The limited existing research on text structure and its effects on reading comprehension in English as a native language and English as a second language (ESL) is reviewed, and studies that have shown facilitating effects on first language reading comprehension of explicitly teaching text structure are discussed. A research project in progress that addresses the question of whether ESL comprehension can be facilitated by teaching text structure is described. The study, using a heterogeneous group of advanced ESL students in an intensive English program, involves a training program in text structure, comprised of five hour-long sessions within one week and integrated into the regular ESL reading classes, with much student interaction and individual corrective feedback. A control group not receiving the training simultaneously undergoes the regular curriculum. One pre- and two post-tests are administered, one post-test immediately following the training and one three weeks later. The expected result is that trained students will perform better than controls on both post-tests and on independent measures of reading ability, as was the case in the pilot study. A bibliography and a chart of four types of top-level organization of expository text are included. (MSE)