing fourth grade children to books by two promotional techniques, teachers can influence: (1) the amount of personal reading done by children, (2) which books these children select for personal reading, and (3) the attitude of the children toward the books they select. In each of reading, and…

Data for this study were gathered as part of a national survey of reading activities of adults. The study was conducted by the Response Analysis Corporation of Princeton, N.J. A national probability sample of 5,067 adults, age 16 or older, were interviewed in their homes and asked about all the printed matter they had read or looked at the…

Investigates the relationship of out-of-school activities to reading achievement. Finds a wide variation between children in amount of out-of-school reading. Concludes that reading books was the out-of-school activity that had the strongest association with reading proficiency, but that on most days most subjects did little or no book reading. (MM)