Describes the results of a questionnaire that reveals Japanese students' attitudes towards reading in English versus reading in Japanese. Points out how students may have distorted views about English and English texts, because of their limited exposure to literary texts. (Author/VWL)

Describes on Israeli English-as-a-Foreign-Language teacher's action research project that focused on how to teach reading comprehension in English to a class of ninth grade boys. Outlines the teacher's goals, implementation of the project, and thoughts on the outcomes. (Author/VWL)

Explores some of the current thinking on the cognitive processes involved in reading in a foreign language and describes alternative learning activities based on an analysis of these processes. (49 references) (GLR)

Focuses on the performance levels of the Test of English for Educational Purposes (TEEP) and English Language Testing Service (ELTS) tests. It is concluded that more attention should be paid to the process underlying test performance. (15 references) (GLR)

Experiments with skilled readers (N=83) from four native-language orthographic backgrounds examined the effects of: (1) blocked visual or auditory information on lexical decision-making; and (2) heterographic homophones on reading comprehension. Native and second language transfer does occur in second language reading, and orthographic structure…

Novice second-language learners can understand and benefit from authentic reading and listening language texts that are not typically introduced until students have intermediate or advanced language skills. Early exposure to such texts can help learners develop useful listening strategies for more complex tasks. (Author/CB)

Examines previous research on extensive reading, and describes an experiment comparing the improvement of reading comprehension by Japanese college freshmen taught by either a skills-based or extensive reading procedure. Results suggest that extensive reading may be at least as effective as skills building, with the important advantage that it is…

A review of the literature on lecture notetaking delineates research concerning learning from native-language (L1) lectures as a function of L1 notetaking, outlines accepted axioms of good notetaking, and suggests continued research to assess the utility of these axioms and to explore further second-language lecture information processing.…

Analysis of the keyed responses of items in three English-as-a-Second-Language reading comprehension tests focused on the form and source of information and on the frequency with which the information appeared in the text. Analysis of the results found that these facets were differentially related to the item score at different proficiency levels.…

In a study of cultural differences and information dissemination, a group of unsuccessful Ethiopian English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) university students in Israel were compared with a typical Israeli EFL group. Results show that unsuccessful learners use similar strategies for reading comprehension, etc., but their use is "mechanical." (18…

Presents an example of a multimedia program for French-as-a-Foreign-Language instruction developed at Penn State University using a videodisc selection that illustrates the use of authentic materials with potential for adaptations for various levels, tasks, and media. (JL)

The effectiveness of accuracy-based programs in producing proficient second-language speakers and of proficiency-based programs in producing accurate speakers is debated. It is concluded that ways must be found to combine the advantages of both grammar-based and comprehension-oriented curricula. (Contains 10 references.) (LB)

Examines the comprehension of English conventional indirect requests by native English speakers and Japanese learners of English. Subjects read stories inducing either a conventional or a literal interpretation of a priming sentence. Results suggest that both native and nonnative speakers process both meanings of an ambiguous conventional request.…

The author discusses the preparation of a test of reading comprehension in Italian as a Second Language for Spanish university students and analyzes the results of the test. The article includes the reading passage and the test. (CFM)

This article reports the results of using a three-layer back propagation artificial neural network to predict item difficulty in a reading comprehension test. Three classes of variables were examined: text structure, propositional analysis, and cognitive demand. Results demonstrate that the networks can consistently predict item difficulty. (JL)