Text classification and text gradation are important for language teachers. Profiling and readability studies examine textual and linguistic features that determine text difficulty. Arabic, as an under-resourced language, suffers from a lack of such studies which results in material developers and textbook writers relying on their intuitions and…

Graphic novels are an important literary mode with a complex history and practice, and provide struggling readers of all kinds with a visual (but equally rigorous) reading experience. English teachers must determine the criteria for quality examples of this mode to provide the highest quality texts possible to every student. This article uses…

Passages from three selected samples of textbooks are used to show what requirements are made of textbooks in the social sciences. Some hints are given to the teacher for converting reading suggestions into instructional material. Short texts from Karl Marx are also suggested. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

This article describes an approach to developing student reading materials that support middle school learners in a project-based, inquiry curriculum for grades 6 through 8. Reading materials are designed to encourage sense making beyond the classroom, as students read and write about science as it takes place in a classroom and as it occurs in…

The results of an APEID (Asia and the Pacific Programme of Educational Innovation for Development) workshop on producing textbooks and other teaching and learning materials, especially in reading, for the first level of education are provided in this book. An initial overview presents the objectives and the organization of the workshop. The second…

This study analyzed the word-, sentence-, and passage-level demands of high-interest, low-level books in a manner consistent with an interactive model of reading comprehension. Cases consisted of three randomly selected passages from sixty different books. Cases were analyzed across five variables: high-frequency words, decodable words, sentences,…

Discusses the use of authentic materials in developing the reading skills of students in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and of English for Special Purposes (ESP) classes. An example of authentic material, a magazine article, is appended along with sample exercises. (CFM)

An approach to the selection of second language reading material that is authentic but comprehensible at the lower levels begins by using materials with interesting content that are accessible to the student. The approach capitalizes on the students' prior knowledge, information resources, or supplementary information provided with the reading. It…

The libraries of India can play an important role in the education of neo-literates by awakening the interest of potential readers, providing specially developed materials, setting aside a special area staffed by trained, sympathetic personnel, and by fostering discussion groups to raise people's consciousness of their power to effect change. (AJ)

This paper presents proposals for the design and institutionalization of a system for the production and distribution of reading materials for adults, especially in developing countries. Ideas about the problems of production and distribution are developed, along with ideas for use in designing, evaluating, choosing, and promoting policy and…

This study presents guidelines that were designed as references to help professionals and paraprofessionals create new resources or modify existing materials to meet the changing needs, interests, and abilities of persons with reading problems. Four procedures were used to develop the guidelines and to test their validity: materials that were used…

The author's analysis of reading material content of second language texts examines achievement of graphemic-phonemic contrasts, sequence of association in the process of reading, and control of sounds, grammar, subject matter, and cultural content. Because the orthography-sound association skill cannot be separated from the sound-meaning skill,…

IN KEEPING WITH AMERICA'S CURRENT CONCERN FOR ITS BIG CITIES, THE CLASSICISTS, STIMULATED BY THE INAPPROPRIATENESS OF THE LATIN TEXTS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AND THE CONSEQUENT DECLINE IN LATIN ENROLLMENT IN URBAN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, ARE REALIZING THE NEED TO DEVELOP A COMPLETE SERIES OF TEXTBOOKS AND MATERIALS DESIGNED FOR INNER-CITY PUBLIC SCHOOL…

This handbook on teaching reading in vocational education is designed to provide vocational education teachers with a resource to use in helping students to develop sound reading skills. Provided in the handbook are information sheets, self-checks, practice activities, and suggestions for further reading dealing with the following topics:…