Examples are provided that show readability in action in diverse settings. The first shows how readability analysis resulted in a new fluency monitoring protocol in three school districts in Northern California. The others present hypothetical school, clinic, and research situations that a speech language pathologist might encounter. (Author/CR)

Describes experiences with developing language and listening skills through storytelling in two multigraded elementary classrooms. Discusses how to: launch the program through literature and storytellers; implement the program, including storytelling ideas; maintain a supportive environment; assess children using anecdotal observation sheets; and…

Discusses mixed ability teaching within the British comprehensive foreign language educational system. Findings reveal that the British system will not soon return to selective modern language teaching (MLT) focusing on grammar and translation, and it is concluded that differentiation is the key to successful MLT for the next century. (CK)

Describes the importance of learning to connect separate universes of knowledge into a coherent whole. It is a mistake to emphasize connecting schools to the Internet without considering the kinds of thinking processes students need in order to learn from the information they access. (LMI)

Twenty-four first-graders who were taught reading skills using the "Language Basics: Elementary" program, which incorporates the Orton-Gillingham-based Alphabetic Phonics Method, made statistically significant gains in phonological awareness, decoding, and reading comprehension. Thirty-two controls taught with the Houghton-Mifflin Basal…

Thirteen poor readers, aged 9-12, listened to and read audiotaped stories, while 13 controls read from basal readers. Experimental subjects showed improved oral reading, whereas controls showed significantly larger gains in word attack skills. There were no between-group differences in silent reading, a cloze comprehension test, or isolated word…

Describes four lessons for "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes" by Eleanor Coerr, developed by teachers in the Kamehameha Elementary Education Program (KEEP), Hawaii. Observes the links between the two basic activities, reading journals and small group discussions, as well as students' growth in thinking about and responding to the…

Describes the long-term, three phase Project 2061. Notes that phase one, defining the substance of scientific literacy, is completed. Examines phase two in which scientists and educators will develop new curriculum models. States phase three will be a widespread effort to move the nation towards scientific literacy. (MVL)

Recommends teaching suggestions which focus on three broad areas: (1) strategies for teaching textbook organization; (2) strategies for using graphics to organize the information covered in the text; and (3) the use of an integrated approach to content area teaching. Cites studies to support these recommendations. (MG)

A study used compressed speech to observe aural processing strategy differences between native English-speakers and high- and medium-level learners of English as a second language. Quantitative and qualitative differences in recall among the three groups were found. (Author/MSE)

Analyzes above and below average readers' informational reports, which synthesize both source texts and writer-generated materials. Concludes that general reading ability and success at synthesizing overlap, and that success at synthesis may be related to cognitive factors associated with comprehension, such as sensitivity to text structure. (RS)

Examines the theoretical and research perspectives (including metacognition, schema theory, and text structure) related to the direct instruction of comprehension at the college level for developmental readers. Concludes that many such strategies are not grounded in solid research bases and recommends that future research focus on the…

Compares visual processing of televised information by 85 Japanese and 111 U.S. kindergarten and grade 4 students. As predicted, Japanese children use a more visually oriented television processing strategy in understanding program content. U.S. children score higher on a comprehension test, perhaps because of cultural differences in testing…

Discusses how an understanding of how children learn can be used to teach them to read nonnarrative information books. Includes how to nurture reading of nonnarrative writing and text features that link with children's ability to learn. Concludes that spoken language reinforces student efforts to make sense of ideas being read. (DK)

The growing body of research investigating how people search for or locate information in a variety of materials is reviewed and extended. Although the nature of materials and the complexity of locating tasks varies in the seven articles, each aims to elucidate the conditions that affect search processes. (SLD)