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This booklet provides abstracts of the proceedings of a conference on reading conducted on 27 April 1974 by the Department of Teacher Preparation of York College of the City University of New York. The following conference presentations are discussed: "Reading Readiness--What Do I Believe?" (Lilyan Peters), "Preschool as a Language Laboratory" (Adelle Jacobs), "Beginning Reading Instruction with Immature Learners" (Alice Sheff), "Pre-Kindergarten Screening and Follow-Up" (Rose Flaherty), "Language Arts in the Open Classroom" (Frances Cacha), "Teaching Reading Skills through the Language Experience Approach" (Louise Matteoni), "Evaluation and Development of Reading Comprehension" (Grace Cukras), "Reading Comprehension of Children's Literature" (Phyllis Kornfeld), "Glass Analysis--A Decoding Approach" (Elaine Schwartz), "Sex-Role Stereotypes in Children's Books" (Harriet Bloomberg), "Listening Comprehension for Reading Readiness" (Marie Wittek), and "New York City Dialects and Reading" (Beatrice K. Levy). A bibliography of relevant readings and a list of conference participants are included. (KS)

Educators and intellectuals with some sense of humanity should comprehend the hidden message inherent in setting up a dichotomy referring to two linguistic/cultural entities: that one set of structures is sufficient; one is not. For the black student, this message of inferiority is communicated both through the teacher in his instruction, assignments, grading procedures, and attitudes, and through the university in its tracking system which extends to society and the job market. To provide the kind of language/composition teaching the minority student needs, a learning environment should be set up in which he gains mastery in obtaining information, reading competently, using language effectively, and organizing concepts verbally--all using the dialect to which he is accustomed. (JM)

The learning module facilitates public cognizance of learning goals and objectives, specified competencies, learning activities, assessment modes, and criteria levels. These modules enable pre- and inservice teachers to achieve specified competencies in teaching reading and language arts. The rationale for the use of the learning module as the major vehicle for the instructional delivery system in a competency-based program for training teachers in the areas of reading and language arts is presented in this document. The functions, development, and structure of the modules and their components, and the resultant instructional package are examined and reported. Also contained are such features as the rationale for the objectives of the module, operational instructions, alternate learning activities, recycling procedures, evaluation checklists, activity schedules, reference lists, brief practice exercises, and pertinent forms. (Author/TO)

The purpose of this study was to develop a foundation for reliable and effective measurement of significant parameters in the development of written language skills in school age children. The subjects for the study were 25 nine-year-old children, 12 boys and 13 girls, who were randomly selected from among 1,559 participants. The findings indicated that: the "words per sentence" measure is relatively independent of language productivity, correctness of usage, abstractness, and vocabulary diversity; the "mean length of T-unit" is relatively independent of language productivity and correctness of usage; the "total T-unit" is independent of the "mean length of T-unit"; the "total T-unit" is negatively correlated with correctness of usage; "total words" and "total sentences" are very highly correlated, suggesting that they are equivalent as expressions of productivity; and "total words" and "total sentences" correlate highly with errors of punctuation and addition, vocabulary diversity, and abstractness. Recommendations for the development of a Written Language Profile (WLP) are made on the basis of these findings. (RB)

This paper reports on a two-year longitudinal study which determined the relative effectiveness of three methods of coordinating language arts instructional procedures and compared these methods with two methods in which components were not coordinated. The five treatment groups, to which 789 first grade students were randomly assigned, consisted of methods of instruction that either did or did not relate spelling to the basal reader. The instructional methods were: subjects taught to spell words that appeared in the reader; subjects taught from lists directly related to the reader; subjects taught spelling only incidentally as the children needed words for composition related to the reader; and subjects who had no spelling or written composition instruction but who engaged in oral discussion and art activities which were related to stories in the basal readers. It was concluded that, since not all differences were significant, language achievement was most enhanced by teaching spelling words drawn from the children's basal reading series. Results favored methods relating spelling, reading, and/or oral language over methods in which these were not carefully related. (WR)

When applying for federal funding of an academic project, the writing of the proposal is important and should include a description of the institution and its population, a statement of the problem to be alleviated, an outline of the proposed attack on the problem, a specific catalog of each necessary item, and an itemized statement of the anticipated budget. A project partially funded by Title III for 1973-1974 involved the establishment of an individualized, correlated reading and writing training program for about 200 students with low entry behavior at an open enrollment community college in the Los Angeles area. Although only part of the necessary funding was granted, adjustments in equipment and remodeling were arranged, and additional salary money from a special campus office was made possible. Staff training (4 faculty members, 10 teaching assistants, and 4 student tutors) and reading lab remodeling preceded the commencement of classes. Student success provided one measure of program effectiveness, while various evaluations suggested changes to improve the program in the future. (JM)

The characteristics and components of a competency-based teacher education program within which the skills for teaching reading and language arts are developed and implemented are identified in this paper. A four-phase systemic curriculum model developed at the University of North Florida is presented. Twenty-five enabling objectives were written for the specialized competencies component related to reading and language arts and are discussed in the report. Included among these are the following: demonstrate command of key concepts in the field of language arts and reading, demonstrate ability to gain access to recorded knowledge in the field of language arts and reading, identify strategies appropriate for teaching reading and language arts, analyze current reading and language arts curriculum materials, develop a model of your own for teaching reading and language arts, identify appropriate support systems for reading and language arts, know and understand the steps in system analysis as they relate to reading and language arts, and know and understand the basic steps in system evaluation as they apply to reading and language arts. A list of broad general competencies used as part of the four-phase development model are also presented and discussed. (WR)

Competent middle school teachers must both extend students' abilities in the decoding and comprehending skills and stimulate their applications of these reading skills in content area texts. In considering this differentiation of instruction, teachers should be aware of an aptitude by treatment interaction (ATI)--no one technique will produce the same result for all students. Since in a typical middle school, student reading ability may span eight grade levels, with four possible variations of problems--organizational, decoding/vocabulary, interest/purpose, and experience background--differentiation of instruction must be process oriented. For each of these problem areas, various teaching techniques are practicable and effective. Throughout instruction, middle school teachers should remain cognizant of their roles in preparing independent learners for the content orientation of the secondary school. (A bibliography is included.) (JM)

The purpose of this study was to compare aspects of educational environments in elementary schools which differed in the degree to which programs were individualized flexible, and diverse; and architectures were open. Fifteen classes were assigned to the cells of a factorial design, and data on educational environments were collected from teachers and students by systematic observations, interview, and self-report procedures. Multivariate analyses of variance were conducted using both individual and aggregated scores. The study demonstrated that program openness is useful in distinguishing among educational environments. The empirical clarification of the concept was the major result of the study. (Author/MLF)

The traditional content of teacher preparation courses in reading and language arts is compared with competency-based courses which use as a base a working definition of reading, psycholinguistic aspects of the reading process, and certain linguistic features, such as the language development of children, various grammars, and dialect variances. The development of personal working definitions of reading by each student after sufficient research and interaction and the application of the definition to actual reading instruction are involved. Interaction based on the Goodman Model of Reading focuses analysis and development of instructional programs on the systems available to readers: the graphophonic, syntactic, and semantic. Analysis of children's language from the perspective of development and dialect features is related to actual reading instruction. Addition of this basic knowledge to accepted content dealing with basic reading skills--phonics, word processing, comprehension, and study skills--and their acquisition, materials evaluation, and various approaches used in teaching reading, prepares reading teachers who not only know what to teach and how to teach it, but also why they are doing it and when it is appropriate to do so. (Author/TO)

Career Development education is inseparable from education in general since, ultimately, education leads to vocational choice. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the school to develop a positive attitude in all students toward work and to foster the idea that all work is honorable. In Anne Arundel County, Maryland, the process of internalizing the objectives of career education as part of the total school program can be described in four distinct phases. The first step in this infusion process is the realization that content is the basic building block of the instructional unit. Educators are asked to be more precise concerning the ideas and skills which make up the content and to focus their attention on the essentials of good reading and language arts and other content programs. The second phase of the infusion process requires an analysis of the concepts and objectives of career education in terms of their relevancies to the educational philosophy of the school system and their applicability to each particular area of instruction. Phase 3 asks teachers to construct the specific behavioral objectives to achieve the integration of content with career education. The last phase is the designing of activities to achieve the objectives. (TO)

To develop a rationale for the implementation of a field-based program for teacher education in reading and language arts is the purpose of this paper. The field-based program is discussed in terms of its evolution from the traditional university program, the interrelationship between the competency-based and field-based programs, and a possible model for implementation of a field-based program. The attempts being made at the University of North Florida to implement a field-based program are discussed in detail with special emphasis on the reading-language arts program. Numerous obstacles that must be overcome to develop a successful field-based program are discussed, the primary one being the inability to supervise field experiences adequately. (WR)

The art of listening is no longer neglected, as may be seen by the materials (recreational and educational), articles, and book chapters which have come forth in the last five years. However, in order to improve communication among people, listening should be taught and teachers should integrate listening skill development into classroom activities. Care and time should be taken in preparing listening instruction, with special attention given to students' individual needs and interests. Numerous teaching strategies and materials may be utilized, both in individual instruction and in child-to-child communication. (JM)

Too often, language arts programs neglect nonverbal expression and interpretation, forgetting that they play a vital role in face-to-face communication and interaction. However, it is important that children learn to understand nonverbal messages, especially nonverbal devices manipulated by ad people and political personages. A variety of activities for involving grade-school children both in the fun of creative, nonverbal expression and in the interpretation of nonverbal messages range from simple kindergarten projects with pictures to a sophisticated sixth-grade study of impression management as used on television commercials and political telecasts. (JM)

Since science fiction imaginatively explores the future, technology, and the human role in problem solving, it lends itself to the development of a process-oriented curriculum. Students may participate in planning, executing, and evaluating a study of science fiction, while they may learn through process goals to deal intelligently with change--a factor with which science fiction deals. Various current resources are available which can be of help to teachers who are planning science fiction courses. (JM)

Project CATS (Center for Alternative Teaching Strategies), a series of workshops which focused on process as a product in itself and the importance of affective education, is described in this paper. The target population was originally 70 fourth- through seventh-grade teachers of the Oak Park, Michigan, school district, that is, all language arts and social studies teachers at those levels. The year's program was structured into eight sections, each section having a particular theme which was presented four times to four different groups of teachers. Three full-day sessions and five half-day sessions were held during the year. Government monies paid for the released time for teacher attendance. Attendance at the first workshop was mandatory; all subsequent attendance was voluntary. The basic philosophy of CATS was to offer alternative strategies and action techniques that had been proven effective on a cross discipline and cross grade level. Each workshop is described and the accomplishments of the project are listed. (TS)

Syntax, or, loosely, sentence structure, is a major linguistic variable influencing the comprehensibility of every written sentence. This paper attempts to set forth the relationship between elements of syntax and reading comprehension as the classroom teacher might see them, and to propose a strategy, the Complete Linguistic Elements Paradigm (CLEP), which the teacher might use to enable students to reach their potential to comprehend. The CLEP design is a single-element-at-a-time instructional technique and can be employed with individual students or small groups. It is meant to complement a full reading/language arts program. (Author/RB)

PLAN is a computer-managed individualized learning program with two major goals: to provide each child with an individualized program of studies in the language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies and to involve students in making decisions and assuming responsibility for their own learning. A computer assists the teacher by scoring and analyzing tests, recording student progress, and providing daily objectives for learning. Teachers spend most of their time tutoring and counseling students on a one-to-one basis or in small groups, during which time Teaching Learning Units (TLU's) are introduced. A TLU states the objective the child will work toward, lists the materials he or she will use, and prescribes the activities he or she will perform in order to achieve the objective. Some learning activities require students to work in small groups, while others require them to work alone. When a child feels that he or she has mastered the objective of a TLU, the child is tested individually and measured against his or her own potential. (LL)

The first step in ascertaining the content areas in which prospective high school English teachers need preparation is to conduct a survey of teachers already in the schools. In this survey, teachers would rate both the importance of each content area in their teaching and their competence as teachers in those areas. After information from the surveys has been tabulated, courses and programs can be developed to teach the needed competencies and final evaluations of the programs can be conducted. (JM)