Two studies examined children's misunderstandings in using dictionary definitions to comprehend the meaning of a new word. Subjects in the first study, 38 male and 22 female fourth-grade students from four classes in a medium-sized midwestern town, were given two similar judgment tasks: (1) students were given a definition for a new word and asked…

A sample of 12 recent and older sixth grade social studies textbooks was examined to determine their level of explicitness, one of the criteria used to determine the "friendliness" or comprehensibility of a text. Researchers randomly selected three samples--usually chapters--from each of the 12 textbooks. The Explication Inventory…

A study extended word association methodology beyond isolated word stimuli to investigate the effects of written context on the meanings that proficient readers impart to words. A repeated-measures design was used to assess the responses of 62 sixth grade readers to target words at three levels: no context, limited context, and expanded context.…

Analyzes the conversation of sixth grade children in literature response groups. Finds and describes two distinctive gendered styles of talk about literature, the predominate female mode of response being the "discourse of feeling," and the predominate male mode of response being the "discourse of action." Discusses pedagogy…

A study determined the effectiveness of the "Direct Instruction" program on the reading achievement of sixth-grade students. "Direct Instruction," known as "Distar" in the 1960s, is a phonic-based method that uses scripted lesson plans engaging students to learn by memory and classroom responses. Subjects were 30…

A study investigated the reading interests of fourth and sixth grade students of above-average reading achievement. Subjects, 44 fourth graders and 39 sixth graders in an urban environment, responded to a reading interest inventory containing 25 categories. The sample was separated into two groups, an experimental group which attained 60 or higher…

A study tested a theory of inferencing strategies. Subjects were 40 sixth grade students of average intelligence from a large Western Canadian city who were divided according to reading proficiency and background knowledge. Six passages, three familiar to the students and three unfamiliar to them, were written by the researcher in such a manner…

A study compared cognitive style (field dependence/independence) and learning style (reflection/impulsion) with reading achievement. Twenty-six sixth grade students were administered the group Embedded Figures Test to determine field dependence/independence and the Matching Familiar Figures Test to determine reflective and implusive students.…

Focuses on what sixth-grade students know about the organizational features of prose and whether the use of specific organizational patterns (top-level structures) facilitates written recall of expository prose. (HOD)

Examines how vocabulary knowledge, the familiarity of words, and analytical reasoning affect sixth-grade students' ability to learn word meanings from passages in basal reading textbooks. Finds that general and passage-specific vocabulary knowledge are important variables that influence learning from context. Finds that analytical reasoning was…

Compares Possible Sentences with traditional vocabulary instruction to examine the effect on student ability to pronounce and define targeted basal words. Finds that subjects were able to correctly pronounce many terms when they were presented in story context prior to actual instruction, but they could not define them. Encourages supplementing…

A study assessed dimensions of children's reading motivations by giving them a revised version of the Motivations for Reading Questionnaire (MRQ). The MRQ is designed to assess 11 possible dimensions of reading motivations, including reading efficacy, several intrinsic and several extrinsic reading motivations, social aspects of reading, and the…

A study investigated the relationship between locus of control and intrinsically motivated reading for children. The entire sixth grade, totalling 53 students, of a parochial school in San Francisco was administered the Children's Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Control Scale. A free-choice paperback reading rack provided the measure for…

A study was conducted to determine whether using the schema method for vocabulary instruction would be significantly greater than using the dictionary method for vocabulary instruction. Subjects were 12 sixth grade students who were divided into two sample groups and received different forms of vocabulary instruction for 10 weeks. Each sample was…

Learning outcomes and reading behaviors of 171 sixth-graders were investigated while they read expository text and answered adjunct questions. The 2,400-word text was divided into four lessons, and students answered text explicit-, text implicit-, or no questions (a control group) as they read silently and were videotaped. In addition, the…