THEORIES OF READING AND IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHERS

When reading current research, one is overwhelmed by the proliferation of "new " theories of the reading process. The purpose of this paper is to present the prevailing theories of reading comprehension, to ex-amine their similarities and differences, and determine whether they are distinctly different or represent a general theory of cognitive development specifically applied to reading. SKILLS MODEL The traditional definition of reading comprehension as it is interpreted by the authors and writers of basal readers and literature anthologies, results in the teaching of reading through "separately defined" comprehension skills, and could be called a "skills model. " Skills, separately taught in a logical and se