No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

The problem of this study was to demonstrate the possible effects that reading with a definite purpose has upon the improvement of comprehension in reading.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--McMaster University, 2005. / Advisor: Betty Ann Levy. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 110-119) Also available via World Wide Web.

The purpose of the study was to examine the use of a prediction technique during the reading of short stories with surprise endings. Investigated were the effects of instructional setting and content familiarity upon interest, overall reading comprehension, literal comprehension, and inferential comprehension. Verbal predictions and supportive evidence generated at the midpoint and prior the story climax was also examined. The subjects, 54 Chapter I remedial readers in a metropolitan school district in Tucson, Arizona, were randomly assigned to experimental or control groups. The study spanned three days. During this time, the students in the individualized treatment read three stories--one of familiar content, one of neutral content, and one of unfamiliar content. Each subject in this treatment generated hypotheses and support for predictions at both the story midpoint and climax. After each story, individual students completed an interest questionnaire and a comprehension assessment. Those in the group treatment followed the same procedure, with predictions and supportive evidence shared in a small group setting of three. Those in the control group read without predicting. The data analysis yielded these findings: (1) Overall comprehension and literal comprehension were not affected by the prediction treatment or story familiarity. (2) The control group surpassed the interest group on the number of inferential questions answered correctly; both the control group and the group prediction treatment subjects performed better than the individualized prediction treatment subjects on the inferential comprehension items. (3) Both the familiar and the neutral selection were more interesting to the students than the unfamiliar selection. (4) Interest scores for the control, familiar group were substantially higher than those for the group familiar treatment, the group, unfamiliar treatment, and the control, unfamiliar treatment. (5) A relationship did not exist between the interest scores and the total comprehension scores of the three stories. (6) Most predictions at the midpoint and prior to the story climax were inaccurate. (7) Predictions, though diverse, could be categorized into approximately 14 groups at the midpoint and 14 groups at the climax. (8) Most predictions were supported either with textual information or scriptal evidence; seldom were script and text ideas combined.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the strategies employed by proficient and less proficient readers as they engaged in the revision of underlying models during the reading of narrative text. Specifically, four research questions were addressed: (1) What revision strategies can be identified? (2) What evidence is used in the revision process? (3) What criteria do readers employ to evaluate revision? (4) What differences exist between proficient and less proficient readers as regards the strategies, evidence and evaluation? Sixteen fifth and sixth grade readers participated in this study. Eight were grouped as proficient and eight as less proficient on the basis of reading test scores and teacher judgment. All readers read the same text, taken from Roald Dahl's The Magic Finger. The text was divided into ten sections, and readers were asked to read each section orally, and then discuss what had happened. The discussion following the reading of each section was conducted as an unstructured interview with the lead being taken from the child. The entire session was taped and transcribed. The major conclusions were: (1) Readers have available a number of strategies for revision. (2) Different texts will necessitate the use of different strategies. (3) Readers most often use a combination of endophoric and exophoric evidence to support revision. (4) The revision of interpropositional hypotheses involves more inference and elaboration of the text. (5) Proficient readers are more tentative during reading than less proficient readers. (6) Proficient readers construct more interpropositional hypotheses than do less proficient readers. The major implications of this study are: (1) Reading programs should include both materials and instructional practices enabling the full use of the strategies of prediction and confirmation by the reader. (2) Less proficient readers need to develop their use of prediction in text to the point where they are comfortable with tentativeness.

This study was designed to determine the effect upon reading achievement of students who choose an elective course in either life science, creative writing, or accelerated reading in lieu of regular reading classes.

The problem in this study was to determine whether the availability of reading material in the home and a child 's socio-economic classification were sufficiently significant to be utilized in helping to predict the reading readiness and reading achievement of first-grade children.

This item was digitized by the Internet Archive. Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / https://archive.org/details/programsforsocia00tild_0