Oral and Non-Oral Methods of Teaching Reading 1

THE present experiment is a replication of an earlier study by McNeil and Keislar (5) in which oral and non-oral methods of teaching read ing were investigated utilizing an autoinstructional device. In the present de sign, the procedures are similar to the earlier study but the conditions and materials are more akin to current classroom instruction; some changes were necessary in the transition from a mechanical instrument for instruction to conventional schoolroom materials. It was the purpose of the present study to determine whether oral re sponding during instruction in reading, in contrast to responding without overt speech, facilitates silent reading as measured by recognition and under standing of written words and sentences. This experiment was carried on at the kindergarten level under closely con-