Doctoral Dissertations

Date of Award

3-1982

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

Major

Curriculum and Instruction

Major Professor

J. Estill Alexander

Committee Members

John Peters, Brenda Kolker, Lester Knight

Abstract

A list of all reports of experimental research on college reading/study skills which have been published in American professional journals during the years from 1925-1980 was compiled. A total of 170 research reports were found in 31 journals.

Each study was categorized by reading/study skills topic. Of the total, 12 were placed in the category reading rate-flexibility; 3 in reading machines; 31 in teaching methods; 14 in test taking; 18 in note taking; 26 in textbook study methods; 10 in the categories of listening, materials and vocabulary; 4 in physical factors; 16 in comprehension; and 32 studies were categorized as utilizing more than one topic.

Marilyn Suydam's "An Instrument for Evaluating Experimental Education Research Reports" was tested for the reliability of raters using the instrument. 1 There was a high interrater reliability and there was no significant difference between the writer and the combined ratings of four professors who served as raters.

1 M. N. Suydam, "An Instrument for Evaluating Experimental Education Research Report," Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 61, January, 1968, pp. 200-203.

The research reports were rated using the Suydam instrument. Five of the reports were rated excellent; 60 very good; 72 good; 31 fair; and 2 reports were rated poor.

The major finding (s) or conclusions v/hich appeared consistent with the data were included with the analysis of each report. Also, information, when available, was included in the analysis of each report concerning design paradigm, statistical procedures and size, type of test(s) used, grade level, and duration.

Based on the findings of this study, it appears that (1) Familiarizing a student with subject material can tend to produce greater comprehension and retention; (2) The length of a passage may not be a critical factor when an instructor intends immediate recall; (3) Students who take notes while a speaker is lecturing tend to produce less accurate notes than students who make notes after a lecture; (4) Students who attend a reading/study skills class can benefit from the instruction; (5) Reading machines used in conjunction with other materials may have a place in a college reading program; (6) Students usually vary their note-taking procedures in light of the type of test anticipated.

Download
Files over 3MB may be slow to open. For best results, right-click and select "save as..."

Share

COinS