Do children read words better in context or in lists? A classic study revisited.

The present study replicated the classic Goodman (1965) study, which found that children's reading accuracy improved 60%-80 % in context, in comparison with a list. In the 1st experiment, 100 children read words in context, then in lists. In the 2nd experiment, 97 children read words in lists, then in context (the testing order used in the classic study). The results showed that the poor readers and the 6- and 7-year old average readers showed statistically reliable context gains in both experiments. However, the 6-year-old good readers and the 8-year-old average readers only gained reliably with context in the 2nd experiment. The 7-year-old good readers did not gain reliably with context in either experiment. The 8-year-old good readers made no reliable context gains in the 2nd experiment but gained reliably with the list in the 1st experiment. It was concluded that the classic study gave an overly optimistic impression of the benefits of context, especially with regard to good readers. The aim of this study was to reevaluate the research carried out by Goodman (1965), in which it was found that children made 60%-80 % fewer errors when reading words in context, as compared with reading words in an isolated list. This study