Comprehension Instruction: Research-Based Best Practices

Comprehension instruction is widely recognized as an essential component of developing students' pleasure and profit from reading. Yet despite significant recent gains in knowledge about how comprehension develops and how it can be taught effectively, classroom practice still lags behind research in this crucial area. This volume brings together the field's leading scholars to summarize current research and provide best-practice guidelines for teachers and teacher educators. Each coherently structured chapter presents key findings on a particular aspect of comprehension, discusses instructional practices supported by the research, and addresses what still needs to be known in order to provide the best possible comprehension instruction for every student. Topics covered include assessment, curriculum, methods, and comprehension difficulties, from the preschool level through high school.

Cathy Collins Block, PhD, has served on the graduate faculty of Texas Christian University since 1977. She has taught at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, served as Research Assistant at the Wisconsin Research and Development Center for Cognitive Development, and taught kindergarten through high school in private and public schools. Dr. Block has directed and served as principal investigator of six nationally funded research projects and has served on the boards of directors of a number of organizations, including the National Center for Research and Training for Learning Disabilities and the National Reading Conference.