Progress in Understanding Reading: Scientific Foundations and New Frontiers

The last 25 years have seen tremendous advances in the study of psychological processes in reading. Our growing body of knowledge on the reading process and reading acquisition has applications to such important problems as the prevention of reading difficulties and the identification of effective instructional practices. This volume summarizes the gains that have been made in key areas of reading research and provides authoritative insights on current controversies and debates. From one of the most accomplished and widely cited scholars in the field, the volume is divided into seven parts. Each part begins with a new introductory chapter presenting up-to-date findings on the topic at hand, followed by one or more classic papers from the author's exemplary research program. Significant issues covered include phonological processes and context effects in reading, the "reading wars" and how they should be resolved, the meaning of the term "dyslexia," and the cognitive effects and benefits of reading.

 

Keith E. Stanovich, PhD, is currently Professor of Human Development and Applied Psychology at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. He is the only two-time winner of the Albert J. Harris Award from the International Reading Association for influential articles on reading. In 1995 he was elected to the Reading Hall of Fame as the youngest member of that honorary society. In 1996 he was given the Oscar Causey Award from the National Reading Conference for contributions to research, and in 1997 he was given the Sylvia Scribner Award from the American Educational Research Association. Stanovich is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (Divisions 3 & 15), the American Psychological Society, and the International Academy for Research in Learning Disabilities, and is a Charter Member of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading. He was a member of the Committee on the Prevention of Reading Difficulties in Young Children of National Research Council/National Academy of Sciences. He is the author or editor of two previous books.