Effect of phonological training on reading and writing acquisition

The aim of our study was to determine the effect of training of phonological abilities upon the acquisition of reading and writing during the first year of primary school. An experimental design, with five groups of subjects matched by age, sex, IQ, phonological abilities and reading and writing level was used. Every group received twenty training sessions, over a period of six months. Four groups had different training procedures depending upon the type of task used (phoneme versus concept discrimination) and the way that the task was carried out (using or not using manipulative materials). The fifth group served as control. Post training measures were taken in reading, writing, and mathematics, besides the teacher's estimated scores, twice: immediately after the end of training sessions and two months later. Significant effects on both reading and writing measures were obtained for the groups trained on phonological activities using manipulative materials. The effects were reliable for the two tests. The theoretical implications of the results are discussed and their implications for educational practice are indicated.     

阅读策略培训对学生阅读理解能力影响的元分析

国内外有关阅读策略培训对学生阅读理解能力影响的研究众多,但研究结果不尽相同。本研究以Comprehensive Meta-analysis V2软件为工具对国内外27项此类研究进行了元分析。研究结果如下:1)阅读策略培训对学生阅读理解能力影响的总效应值为0.816,达到大效应值;2)可能存在多种因素共同作用影响阅读策略培训对学生阅读理解能力影响的效果;3)语言环境和培训的策略类别对研究结果无显著影响,而实验周期和阅读理解能力测试方式对研究结果具有显著影响。     

Career readiness: An analysis of text complexity for occupational reading materials

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and the broader college and career readiness agenda encourage educators, researchers, and other stakeholders to focus on preparing students for life after high school. A key emphasis is literacy, as the ability to read and comprehend written language is critical to success in college and careers. Understanding the level of reading comprehension needed for college and careers has important instructional implications. This study examined text complexity levels of various career texts using the Reading Maturity Metric and compared them to expectations in the CCSS. Text samples were selected for jobs from the five job zones in the Occupational Information Network database. Text complexity demands for all careers were generally in the CCSS range of college and career readiness and increased as job zone and required preparation increased. Results could provide specific career-related targets to make the CCSS reading requirements more relevant for students.     

Selected short-term memory tests as predictors of reading readiness

Three standardized measures of short-term memory (STM) were compared to determine their relative efficacy in predicting reading achievement for primary grade students (n = 36) over a two-year time period. Regression analyses revealed that not all of the STM tests were significant (p < .05) predictors of reading. Moreover, predictive power varied as a function of the reading skill assessed (e.g., decoding or comprehension) and the grade placement of the student. A letter sequences test was found to be the task most frequently associated with reading performance. A memory-for-sentences task also showed a significant relationship to certain aspects of reading. However, a word sequences test was found not to be predictive of reading achievement. Implications for test selection and remedial planning are discussed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The McCarthy scales of children's abilities as a predictor of reading readiness and reading achievement

The purpose of the present study was to determine if the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities could be utilized as a predictor of reading readiness and reading achievement. Thirty-three kindergarten children were tested with the McCarthy Scales and subsequently examined with the MacMillan Reading Readiness Test and the Metropolitan Achievement Test. A correlational analysis of data resulted in significant relationships between McCarthy General Cognitive Indexes, Quantitative, and Perceptual-Performance Scales and both the MacMillan and Metropolitan Tests. Based upon these correlations, it was hypothesized that, for this sample of children, visual discrimination and sequential ability skills may have been crucial factors in reading readiness and reading achievement, rather than verbal abilities.     

Two readiness measures as predictors of first and third-grade reading achievement

Multiple-regression procedures were used to assess the effectiveness of the ABC Inventory and the Metropolitan Readiness Test (MRT) in predicting first and third-grade reading achievement. Sex and chronological age were included in the first-grade analysis (N = 62) and the first-grade PMA intelligence test score was added to the equation in predicting third-grade reading (N = 65). MRT performance accounted for 11% of the variance in first-grade SRA reading scores (R = .34). In predicting third-grade reading, the MRT accounted for 26% of the variance and the PMA IQ scores accounted for an additional 6% (final multiple R = .57). No other predictor made a significant contribution to explaining variance in first or third-grade reading achievement.     

Effects of auditory perception training on reading achievement

This study investigated the effect of an auditory training programme with backward readers who were also deficient in one or more auditory perceptual subskills. Thirty subjects were randomly assigned to one of three groups. The experimental group received a nine hour taped programme devised by the experimenter and designed to teach the skills of auditory discrimination, memory, analysis and synthesis and auditory-visual integration. The comparison group listened to stories on tape for the same duration as the experimental group, while the third group served as a control merely being tested at the beginning and at the end of the experiment. It was found that although the training programme significantly improved the performance of the experimental group over the other two groups on a total auditory perceptual test, there was no corresponding improvement in reading, on word recognition or comprehension tests. The particular auditory subskills which appeared amenable to training were auditory discrimination (rhyme) and auditory synthesis (blending and closure).     

Impact of rapid reading skills training on reading rate and reading achievement among primary school students in China

Abstract

The current study examined the effects of a silent rapid reading skills training intervention on the reading rate and reading achievement of primary school students in China in order to determine the efficacy of the intervention and explore potential gender differences. A total of 108 Chinese primary school students were randomly assigned by the classroom to either an experimental (n = 54) or control (n = 54) condition. Students in the experimental group completed 12 sessions of rapid reading skills training designed to increase their ability to rapidly read Chinese text in silence. Students in the control group engaged in regular Chinese language curriculum for the same time period. After the three-week intervention period, students in the experimental group displayed significantly greater silent reading speed of Chinese characters (M?=?1331.26 characters per minute) compared to students in the control group (M?=?617.48 characters per minute; p?<?.001). Children in the intervention group also displayed a significantly greater effective reading rate (F = 87.11, p?<?.001, partial η²?=?0.46) at post-test compared to the control. Male students displayed greater increases in reading speed than female students. Neither intervention effect nor gender difference was evident for reading comprehension. Implications for educational interventions designed to increase silent reading speed among Chinese students are discussed.     

Early childhood language gains,kindergarten readiness,and Grade 3 reading achievement

In this preregistered study, we used latent change score models to address two research aims: (1) whether preschool-aged children's language gains, over a year of early childhood education, were associated with later performance on state-mandated, literacy-focused kindergarten readiness and Grade 3 reading achievement assessments, and (2) whether gains in language, a more complex skill, predicted these outcomes after controlling for more basic emergent literacy skills. There were 724 participating children (mean = 57 months; 51% male; 76% White, 12% Black, 6% multiple races, and 5% Hispanic or Latino). We found that language gains significantly predicted kindergarten readiness when estimated in isolation (effect = 0.24 SDs, p < .001), but not when gains in letter knowledge and phonological awareness were also included.     

英语音素教法初探

阐述了学习英语音素的重要性,并概括总结了音素教学中行之有效的教学方法。     

情感与形式:论小说阅读训练

本文探讨小说阅读教学中的核心问题,即如何使学生在阅读中发现小说阅读的意义,形成阅读的动力,进而操练分析小说的基本方法。文章指出,自18世纪以来,小说成为日常或私人情感最主要的载体。小说通过虚构人物首先指出言行与情感的分离,以及叙述声音与人物内心的不对等,因此考察情感与叙事语言形式的关系应该成为小说阅读的主要目标。实现这个目标有几条基本思路,包括本文提到的关键词梳理、句式分析和叙事视角及结构分析等手段。接触长篇小说的时候,学生可以先读一到两章,教师以此为基础演示几种阅读方法,学生领会后可以在自己接下来的阅读中加以实践。教学经验证明,用这个程序学生的阅读兴趣和能力都有显著提高。