A collection of 28 papers deals with reading in various parts of the world. The following countries are represented: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, India, Iran, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States. The papers are organized under four main headings: (1) Developmental Reading: This section discusses reading…

Described are two English units--Aggression and Death--developed at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, intended for use in the inner city secondary school. Built on the premise that erudition should be an extension of the search for self-knowledge, both units involved the students in a general discussion of how aggression (or death) is…

Reports on the independent classroom experiences of a teacher of English as a foreign language in Germany who used videotaped broadcasts of BBC's "News of the Week" and a teacher of English as a second language in the U.S. who used two-minute news capsules from a radio station in Los Angeles. (CFM)

Describes a teaching technique using a non-language-teaching film in French as a stimulus for aural comprehension practice, discussion and composition. (Text is in French.) (MLA)

Four short articles discuss how to transcribe voice messages quickly and easily, how to learn to debate, new French expressions and games for language students. (Text is in French.) (MLA)

Provides a strategy for teachers to use to help students relate their concrete nonschool experiences to the abstract content of social studies textbooks and nonschool learning to school learning. Suggests use of a Nonschool Activity Student Profile to provide teachers with information about their students so that this may be achieved. (AEM)

Indicates that segmentation significantly aided the comprehension of narrative and expository materials for hearing impaired students who read at a second-grade level. (NKA)

Notes that expository text, the predominant form of writing in content textbooks, is generally more difficult for students to comprehend than narrative, which predominates in basal readers. Recommends the use of extended anticipation guides as a strategy for helping students build background knowledge for understanding content area texts. (SKC)

Study guides for learning-disabled students can improve their comprehension of textbook readings. Guidelines for developing, using, and modifying study guides are provided. A sample study guide on early Latin American civilizations is given, followed by a sample test covering the study guide material. (Author/JDD)

Explains why proficient readers may find it difficult to understand written directions. Indicates direct instructional strategies for helping such readers handle procedural text independently. (NKA)

Describes 10 ideas for using recitation to strengthen reading comprehension, including: (1) what did I just say? (2) one thing I learned today; (3) student-generated test questions; (4) guess what will be on the test; (5) where is it located in the book? (6) teacher show and tell; (7) inquiry training; and (8) what's the big idea? (SKC)

Analyzes four informal reading inventories to determine the text type of each passage, whether narrative passages are well formed, and whether expository passages are well organized. Finds almost half the narratives poorly formed. Concludes that the lack of continuity in text type and organization could result in children's comprehension scores…

Notes that many students enter higher education without basic skills for understanding texts, and presents three strategies for framing and answering questions about text to enable students to engage actively with the content. (SKC)

To improve the listening abilities of non-native English speakers at Pan American University, discourse-level listening curriculum guidelines were developed, based on research about listening skills. The approach separates the steps of listening into preparation, memory practice, cues, organizational patterns, and review. Sample guides and…

Concludes that three experimental programs were more effective than traditional approaches in beginning reading instruction: (1) a literature program using special decoding strategies, (2) a literature program not using the special strategies, and (3) a traditional basal approach using the special decoding strategies. (FL)