Some Models of the Reading Process: Learners and Skilled Readers

READING IS A cognitive process involving most of the brain functions: sensory, motor, language, attention, expectancy, coding, categorization, comprehension, selection, and the various kinds of memory. The process is discussed in terms of models, begining with the acquisition of meaning, language and reading skill by the child, and then examining skilled reading. Special emphasis is laid on visual memory, and on the three processes of matching, coding, and modeling. Feedback from long-term memory is an essential part of each process. The written word is first matched to a stored visual pattern, then coded into speech motor programs, and finally comprehended by comparison with mental models.