Project objective was development of an experimental form of the Test of Modality Aptitude in Reading (TOMAR). The TOMAR was designed to classify children as visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learners in reading, to have sound measurement characteristics, and to be suitable for administration to groups of children rather than to an individual.…

The purpose of this book is to assist teachers as they work with emergent readers and writers--children who are in the early stages of reading and writing development, typically in preschool through grade 2. Section 1 of the book presents an overview of emergent literacy. Section 2 consists of a group of 15 informal early literacy pretests. The…

This Digest lists some of the common mistakes made by young readers and suggests teaching strategies that may be useful to teachers who are preparing their classes to take standardized tests. Children must learn to use the text to pick the answer, rather than relying on memory, especially when the story is a familiar one. Teachers can help…

Suggests five criteria for teachers to keep in mind when choosing passages for the cloze procedure. (MKM)

Studied beyond students' failing scores on a state reading assessment to investigate the needs of struggling students and implications for policy. Results for 108 students in 17 elementary schools suggest that scores on state tests mask distinctive and multifaceted patterns of students'reading abilities that require dramatically different…

Discusses the move from whole language to phonics instruction in Los Angeles schools in an effort to rescue plummeting reading scores. (Author/VWL)

We looked at the effects of teaching 7- and 8-year-old children morphological and phonological distinctions. Some of those given morphological training and some of those given phonological training were also taught how to represent these distinctions in writing. All 4 intervention groups did better than the control group in a standardized test of…

Drawing from an overview of cloze research, this paper sets forth the thesis that the validity of the cloze technique and its usefulness as a measuring device have been clearly established, but its usefulness as a teaching device has not been so determined. Salient points of research are summarized as follows: (1) if rates of developing…

This report discusses a project aimed at students both developing a positive attitude toward reading and related skills and showing at least a ten month achievement growth on the Stanford Achievement Test in word meaning, paragraph meaning, word study skills, spelling, and language over the pre-analysis survey of the same test. The contents…

Concludes that the instrument reviewed is a carefully designed test incorporating a new interpretation of standardization and improved definitions of traditional reading levels. (FL)

Examines studies of literacy instruction in American schools during the past 10 years both in terms of the notions that guide current practice and in terms of recent conceptions of literacy. Concludes that current literacy instruction limits students. Proposes an alternative view of instruction grounded in the concept of instructional scaffolding.…

Significant test concepts are discussed and guidelines are given for planning and constructing test items. Examples are given for evaluating reading comprehension and suggestions are made for pre- and post-test activities. (Author/RM)

Kentucky's goal of reaching academic "proficiency" by 2014 illuminated problematic findings in 2002 reading test scores: 44.30% of middle and 71.25% of high school students scored below "proficient." The research question was, "Do teaching practices in schools with high reading achievement scores differ from teaching practices in schools with low…