Steven D. Rinehart

Some of the benefits of readers theater participation for second‐grade title I students

Abstract Readers theater experiences can be readily found in elementary classrooms. The authors of this study have looked for research support for the wisdom of these opportunities, especially for less‐skilled readers. The study investigated the effects of readers theater participation on oral reading ability and motivation of second‐grade Title I reading students. For 9 weeks during the school year, students were involved in either Title I instruction that incorporated intensive readers theater activities or in traditional Title I instruction that did not involve readers theater. Quantitative and qualitative findings alike supported the benefits of readers theater experiences on oral reading ability, oral reading comprehension, and attitude toward reading and reading instruction. The authors also present implications for classroom reading instruction of children with reading problems.

Summarization Ability and Text Recall by Novice Studiers.

Abstract This investigation analyzed how sixth graders’ untrained summarization ability, acquired developmentally and demonstrated through a simple paragraph summary task, would relate to studying and recall of important text information in a more demanding task. Positive influences on text recall were linked to application through notetaking. Students with greater summarization ability who also produced better notes gained recall advantages. Of itself, however, summarization ability did not predict better recall. Likewise, by themselves, better notes did not predict better recall. Findings support the importance of application for this cognitive strategy. The findings also suggest instructional guidelines and caveats.

Would I Like to Read This Book?: Eighth Graders' Use of Book Cover Clues to Help Choose Recreational Reading.

Abstract This study explored how eighth grade students choose books for recreational reading. Involving participating students in a number of specific language arts tasks within the context of classroom instruction, the authors have identified and analyzed strategies used during a book selection process and information valued during the experiences. Student activities included selecting and reading a contemporary adolescent novel, maintaining a reading log, rating respective books, and participating in extensive interviews before and after the activities. Findings describe how accurately and thoughtfully many students can predict if they would like to read a particular book or not and what cover clues and other sources of information are important. Findings also demonstrate the complexities of student predictions and evaluations and the influences of personal experience and perspective. Presented in the study are insights into these predictions and evaluations, as well as classroom implications about read...

Effects of advance organizers on level and time of text recall

Abstract This investigation analyzed some of the effects of advance organizers on text recall by seventh‐grade students. Presentation formats for the advance organizers included oral reading by the teacher of silent reading by the students, as well as the presence or absence of guided discussion. A control group was included. The advance organizer that allowed for oral presentation by the teacher with ensuing discussion resulted in the greatest and most resilient recall. Discussion also affected scores. Teaching implications are shared.

Metacognitive Abilities of Above and Below Average Readers: Effects of Conceptual Tempo, Passage Level, and Error Type on Error Detection.

A number of researchers have suggested recently that differences between good and poor comprehenders lie in differences in metacognitive skills. This study examines one of the paradigms used to measure metacognitive skill–the error detection task. Seventy-four above and below grade level sixth graders were asked to detect order changes and nonsense word substitutions in third-grade and sixth-grade level passages. It was found that conceptual tempo (impulsivity/reflectivity), passage readability, and error type, as well as reading ability, all influenced the performance of these children on the error detection tasks. No differences were found between above and below average readers on two other metacognitive tasks, a reading difficulty judgment, and a knowledge and purposes of reading interview. Results indicate that conceptual tempo should be considered in any explanation of the relationship between metacognitive monitoring and reading ability.

Effects of Advance Organizers on Text Recall by Poor Readers.

Prior knowledge plays an important role in reading comprehension. The advance organiser is one method teachers commonly use to activate or build reader knowledge before assigned readings. This study addresses the effects of varied presentations of advance organizers on text recall by seventh‐grade students with reading problems. The poor readers were regular members of content‐area classrooms, and the tested reading passages involved grade‐level material. The regular content‐area teachers delivered the lessons. The most effective presentation format was characterized by an oral delivery of the advance organizer by the teacher followed with whole‐group discussion. In implementing this strategy, teachers will want to consider purposes of task, however, because influences were related to level and time of recall, as well as format variation. Findings emphasize implications for using advance organizers with poor readers.

Detection of Inconsistencies by above and below Average Reflective and Impulsive Sixth Graders

AbstractPrior studies have found differences in the ability to detect errors in paragraphs between better and poorer readers. The results of the study here suggest that individual variations in error detection are more complex. Seventy-three sixth graders were given an error-detection task involving the detection of contradictions within the text and information contrary to general knowledge. It was found that the below-average reader classified as reflective in conceptual tempo did nearly as well as the above-average readers in detecting textual inconsistencies but significantly worse in detecting acceptable passages and schema inconsistencies. Below-average readers classified as impulsive showed the opposite pattern. These results indicate that it may be impulsive or reflective response styles that affect comprehension-monitoring ability, rather than reading ability per se.

Choosing a Book: Are BOB Summaries Helpful?.

ABSTRACT The author reviewed 37 different back‐of‐the‐book (BOB) summaries to evaluate how helpful these summaries might be for adolescent readers selecting a book for recreational reading. Specifically, they analyzed BOB summary features, including length and organization, story grammar focus, accuracy of story portrayal and related aspects of usefulness for book choice. Teacher education students also provided information for this review as they participated in a related course task. Results indicate that BOB summaries focus largely on plot events and do so accurately. Reader reactions showed that they valued the accuracy of the summary and found the predictive nature of the summary to be helpful. Results demonstrate the potential value in using BOB summaries in the classroom.

Conceptual Tempo, Studying, and Reading

AbstractPrior studies have established relationships between conceptual tempo and reading skills, especially for word recognition. The effects of conceptual tempo on advanced reading tasks are not so clear. This study examined the relationship of conceptual tempo and performance by sixth-grade subjects on several common study and reading activities. Conceptual tempo influenced success on certain tasks. Reflective subjects took higher quality notes than did impulsive subjects, and they did so without spending more time on task or writing down more information. At the same time, reflective subjects did not always gain potential advantages from their notes. Reflective subjects also wrote superior summaries for paragraphs with implicit main ideas but not for paragraphs with main ideas stated within, and they scored higher than impulsive subjects on a short-answer social studies test. Results indicate that conceptual tempo may have a relationship with effective studying and reading. Reflective readers, however...