Discusses curtailing the misuse and misinterpretation of standardized tests, and suggests ways to improve existing tests while reviewing the Test of Early Reading Ability-2, Tests of Reading Comprehension, and Effective Reading Tests. (MG)

Discusses changes needed in the assessment of reading. (MM)

Reflects on some of the issues that have been raised in this column over the past six years, including readability formulae, reading assessment, and the use of basal readers. (MM)

Describes four inventories in summary form to allow the reader to identify the ones that might best suit the assessment purposes and needs. (MG)

Interviews Dr. Barbara Kapinus who will serve as Project Coordinator for the 1992 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading Consensus Development Project. (MG)

Examines the terms "phonemic segmentation" and "phonemic awareness," noting that these areas go beyond older notions of readiness and auditory discrimination. Claims that research in phonemic awareness has important instructional implications. (MM)

Discusses factors which lead to the overuse of and overreliance on standardized tests in the United States. (MM)

Describes several approaches for teaching vocabulary words as concepts, including semantic mapping, semantic feature analysis, and the Freyer Model, a seven step model of concept development. (MM)

Refutes the notion that remedial readers are unable to use context clues, arguing that poor readers simply have difficulty with automatic word identification. Suggests three approaches to heighten students' sensitivity to the use of context clues. (MM)

Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using oral or silent reading rates to evaluate reading ability. Argues that although there are potential problems with measuring reading rates, it can be a useful way of documenting students' progress. (MM)

Discusses reasons why teaching difficult vocabulary in a selection may not improve comprehension. Emphasizes the importance of teaching vocabulary that represents ideas or concepts central to the reading selection. (MM)

Describes five programs of early intervention for the prevention of reading problems (Success for All, the Winston-Salem Project, Early Intervention in Reading, the Boulder Project, and Reading Recovery). Compares these five programs on a number of dimensions, identifying common features that seem related to preventing reading problems. Draws…

A study compared and contrasted various early intervention reading programs, examining 12 early intervention programs in 10 school districts within 60 miles of the Denver metropolitan area. Programs selected were considered to be district-wide, had been in place for at least a year, had coordinators who agreed to be interviewed, were designed for…

A deep, developmental construct and definition of fluency, in which fluency and reading comprehension have a reciprocal relationship, is explicated and contrasted with superficial approaches to that construct. The historical development of fluency is outlined, along with conclusions of the U.S. National Reading Panel, to explore why fluency has…

Reviews information about three major dimensions along which phonics measures vary: (1) group v individual administration, (2) production response (say or write) v recognition response, and (3) the stimuli or materials used to evaluate phonics. (HOD)