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The report of the U.S. National Reading Panel identified oral reading as a method for developing reading skills and improving achievement. The authors explore the role of oral reading in instructional practice, primarily among young children who struggle in reading. They examine current research and theory in oral reading, and comment on implications for classroom practice.

S Reading teacher education in the next millennium: What your Grandmother's teacher didn't know that your granddaughter's teacher should The preparation of teachers in the area of reading education is a primary concern of those who seek to improve reading achievement in schools. The challenges of the next millennium will make teacher preparation even more of an issue. Changes in the nature of literacy itself, changes in the diversity of our student population, and changes in the occupational characteristics of teaching are part of the near future. Research in the area of teacher preparation has been limited. We summarize the research in teacher preparation and argue that a great deal is known about the training of teachers but much less about the teaching of teachers. It is the latter that must occupy our attention if we are to prepare future teachers for the changing landscape of reading education. We review research in the areas of training and teaching of teachers and point toward promising practices in the area of teaching teachers. These promising practices emphasize such features as inquiry and reflection and we argue that there are political forces that privilege a training model for the preparation of teachers and that the emphasis on teaching teachers will be difficult. We conclude with recommendations for a research agenda in reading teacher education that is based on our analysis of the status quo. La formación de los docentes de lectura en el próximo milenio: Lo que la maestra de tu abuela no sabía y la maestra de tu nieta debe saber LA FORMACIÓN docente en el área de enseñanza de la lectura es una preocupación fundamental de aquellos que buscan mejorar el desempeño en lectura en las escuelas. Los desafíos del próximo milenio harán que la formación docente sea un tema muy importante. Cambios en la naturaleza de la alfabetización, cambios en la diversidad de la población de estudiantes y cambios en las características laborales de la docencia son parte del futuro cercano. La investigación en el área de formación docente ha sido limitada. Resumimos la investigación en formación docente y argumentamos que se sabe mucho sobre el entrenamiento docente y poco sobre enseñar a los docentes. Esta última cuestión es la que debe ocupar nuestra atención si el objetivo es preparar futuros docentes para el terreno cambiante de la enseñanza de la lectura. Revisamos investigaciones en las áreas de entrenamiento y enseñanza a los docentes y señalamos prácticas prometedoras en la enseñanza de los docentes. Estas prácticas enfatizan rasgos tales como la investigación y la reflexión. Asimismo argumentamos que hay fuerzas políticas que privilegian un modelo de entrenamiento para la formación docente y que poner el énfasis en la enseñanza será difícil. Concluimos con recomendaciones para una agenda de investigación en la formación de docentes en lectura basada en nuestro análisis del estado de la cuestión. Lehrerausbildung im Lesen im nächsten Jahrtausend: Was der Lehrer Ihrer Großmutter nicht wußte, das sollte der...

S This study was a modified replication of Austin and Morrison's classic 1963 study of the status of U.S. public school elementary reading instruction, The First R: The Harvard Report on Reading in Elementary Schools. Surveys modeled after those used in The First R were distributed to a national sample of elementary classroom teachers, building administrators, and district administrators. Results reveal some similarities between reading instruction in the 1960s and today. Teachers of today and yesterday both (a) work with self‐contained, heterogeneously assigned classes; (b) dedicate significant time for reading instruction; (c) provide explicit instruction in phonic analysis; (d) are not overly satisfied with their preservice training in reading instruction; (e) administer mandated standardized tests; and (f) report accommodating struggling or underachieving readers as their greatest challenge. Important differences are also noted. Teachers today have more professional training than peers of the past, and they adopt a balanced, eclectic perspective, in contrast to a strong skillsbased emphasis in the past. The three‐group reading plan has been replaced by considerable whole‐class instruction, and programs using both basals and trade books are the norm now compared to the exclusive reliance on basals in the 1960s. An emergent literacy perspective has replaced a reading readiness view, synthetic phonics has supplanted analytic phonics, and alternative reading assessments are in regular use today. School and classroom libraries in the 1990s are more prevalent and better equipped, and changes in programs and philosophy are common today, unlike the static state of reading instruction in the 1960s. Este estudio es una versión modificada del estudio clásico de Morrison de 1963, El Primer R: Informe Harvard acerca de la Lectura en la Escuela Elemental, acerca de la situación de la enseñanza de la lectura inicial en la escuela pública de los Estados Unidos. Se distribuyeron encuestas diseñadas en base a las del Primer R a una muestra nacional de docentes de grados iniciales, administradores de escuelas y administradores de distritos. Los resultados revelan algunas similitudes entre la enseñanza de la lectura en los años 60 y en la actualidad. Tanto los docentes de hoy como los de ayer: (a) trabajan con cursos cerrados asignados en forma heterogénea, (b) dedican un tiempo significativo a la enseñanza de la lectura, (c) proporcionan enseñanza explícita de análisis fónico, (d) no están enteramente satisfechos con su capacitación previa en enseñanza de la lectura, (e) administran tests estandarizados y (f) informan que el mayor desafío es nivelar a los lectores de bajo desempeño. También se hallaron importantes diferencias. Los docentes de hoy tienen más capacitación profesional que sus pares del pasado y adoptan una perspectiva ecléctica balanceada, en contraste con el énfasis en el desarrollo de habilidades, típico del pasado. El plan de lectura en tres grupos ha sido reemplazado por la enseñanza que involucra a to...

The authors examine the first-grade materials in five new basal programs submitted for the 1993 Texas state adoption.1 These series are compared with program materials currently in use in the state (copyright 1986/1987). The analysis focuses on features of the pupil texts (e.g., total number of words, number of unique words, readability levels, literary quality) and features of the teachers' editions (e.g., program design, organization, tone). Results of the analysis indicate substantial changes in the more recent series. The findings are interpreted in terms of historical trends as well as recent developments in the literature-based and whole-language movements. Implications for future research are identified that relate to the study of the implementation and effects of these new programs.Publishers of educational materials have played a significant role in American reading instruction since the early seventeenth century (Smith, 1965). The days of a single dominant material/program like Webster's "blue-back" speller or McGuffy's readers are gone. Also gone are the days when a multitude of programs competed equally in the market place (e.g., Smith reported on 17 "new" programs in the period 1925-1935-a decrease from the previous period). Today, we find the national market dominated by just five or six basal programs. The shrinking number 1 One of the authors of this paper and codirector of the research project is an author for one of the basal programs included in the analysis. No portion of the research was supported by any publisher. Four publishers did provide copies of their materials for this review. We gratefully acknowledge their cooperation. 47 48Journal of Reading Behavior of competitors is not surprising given the current costs of program developmentconservatively estimated at over 40 million dollars (Goodman, 1989). The competition among publishers for a share of the estimated 400-million-dollar annual market sales (Goodman, 1989) is incredibly intense. These publishers must anticipate changes in teaching practices if they are to remain viable; they must walk the fine line between not offering a product that is so new and different that it appeals only to the high "risk-takers" and something that is so conservative and traditional that it is viewed as outdated. In the past, the safe position for most of the successful publishers has been to take a rather conservative stance toward change. Those who have examined the history of basal readers point toward their resistance to innovative ideas (e.g., Chall 1983;Venezky, 1987;Shannon, 1989). Basal systems have been a strong force in sustaining the status quo by offering teachers materials that encourage them to continue to do what traditional teachers have done in the past with only the slightest modifications.This conservative stance may be a thing of the past. Recent changes in the market place have driven publishers to assume a rather different philosophy and direction toward product development. Classroom teachers are taking a much more active...