The Use of Comprehension Development Materials for Improving Comprehension Achievement with Fourth Grade Pupils.

This study was concerned with whether or not supplementary work in the subskill areas of comprehension would increase the overall comprehension level of pupils more than supplementary work with vocabulary development exercise. Sixth-six fourth grade pupils in a middle-class suburban community in central New Jersey were selected as subjects. A control group design was used and both groups spent approximately 20 to 30 minutes a day working at the exercises independently during seat work time, while the teacher conducted the regular basal reading instruction. Pretests and posttests were administered using alternate forms of the Gates Mac Ginitie Comprehension Test Level D. The main statistical analysis concerned comparison of mean scores for both groups. Statistical significance was evaluated by the t test. The comprehension achievement of the top 27 percent and the bottom 27 percent of the pupils tested was also analyzed. All analyses showed no statistical significance at the .05 level between the means of the supplementary comprehension group and the supplementary vocabulary group. Also, no statistical significance could be established between the means of the high scoring pupils nor between the means of the low scoring pupils. (Author/WR)