Our understanding of reading--including reading multimodal texts--is always constrained or opened up by what we consider to be a text, what aspects of a reader's embodied activity we focus on, and how we draw a boundary around a reading event. This article brings together five literacy researchers who respond to a human-scale graphic novel,…

This literature review is divided into two parts. The first part is a survey of materials in the William S. Gray Collection at the University of Chicago that deal with modes of learning. The studies reviewed range from the 1930s to the 1960s. The second part of the paper extends the review to studies published during the 1970s. Each section of the…

Examines some of the significant research in the area of learning modalities, analyzes the findings of this research, and discusses the implications of reading research as it relates to reading instruction. (RB)

One of four International Reading Association award-winning dissertations from 1975. (RB)

Concludes that subjects' scores on simultaneously presented tasks were significantly higher than on sequentially presented tasks for both intra- and cross-sensory modalities, suggesting that the ability to integrate sensory information across learning modalities is important in reading acquisition. (RB)

Modality research is of major importance to the field of reading; it has directed attention to three factors: intersensory transfer, intersensory perceptual shifting, and modal preference. This paper provides a critical review of the most pertinent research relating each of these factors to reading achievement. No attempt is made to review studies…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of matching modality aptitudes to classroom-based reading instruction. (RB)

In a study designed to relate research on cognitive style to study technique effectiveness, a group of 129 college freshmen was given a test to assess the cognitive style of each. The 93 students who scored in the upper l/3 and in the lower l/3 of the distribution were classified as field independent and field dependent. These 93 students were…

Surveys the literature on learning style in an effort to help educators become more familiar with the concept. (FL)

Reports a study designed to determine whether students with learning problems could increase their own reading efficiency by learning through resources that complemented their perceptual strengths. Subjects were 16 children in a second grade learning disabilities class. Their reading vocabularies were improved during the perceptual program.…

Rejects phonics or any other reading method as "best" for every child. Summarizes major conclusions of reading styles research, outlines five reading style stimuli, offers tips for increasing reading achievement and enjoyment, and presents research results from five pilot school districts. Matching instruction to individual reading styles is…

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the efficacy of various strategies for improving the reading comprehension of readers with deficits in decoding and vocabulary skills. Ninety-six subjects (48 deficit readers and 48 average readers) of approximately the same age and intelligence were selected from a lower socioeconomic middle…

Mode of presentation (word vs. picture) is said to be a factor in social class differences in performance on analogy tests. To investigate this contention, data were needed on equivalent word and picture analogy test performance. This report presents data on relation education index (REI) norms for 500 picture pairs collected in the process of…

Authors believe that an increase in reading skills is not an end in itself, but must be considered in relation to the facilitation of learning in general. An advanced reading course developed to help overcome reading problems is described. (HB)