Research Findings: Anthropomorphized animal characters have been associated with negative influences on educational outcomes for young children, for example story comprehension and prosocial learning from moral tales. In this study we investigate how character realism and moral theme influence young children's recall of the story content. Retells…

Background and Aims: This study examined how parenting styles influence children's language skills and reading comprehension. Materials and Methods: Six hundred and eighty-five Chinese-speaking third graders (M[subscript age] = 9.23 years, SD = 0.66; 341 girls) were randomly recruited from eight primary schools. We measured students' primary…

Teaching English to first-grade elementary school children presents its own challenges for teachers. This is because children at this age have characteristics such as having a short attention span, enjoying playing, and learning more effectively when they are having fun. On the other hand, children in this group are still learning to read and…

The study examined how children's self-regulation skills measured by the strengths and weaknesses of ADHD symptoms and normal behavior rating are associated with story comprehension and how verbal engagement and e-book discussion prompts moderate this relation. Children aged 3-7 (N = 111, 50% female, Chinese as first language) read an interactive…

The ability and competence to communicate with students in a clear and understandable manner is referred to as teaching effectiveness (Sanchez et al., 2020). Educators strive for ongoing professional development and skill enhancement as a means of improving student achievement, and there are standardized performance metrics used to observe how…

Augmented reality (AR) technology can enhance picture book reading experience. The present study aimed to explore the influence of reading AR picture books on primary school students' reading comprehension, story retelling, and reading motivation. Eighty second graders, who were from two classes at a rural primary school in a coastal city in East…

Research shows that meaning-focused reading offers opportunities for incidental grammar acquisition. However, the number of such studies remains limited and none have examined the role of both in-text encounters with grammar structures and reading comprehension in this learning. The present study filled these gaps. Employing a between-group,…

This single case study (multiple baselines) evaluates the efficacy of an intervention called "reading racetracks" among three eight-year-old boys with diverse backgrounds, including learning disabilities, limited language proficiency due to migration, and socio-economic challenges. Conducted over three weeks, the training demonstrated…

International Large-Scale Assessments (ILSAs) have had significant impact on education policy across the globe. But has interest in ILSAs now started to wane? This paper presents new evidence on this issue, exploring how the amount of attention three major ILSAs receive compares across countries, between studies and over time. Using information on…

Currently 15 percent of U.S. students receive special education services, a widespread intensive intervention with variable effects on students. Spurred by changes in federal policy, many states and districts have begun adopting the Response to Intervention (RTI) approach to identifying students to receive special education services. RTI seeks to…

Although reading comprehension research and instruction commonly focus on individuals' ability to extract meaning from text, eighth-grade students whose teachers chose to focus on engaged volitional reading, rather than comprehension, demonstrated expansive forms of meaning-making and purpose. Interviews and observations across two school years…

In EFL countries where English is rarely practiced outside the classroom, textbooks have become the major input source for learners. Particularly in Vietnam, multiple textbook series are available simultaneously for the same grade. Thus, it is important to examine if their vocabulary is appropriate and of similar difficulty. This study aims to…

Students' gains from Pre-K converge with similar students who did not attend Pre-K in elementary school. One theory for convergence is that students who attend Pre-K enter kindergarten classrooms that are skill heterogeneous, and these students are positioned near the top of the classroom skill distribution. Kindergarten teachers, however, focus…

The Content Proximity Project was designed to improve the content validity of the MAP® Growth™ assessments while retaining the ability for the test to adapt off-grade and meet students wherever they are in their learning. Two main features of the project were the development of an enhanced item selection algorithm, and a spring pilot study…

There is widespread acknowledgement that importance of reading skill is increasing day by day. Reading is the first step to learning and revealing something new. Beyond the primary grades, it plays a vital role in keeping up with the requirements of the age. Individuals who read, understand, question, think and produce develop societies. Thus, it…