This study was designed to test the effects of choice on the reading comprehension of 92 fifth and sixth grade students. Conducted in an elementary classroom, the test involved having each student read five cloze passages and answer an interest questionnaire about the passages. The experimental variable in this study was choice of topics on a…

Chapters of this book on diagnostic-prescriptive reading instruction examine such topics as defining reading, language and reading, reading comprehension, assessing student progress and needs, visual and auditory discrimination and perception, visual memory of words, decoding word symbols, primary reading, creating interest in reading, critical…

Designed to provide data establishing the effects of individualization, teacher directiveness, and learner support on reading achievement, this study utilized 118 first-grade classrooms representing 44 schools located in suburban, rural, city, and inner city areas. Measurement of the three dimensions of the classroom environment was achieved…

Three reading tests were given as pretests and posttests to 1,752 students in grades one through six in 12 Title I elementary schools. Of these students, 935 were enrolled in a special, individualized reading program utilizing reading centers housed in each school. Self-instructional materials were used as part of a diagnostic-prescriptive…

Diagnostic-prescriptive teachers have been proven to be the most effective in teaching reading, regardless of the method which they use. This paper contains a model developed by the University of Texas at Austin to use as a guide for reading teacher education. The diagnostic-prescriptive reading teacher: (1) Possesses a knowledge of the reading…

Test management systems are suggested for individualizing the teaching of reading in the elementary classroom. Test management systems start with a list of objectives or specific goals which cover all or some major areas of the learning to read process. They then develop a large number of criterion referenced tests which match the skill areas at…

This program, included in "Effective Reading Programs...," serves 1,674 students in grades 9-12, about 70 percent of whom are black. The program began in 1971 and consists of communication classes, one-semester courses that provide self-pacing, success-oriented instruction in reading for 50 minutes each day. The content is organized into…

A plan for individualizing instruction in large or small secondary reading classes is presented. The need for adapting reading instruction to individual student differences is discussed with emphasis upon a complete and thorough diagnosis of each student's individual needs. Techniques are outlined for measuring, interpreting, and recording…

This progress report covers a 6-month period in the second year of an experimental research project to test the utility of the Edison Responsive Environment Talking Typewriter as a major tool for teaching both initial and remedial reading to educationally disadvantaged youth. Conducted in six schools in Brooklyn, New York, the study included…

According to a recent survey conducted under ESEA Title I, approximately 35 percent of the pupils attending Coan School were from low income families. Title I provided the services of a lead teacher and ten educational aides to allow more individualized instruction for these pupils. An informal reading laboratory continued to be maintained. Pupils…

The thirty papers in this Annual Proceedings of the Western College Reading Association (WCRA) were originally delivered at the Sixth Annual Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Topics covered include self-programed control, increasing study-concentration behavior, individualizing a college reading program, human options for human beings,…

The open reading lab program at Muskegon Community College includes: (1) student/instructor interview; (2) test diagnosis; (3) student/instructor conferences discussing test results, self-evaluation, and student program development; (4) supervised lab work; (5) student/instructor bi-weekly conferences assessing performance and progress; and (6)…

A reading program designed for adults in business, industry, or self-directing professions must focus on specific reading skills which are different from other adult reading programs. Professionals generally have good-to-excellent reading skills which they developed in school and college and are thus primarily concerned with developing (1)…

Elementary school teachers' attitudes toward individualizing reading instruction were examined in the evaluation of the Wisconsin Design for Reading Skill Development (WDRSD). An instrument was constructed in the semantic differential format. Teachers were asked to respond anonymously on adjective scales to eleven example classroom procedures…

This paper argues that the best way to teach reading to children is through literature that reflects children's own language and what they consider relevant. Only those materials written in a language very similar to that which the child hears and uses himself, the author argues, will serve as the best teaching devices. Since the language of…