This research report discusses a study which examined the purposes of reading in six respondents. Chapter 1 introduces the six respondents of the study and the inquirer; reasons for the study are briefly explained. Chapter 2 presents glimpses of several observations of classroom settings. Chapter 3 covers the methodology which guided the inquirer…

Reports on a study to determine differences in measured self-concept among college freshmen grouped by demonstrated differences in reading ability, by sex, and by enrollment in a reading skills program. (RB)

Presents the results of a research study which was designed to determine gains or losses in reading proficiency during summer vacation, investigate the characteristics of those students whose proficiency increases or decreases, and aid in planning summer reading programs which maximize gains and minimize losses. (RB)

In order to obtain information on the reading skill levels of Naval recruits for use in improving their reading skills, the United States Navy administered the Gates-MacGinite reading test to all available recruits in its training programs between May 1974 and May 1975. The relationship of those test scores to other personnel data indicated that a…

Finds that auditory discrimination as most tests measure it has little to do with how well children learn to read. (RB)

A study was conducted to examine the reading levels of United States Air Force civilian employees according to occupational groupings and grade structure. Approximately 1,050 Air Force civilian subjects were tested on the Nelson-Denny Reading Test or the California Reading Test. Subjects were selected from eight Air Force bases representing the…

In this study, the effect of a passage organizer (topic sentence) on the ability to identify main ideas was tested. The second purpose of this study was to determine whether main idea comprehension is affected by the type of main idea question asked. Thirty third- and thirty fourth-grade children selected on a random basis from a semi-rural…

This study was concerned with the validation of the "Hicks Cloze-Reading Test," an evaluative instrument to be used by the classroom teacher in assessing the reading ability levels of children. Three instruments, the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test," the "Standard Reading Inventory," and the "Hicks Cloze-Reading…

Three unjustified assumptions are often made about young beginners in reading: they all are acquainted with books and reading, the children and the teacher are thinking in the same terms when each talks about reading, and children understand the technical terms of literacy. Reading authorities refer to this lack of understanding of what the…

This paper describes how some children with learning problems feel about themselves; points out some possible witches' tales regarding understanding and communication with such children; and discusses some clinical opinions that have been developed at the Child Center, Kentfield, regarding these children. The contents of the paper include: a…

For this study of children's selection of key words, children in the first, third, sixth, ninth and twelfth grades were asked to identify which words, in their judgment, were key words in written materials. Relationship of these choices to skilled readers, to words derived from passage analysis, and to random selections of hypothetical subjects…

The relationship between two dummy variables representing school effect and five self-concept factors were evaluated to determine the effectiveness of these variables in predicting the reading vocabulary of 432 boys and 424 girls in grades three through six. Also, an effort was made to determine if the percentage of criterion variance accounted…

In this paper, Piagetian stages are discussed in relation to the internalization of key vocabulary words by children. Research studies that indicate a parallel development using Sylvia Ashton-Warner's idea of key vocabulary of children are briefly discussed. The author agrees that three studies do not completely prove a hypothesis, however they…

This paper explores and discusses the concept of reading comprehension from two major perspectives. One perspective is based on the theory that reading comprehension constitutes a pattern of skills. The other perspective is based on a psycholinguistic view of reading: reading as a language process. Strategies for gaining comprehension during…