The current study uses a crossed random-effects item response model to simultaneously examine both reader and word characteristics and interactions between them that predict the reading of 39 morphologically complex words for 221 middle school students. Results suggest that a reader's ability to read a root word (e.g., "isolate") predicts that…

This article examines the reading of leveled books and the assessment of students' reading levels in a public school classroom. The purpose of the research study was to examine how these processes of assessment, which often go unnoticed, shaped the ways reading and readers were defined. The research was located in a third grade, public school…

In this study, we applied an ecosocial semiotic theoretical framework to the analysis of graffiti literacies in the Vila Madalena neighborhood of Sao Paulo, Brazil, to inquire about the nature and processes of "conscientizacao" (critical awareness) for adult street dwellers who had no or little ability to read and write (as traditionally defined).…

This study extends the literature on the relation between reading practices and individual characteristics of participants in adult education who have low literacy skills. Reading practices describe individuals' reading frequency for different types of written material, such as books, newspapers, magazines, technical materials, and work documents.…

The goals of this study were to (a) develop an empirically based model regarding the development of fluent and automatic reading in the early elementary school years and (b) determine whether fluent text-reading skills provided benefits for reading comprehension beyond those accounted for by fluent word decoding. First-, second-, and third-grade…

Uses structural equation modeling to investigate the development of and interrelations between the language proficiencies and reading abilities of children learning to read a first or second language. Compares the reading-comprehension, word-decoding, and oral-language skills of Dutch and minority third and fourth grade students. Shows oral…

Examines the nature of the relations between home literacy environment (HLE) and oral language, letter knowledge, phonological sensitivity, and word decoding during a one-year interval in preschool children. Finds that each of the HLE conceptualizations was consistently related to the outcomes studies, but the magnitude of the relations varied…

Investigates the strategic literacy knowledge, abilities, and potential of five Latino/a subjects (three were bilingual). Employs qualitative research methods and cognitive strategy lessons. Finds that students, with instructional support, implemented the focal strategies emphasized during the experiment and engaged in extended discourse which…

Gives children (ages 5+ to 9+) four tests of phonological skill to investigate relationships between these measures and their predictive relationship with reading and spelling ability. Finds performance at phonemic segmentation, rhyme sound categorization, and alliteration sound categorization improved with age, but all groups performed onset-rime…

Examines how bilingualism and biliteracy affect metacognition. Finds three strategies unique to successful Latina/o readers: (1) they actively transferred information across languages; (2) they translated from one language to another but most often from Spanish to English; and (3) they openly accessed cognate vocabulary when they read. (RS)

Reviews formulas and related predictive devices that tell whether a particular piece of writing is likely to be readable to a particular group of readers. (RB)

Two experiments designed to examine the effects on poor readers' comprehension of increasing their decoding speed indicated that the decoding training on single words and phrases increased the speed of word recognition but did not improve comprehension performance. (MKM)

Three experiments were conducted that studied the effect on comprehension of words containing more than one meaning. When children were asked to choose appropriate word meanings by reading sentences that provided "disambiguating" clues, they did not effectively identify from context the less common or secondary meanings of words. (MKM)

An investigation was conducted to identify and compare the reasoning strategies used by above-average and average readers in reading comprehension. Findings indicated that both groups used various types of reasoning strategies in comprehension, but that there were significant quantitative differences between the groups in application and success…

Identifies strategies used by 24 tenth grade students to comprehend a short story, and relates the strategies to ability, interest, and writing style. (AA)