This report, the sixth in a series developed by the Education Commission of the States (ECS) examining the impact of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act 2001, discusses Reading First, which replaces the Reading Excellence Act. The report states that Reading First, a voluntary program, aims at having all children achieve reading proficiency by the…

Discusses 3 different categories of literacy programs discerned in observations of 37 kindergarten classrooms over an 8-year period: maturationist teachers, basal teachers, and emergent literacy teachers. Provides perceived rationales for the existence of these categories. (SR)

Reports that readiness tests given to children in bilingual villages in Papua New Guinea showed that children learning to read in an unfamiliar language were more confused than were children who had never had literacy instruction. (FL)

The 25 articles in this collection focus on reading as a humanizing experience. The topics covered include the following: (1) the politics of literacy; (2) the holographic nature of the reading process; (3) literacy through language communication; (4) life-long reading; (5) diagnosis of reading disabilities based on psychoeducational analysis of…

A study examined specific reading competencies after participating in Hmong literacy instruction in an after-school setting in the Thermalito, California School District, grades kindergarten through 4. Control and treatment groups were established to compare the English literacy skills of the Hmong students who participated in 40 hours of primary…

To study the emergence of literacy during the preschool years, a handwritten diary, maintained on a day to day basis, focused on one child, David, from ages two and a half to four and a half. One facet of the study concentrated on his literary language--his incorporation of written texts (children's literature) into his language and background of…

The findings of a three-week visit in China by a study team of American scholars to examine the state of reading research and instruction in Chinese schools and universities are presented in the various articles of this report. Following an introduction describing the particulars of the visit, the report presents these articles: (1) "Chinese…

A collection of 28 papers deals with reading in various parts of the world. The following countries are represented: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, India, Iran, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States. The papers are organized under four main headings: (1) Developmental Reading: This section discusses reading…

A collection of 28 papers deals with reading in various parts of the world. The following countries are represented: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, India, Iran, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States. The papers are organized under four main headings: (1) Developmental Reading: This section discusses reading…

Argues that an essential factor in becoming literate is young children's developing an understanding of the registers of written language. Examines the reading-like behavior of a prereading kindergartner. (AEW)

Reviews contributions made by Marie Clay to the field of reading instruction and literacy. Maintains that Clay refused to be drawn into the battle between the phonics and "whole-word" approaches to reading instruction. Discusses the current status of language instruction in Great Britain and Clay's continuing significance. (CFR)

Fourteen examples of "literacy events" in the reading development of one preschool-age boy are described by the boy's mother, a parent-researcher who conducted a case study of her son's interaction with his literate home environment. Field notes were kept in a household diary, and audiotapes were made of the child's storytelling and…

Indicates that while middle-class preschool children may not have fully developed concepts of linguistic terms used in an instructional setting and may not be able to indicate word-by-word matching of spoken and written words, they do have a functional concept for the purpose of reading and writing. (FL)

Some children become capable readers and writers before ever attending school and without exposure to formal instruction. This phenomenon--sometimes referred to as natural literacy development--is not, in the strictest sense, natural; as the adult presents much of the literacy environment to the child in a socialized, mediated form, teaching is…

Investigation and coordination of research on various aspects of the reading process were the first purposes of Project Literacy. These programs in their various stages of development have been reported in nine issues of the Project Literacy Reports which are now available from ERIC. The development of a first-grade reading program was started…