Linda B. Gambrell

The Effects of Retelling Upon Reading Comprehension and Recall of Text Information

AbstractThis study investigated the effects of retelling (free recall) upon the comprehension and recall of text information for 93 fourth-grade students. Subjects were assigned randomly to one of two generative learning strategy treatment conditions: retelling or illustrating. Subjects participated in four training sessions and one test session. For each of the four training sessions subjects silently read a passage and then, according to treatment condition, either retold the important parts of the passage or illustrated the important parts of the passage. For the test passage all subjects silently read the passage, and then rendered a free recall. Two days later all subjects rendered a delayed free recall and answered 10 literal and 10 inferential questions about the test passage. Statistically significant differences were found on all measures of reading comprehension and recall (immediate free recall, two-day delayed free recall, and responses to literal and inferential questions) in favor of the sub...

Retelling and the Reading Comprehension of Proficient and Less-Proficient Readers

Abstract This study investigated the effects of practice in retelling on the prose comprehension of fourth-grade proficient and less-proficient readers across four practice sessions. The subjects in this study were 48 fourth-grade students (24 proficient readers and 24 less-proficient readers). Subjects were assigned, by proficiency level, to one of four story-order conditions. At each of the four sessions, the subjects silently read a story and rendered a free recall. Subjects were provided with opportunities to read and retell; however, no explicit teacher instruction was provided. At the conclusion of the first and fourth sessions, subjects responded to an eight-item cued-recall assessment. Analysis of the free-recall protocols and the responses to cued-recall questions revealed that practice in retelling across only four sessions resulted in significant increases in the number of propositions recalled, the proportion of story structure elements recalled, and the number of cued-recall questions answere...

The Occurrence of Think-Time during Reading Comprehension Instruction.

AbstractThis study investigated the occurrence of think-time, the amount of time which occurs following a teacher-posed question, during reading comprehension instruction for third grade above average, average, and below average reading groups. Nine third grade teachers volunteered to participate in the investigation. Three reading group structures were operant in all classrooms and basal readers were used for all the reading comprehension lessons. Audio tapes of the lessons were analyzed for think-time and question level. The results revealed that the average and below average groups were asked significantly more text-based than scriptal questions while the above average groups received a more balanced proportion of text-based (53%) and scriptal (47%) questions. On the average teachers asked students a question every 43 seconds and approximately one second of think-time occurred following teacher-posed questions. Of most concern was the finding that significantly more think-time was allowed for text- bas...

Explicit story structure instruction and the narrative writing of fourth‐ and fifth‐grade below‐average readers

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of explicit story structure instruction on below‐average fourth‐ and fifth‐grade readers’ narrative writing performance. The students were randomly assigned to either an Explicit Story Structure Instruction (ESSI) condition or Story Structure Awareness Instruction (SSAI) condition. Instructional time and materials were consistent across the two conditions. The ESSI consisted of four steps: Introduction, Examples, Teacher Modeling, and Teacher‐Guided Story Generation. The SSAI consisted of two steps: Introduction and Examples. The ESSI was designed to provide more explicit instruction in the application of story structure grammar to the composition of original stories, while the SSAI provided less explicit instruction designed to inform and develop students’ awareness of story structure grammar and application to the composition of original stories. Prior research has documented positive effects for students receiving story structure trainin...

Summer reading: Description and evaluation of a program for children and parents

Abstract It is generally agreed that below‐average readers read very little during the summer months and that they may actually regress in their reading skills during this extended time away from school. This article presents a rationale and description of a summer reading program specifically designed to: 1) increase the amount of reading done over the summer by low socio‐economic students and 2) involve parents in reading with their children. The results of the program evaluation indicate that: 1) the children felt positively about the program ‐ especially having the teacher or aide visit the home, 2) parents had very definite opinions about the value of the program, and 3) teachers and aides grew in their insights about children and the impact of the home environment upon school success.