Released by the New York City Board of Education, this document reports on the success of the Learning to Read Through the Arts program for grades two through six during the 1985-86 school year. The first section introduces the Chapter 1 program, which was offered for 32 weeks at 6 different New York City sites, and explains how students are…

A study investigated the effectiveness of a program to improve the reading/vocabulary skills of an ability-grouped fifth grade class of "low achievers" (N=15) through the implementation of a literature-based whole language approach. Students were read aloud to from quality children's literature. From these books, spelling and vocabulary…

This two-volume report on the progress of the Instructional Program in Reading/Language Arts (IPR/LA) in the Montgomery County, Maryland schools presents a brief overview of the study design, methodology, findings, recommendations, background data, and statistical analysis tables. Volume I of the report begins with an Executive Summary of the…

Mathematics anxiety and its relationship to other constructs was studied in 138 preservice elementary and special education teachers. The students, primarily women, were enrolled in a variety of professional courses and field experiences. Five instruments were administered, their factor structures were determined, and intercorrelations among the…

A review of the literature that examines the relationship between television and reading achievement reveals, in general, a negative correlation between television viewing and the acquisition of reading skills. These studies, however, have been somewhat limited in both number and methodology. To further clarify the picture, a study was conducted…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 27 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the effect of the single-parent family on reading comprehension and attitude toward reading; (2) the relationship between first grade children's reading…

Intended for parents and based on the premise that parents are their children's first and most important teachers, this booklet is a distillation of findings from the 1984 report of the Commission on Reading, "Becoming a Nation of Readers." The introduction reiterates the commission's conclusions (1) that a parent is a child's first…

Advancing the thesis that a student develops a schema for reading in the same manner as schemata for other classes of things, events, and situations are developed, this paper contends that knowledge of "what reading is" should have a potent influence on how and when a person utilizes reading skills and strategies to extract information…

Suggests that while teachers may wish to guide students in their reading of literature--to give them only "good" literature and to help them see the "right" interpretations of it--such guidance leaves students' understanding to chance, and does not help them choose to think and construct values of their own. (JC)

Presents a case study of the library media program at Old High Elementary School, Bentonville, Arkansas, which uses production of audiovisual materials to build extrinsic motivation into reading programs for grades five and six and special education classes. Five measurement techniques used to evaluate the program's effectiveness are also…

A study examined whether the integration of literacy with music, visual arts, and physical education significantly improved the reading and writing skills of struggling first grade students. Data included running records, teacher observation, writing samples from portfolios, and student surveys. Results indicated: (1) student attitudes toward…

Argues that the key to helping one seventh-grade boy make the transition from non-reader to reader was in changing his self-image as a non-reader. Shows how he became actively engaged in reading and writing when he felt valued, took risks, and developed his own ideas. Argues for more closely aligning students' lives within school and outside…

A study investigated the effectiveness of a program for improving reading motivation and attitudes toward reading. The targeted population consisted of elementary and high school students in three different south suburban communities, located outside Chicago, Illinois. The problems of a lack of reading motivation and poor attitudes toward reading…

An intervention with six elementary-aged students with behavioral disorders was designed to increase positive attitudes toward school and learning, to improve self-esteem and empowerment, and to decrease inappropriate behaviors. The Foxfire pedagogy was used to achieve academic goals and to empower students. Students identified characteristics of…

The stories and studies that make up this book pursue two intertwining paths of inquiry: (1) how highly engaged adolescent readers produce meaning; and (2) what can be done in the classroom to help reluctant readers perceive reading as a creative and personally meaningful pursuit. Chapter 1 looks at approaches to teaching reading and discusses an…