Reinforcement potency of children's reading materials.

Two related experiments investigated the reinforcement potency of children's reading materials. In Exp I, 96 3rd graders demonstrated a listening preference, overall, for heritage, contemporary, and McGuffey materials in that order. In Exp II, listening to tapes of the materials was used as a reward for correct responses on individualized reading exercises. 196 3rd graders were randomly assigned to 5 groups: 3 reinforcement groups, a no-listening control, and a no-intervention control. Listening served as a reinforcer. While individual preferences had an initial effect, the final measure showed the heritage literature to be the most potent, then contemporary, and then McGuffey. The heritage group performed significantly better on a standardized reading achievement test (Science Research Associates Primary II Reading Achievement Test, Forms F and E). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)