In this particular study the problem is to find which types of books pupils of the fifth grade of different abilities and of different socio-economic status like to read. This study is also concerned with the comparison of boys and girls in their choice of books and magazines.

This study has four main purposes: 1. To determine whether there is a preference for certain types of stories. 2. To find whether boys prefer one type story and girls another. 3. To determine whether the physical make-up or format of the book has any influence on the selection of books. 4. To find how these interests are related to classroom work.

Dyslexic children are probably not a homogeneous group in terms of important characteristics assumed to be involved in reading; disability since underlying causes may vary widely. Such characteristics as arousal and performance on a vigilance task would differ not only from a control group, but also within the RD sample. It was hypothesized that HBD symptoms would be associated with lowered arousal and poorer vigilance performance whereas children experiencing reading difficulties presumably because of specific language dysfunction would resemble controls in arousal and performance. The results supported vigilance predictions for omissions, but not commissions. Poorer performance was associated with HBD symptoms. Age, however, proved to have an even greater effect on vigilance performance. Arousal results, for the most part, were not in the predicted direction. Arousal, measured by skin conductance, increased over time for children in this sample, rather than decreased as we expected from adult data. This indicated that vigilance and arousal cannot be equated in the same sense that has been suggested for adults. / Master of Science

Children experience life crisis and normal developmental problems. This study is aimed at highlighting the role fiction can play in assisting children in coping with certain normal life crisis and developmental problems. A discussion on the nature of the bibliotherapeutic process indicated that fiction plays a major role in the success thereof. A model was designed for the selection process of fiction for the bibliotherapeutic process. Selection criteria were established for both the reader and the reading matter. Tables were designed consisting of selection criteria for both the reader and the reading matter. Stories about life crisis relating to death and divorce, as well as normal developmental problems about fear of peer group rejection and fear of the acquirement of skills, were evaluated against these criteria. This indicates that it is possible to select the right book for the bibliotherapeutic process with children. / Information Science / M.Inf.

Yun Wai Foo. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 139-169). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / CONTENTS --- p.1 / TABLES AND FIGURES --- p.2 / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.3 / Problem of Culture in the Cultural Revolution --- p.3 / History of Print and Read in the Cultural Revolution： A Social Prelude to Maoism --- p.14 / Chapter II. --- HEGEMONY AND BOOK PRINTING IN COMMUNIST CHINA --- p.26 / Ideological Determination and Book Industry --- p.26 / Book Printing in the Cultural Revolution --- p.32 / Chapter III. --- SOCIOLOGY OF KNOWLEDGE IN THE PRC --- p.44 / Knowledge in the PRC --- p.44 / Inefficacy of cultural reproduction in the cultural revolution --- p.52 / Chapter IV --- HISTORY OF READING IN THE CULTURAL REVOLUTION --- p.74 / Collective Memory and the Cultural Revolution --- p.74 / Chinese Reading Myth： Simply Read Marx ？ --- p.81 / What People Read ？ Alternative Reading in Communist China …… --- p.97 / How People Read? The Way and War to Knowledge --- p.115 / Construction of Intellectual Network in the Cultural Revolution --- p.122 / Chapter V --- CONCLUSION --- p.134 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.139

Abstract not available

This thesis examines provincial literary culture in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, through the printed and manuscript records of reading associations, the diaries of their members, and a range of other print materials. These book clubs and subscription libraries have often been considered to be polite and sociable institutions, part of the cultural repertoire of a new urban, consumer society. However, this thesis reconsiders reading associations' values and effects through a study of the reading materials they provided, and the reading habits they encouraged; the intellectual and social values which they embodied; and their role in the performance of gender, local and national identities. It questions what politeness meant to associational members, arguing for the importance of morality and order in associational conceptions of propriety, and downplaying their pursuit of structured sociability. This thesis examines how provincial individuals conceived of their relationship to the reading public, arguing that associations provided a tangible link to this abstract national community, whilst also having implications for the 'public' life of localities and families. The thesis also considers how these institutions interacted with enlightenment thought, suggesting that both the associations' reading matter and their philosophies of corporate improvement enabled 'ordinary' men and women to participate in the Enlightenment. It assesses English and Scottish associations, which are usually subjected to separate treatment, arguing that they constituted a shared mechanism of British literary culture in this period. More than simply a 'polite' performance, reading, through associations, was fundamentally linked to status, to citizenship, and to cultural participation.

Children experience life crisis and normal developmental problems. This study is aimed at highlighting the role fiction can play in assisting children in coping with certain normal life crisis and developmental problems. A discussion on the nature of the bibliotherapeutic process indicated that fiction plays a major role in the success thereof. A model was designed for the selection process of fiction for the bibliotherapeutic process. Selection criteria were established for both the reader and the reading matter. Tables were designed consisting of selection criteria for both the reader and the reading matter. Stories about life crisis relating to death and divorce, as well as normal developmental problems about fear of peer group rejection and fear of the acquirement of skills, were evaluated against these criteria. This indicates that it is possible to select the right book for the bibliotherapeutic process with children. / Information Science / M.Inf.

This study is part of a larger research programme that seeks to contribute towards an understanding of South Africa's complex literacy landscape and formulate strategies that may address these particularly in the Foundation Phase. It is a case study of one public primary school in Grahamstown where isiXhosa is used as a medium of instruction until Grade 3, after which the medium of instruction changes to English. This transition is not helped by the little reading that happens in the language at the FP. The learners under study are Grade 3 isiXhosa first language speakers, learning English as a First Additional Language (FAL) with limited exposure to the language. Through a qualitative participatory action research process, the study investigated the extent to which a reading club in general and a responsive reading programme in particular, might develop learners' English vocabulary at this particular school. The value of reading clubs as a vehicle for second language learning as well as the importance of considering learner needs in the development of the reading programme are key contributions this study makes. The study draws on social constructivism as a theoretical framework based on the principle that learning is a social acitvity. Vygotsky (1978) states that language learning (LL) takes place through interactions in meaningful events, rather that through isolated language activities. The process is seen as holistic, that is, each mode of language supoorts and enhances overall language development. Furthermore, LL develops in relation to the context in which it is used, that is, it develops according to the situation, the topic under discussion and the relationship betwwen participants. Language also develops through active engagement of the learners. The role of the teacher or a more competent other is then seen as that of a facilitator in a learning context in which learners are viewed as equally capable of contributing to their learning through learning from and with each other (Holt and Willard-Holt, 2000). Vygotsky's theory of social interaction has been influential in highlighting the important role of social and cultural contexts in extending children's learning. The preliminary results of this study point toward the importance of the learning environment, particularly an informal environment in second language development. The results also highlight the need for learners (a) to be provided with opportunities to engage with meaningful and authentic texts, (b) to be allowed to make their own book choices, (c) to participate in large group, small group and individual activities to enable them to engage with a variety of texts, and (d) to confront vocabulary in a variety of ways through multiple texts and genres.

The purposes of the present study were to investigate the relationship between short-term memory and reading in learning disabled and average learners, and to determine whether this relationship is different between ages 8 to 10 and ages 11 to 13 in these two populations. Studies have shown that children with learning disabilities tend to perform poorer on short-term memory tasks compared to children with no disabilities. The present study was conducted because the short-term memory component in the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale is new and it was felt that information regarding this test's usefulness with learning disabled students would be beneficial for individuals in the field of educational assessment. A total of 80 children, 39 average and 41 learning disabled were selected from the five public elementary schools that have learning disabilities classes in the Langley School District. For each group of learning disabled children selected from the learning disabilities class, an equal number of average learners was chosen from the same school. The children were divided into two age groups: 8- to 10-year-olds and 11- to 13-year-olds and then further divided into their two learning categories. Four short-term memory subtests of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition: Bead Memory, Memory for Sentences, Memory for Digits and Memory for Objects and three reading comprehension subtests, from B.C. QUick Individual Educational Test, Peabody Individual Achievement Test and Test of Reading Comprehension respectively, were administered to all groups to measure short-term memory and reading. The Multivariate Analysis of Variance and the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation were used to analyse the data. Results showed that the average learners scored significantly higher than the learning disabled group in both short-term memory and reading. There was no interaction effect of learning group and age on reading or short-term memory. Significant relationships were found between short-term mmeory and reading for the average learning group but none was found for the learning disabled group. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate