The Clever Kid's Reading Program: Metacognition and Reciprocal Teaching.

This study assessed the effectiveness of a metacognitive and reciprocal teaching approach for improving the word identification and reading comprehension skills of upper primary poor readers in a regular classroom situation. To improve word identification skills, experimental subjects were given metacognitive training in the analysis and monitoring of word identification strategies. Reciprocal teaching procedures, incorporating the above word identification strategies, were used for comprehension training. Subjects in the experimental condition received the combined metacognitive word identification and reciprocal teaching program. Subjects in two control conditions received either normal classroom word study and comprehension activities or reciprocal teaching of comprehension combined with traditional methods for identifying unfamiliar words. Measures of improvements in word identification, metacognitive awareness and monitoring of word identification strategies, and comprehension were taken on several occasions during the study. Results indicated that a combination of metacognitive word identification strategies and reciprocal teaching of comprehension was clearly more effective than normal classroom word study and comprehension activities or reciprocal teaching of comprehension with traditional methods of word identification. Results also indicated that a classroom-based model of implementation appears to be more successful when teachers have responsibility for its implementation from the beginning. The implications of these findings for classroom practice are discussed, along with the limitations of the study and suggestions for further research. (Contains approximately 150 references, and 6 tables and 5 figures of data.) (Author/RS)