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RESEARCH INTERESTS
I study learning, reading, and decision-making across the life span. The overall thrust of my research focuses on how learners of various ages and aptitudes attempt to understand the underlying, critical, or “big” ideas in text or everyday problems. I am particularly interested in improving the reading comprehension of readers from 9 to 90+ years of age by helping them to strategically use text structure and organize ideas. At Penn State, we completed a 5-year project funded by the National Institute on Aging to study factors and conditions that produce optimal reading comprehension and retrieval of readers across the adult life span (18 to 85 year-olds). In a number of studies, we have taught adults a reading strategy focusing on using the structure in text (the structure or plan strategy) to improve their reading comprehension. This 9-hour training program has shown dramatic increases in learning from text for a variety of different types of adult learners from young college students to retired adults. We also examined this training with a group of older African American readers (many with only 8 years of formal schooling) and found promising gains in reading performance.

An interdisciplinary project related to this work studied the effects of an intergenerational tutoring on the well being of participants and their literacy. A cadre of tutors in their retirement years was trained with our reading comprehension strategy. Then, they used the Internet to tutor fifth-grade students the structure strategy to improve reading comprehension. The study can be seen in the 2002 Journal of Educational Psychology article listed under publications.

Currently, I am the Principal Investigator on a grant entitled Intelligent Tutoring Using the Structure Strategy to Improve Reading Comprehension of Middle School Students. This grant is funded by the Institute of Education Sciences in the U.S. Department of Education (duration: 8/15/03 -8/14/06; funding: $1,266,018). Schools are struggling with the task of improving reading comprehension among students. Some students fail to succeed in tasks such as identifying main ideas from expository text and giving cohesive and complete accounts of what they read because of how they read. We are seeking to address the national reading comprehension problem by creating a web-based intelligent tutoring system to help fifth through seventh grade students learn and use the structure strategy. My Penn State co-investigators on this project include Kay Wijekumar, assistant professor of information sciences and technology; Wendy Middlemiss, associate professor of human development; and Barbara Van Horn, co-director of the Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy and the Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy. This project has developed a computer program to serve as an intelligent tutor and is based in part on past tutoring interactions involving retired community participants who tutored fifth-grade students in the structure strategy on the Internet (described above).

Intelligent Tutoring Using the Structure Strategy (ITSS) has substantially increased the reading comprehension of 5th and 7th grade students as measured by both experimenter-designed tests and a standardized reading comprehension test. For example, after 6 months of instruction (twice a week for 40 minutes) struggling 7th grade readers (bottom 1/3 in reading comprehension skills) showed effect size improvements over 1 and grade level improvements on average of 2 1/2 grades. More information on the ITSS project is available at http://itss.br.psu.edu/

Another current project involves studying how people understand and use information from various sources to make important decisions. The work on decision-making has focused on health issues as can be seen in the 1995 Psychology and Aging article listed under publications. We have a number of current projects further investigating medical decision making.

 

TEACHING INTERESTS
Some information about courses I teach and links to course materials are found below.

Course	Description	Links
EDPSY 475 Introduction to Educational Research	Scientific method; classes of variables in educational research; the measurement of classroom behavior; survey, predictive, and experimental studies. Prerequisite: EDPSY 400	Angel
EDPSY 513 Individual and Group Differences	Description, causes, and interpretation of individual variation over the life- span, with application to school and institutional practices. Prerequisite: EDPSY 400 or EDPSY 450	Angel
EDPSY 527 Psychology of Adult Learners	Psychological principles related to learning by adults, with application to instruction and other educational practices. Prerequisite: EDPSY 421	Angel
EDPSY 575 Seminar in EDPSY (Grant Writing)	A seminar dealing with specific topics in educational psychology. Open to advanced students in the behavioral sciences.	no links

I also teach a course in Discourse Analysis, EDPSY 597, that is offered from time to time. Please check with me about when it is being offered or consult the schedule of classes.

 

SELECT PUBLICATIONS
Wijekumar, K., Meyer, B. J. F., Ferguson, L., & Wagoner, D. (in press). Technology affordances: The “real story” in research with K-12 and undergraduate learners. British Journal of Educational Technology: Special Issue on Technology Effects.

Wijekumar, K., & Meyer, B. J. F. (in press). Design and pilot of a web-based intelligent tutoring system to improve reading comprehension in middle school students. Journal of Computers in Schools: Special Issue on Intelligent Agents in Education.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Wijekumar, K. (in press). Web-based tutoring of the structure strategy: Theoretical background, deisgn, and findings. In D. S. McNamara (Ed.), Reading Comprehension Strategies: Theories, Interventions, and Technologies. Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Pollard, C. (2006). Applied learning and aging: A closer look at reading comprehension. In J. E. Birren & K. Warner Schaie (Eds.), Handbook of the Psychology of Aging (6th ed.). Elsevier.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Poon, L. W. (2004). Effects of structure strategy training and signaling on recall of text. In R. B. Ruddell & N. J. Unrau (Eds.), Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading (5th ed., pp. 810-851). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Middlemiss, W., & Meyer, B. J. F. (2004). Introducing an intergenerational, internet-based tutoring program, meeting program challenges. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 2, 7-25.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Pollard, C. A. (2003). [Review of] Perspective on human memory and cognitive aging: Essays in honor of Fergus Craik. Contemporary Gerontology, 9(4), 199-201.

Meyer, B. J. F. (2003). Text coherence and readability. Topics in Language Disorders, 23, 204-221.

Meyer, B. J. F., Middlemiss, W., Theodorou, Brezinski, K. L., McDougall, J., & Bartlett, B. J. (2002). Effects of structure strategy instruction delivered to fifth-grade children via the internet with and without the aid of older adult tutors. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94, 486-519.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Poon, L. W. ( 2001). Effects of structure strategy training and signaling on recall of text. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 141-159.

Meyer, B. J. F., Talbot, A. P., Poon, L. W., Johnson, M. M. (2001). Effects of structure strategy instruction on text recall in older African American adults. In J. L. Harris, A. Kamhi, & K. Pollock (Eds.), Literacy in African American communities (pp. 233-263). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F., Talbot, A. P., & Florencio, D. (1999). Reading rate and prose retrieval. Scientific Studies of Reading, 3, 303-329.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1999). The Importance of text structure in everyday reading. In A. Ram & K. Moorman (Eds.), Understanding language understanding: Computational models of reading (pp. 227-252). MIT Press.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Talbot, A. P. (1998). Adult age differences in reading and remembering text and using this information to make decisions in everyday life. In M. C. Smith & T. Pourchot (Eds.), Adult learning and development: Perspectives from educational psychology (pp. 179-200). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F., Talbot, A. P., Stubblefield, R. A., & Poon, L. W. (1998). Interest and strategies of young and old readers differentially interact with characteristics of texts. Educational Gerontology, 24, 747-771.

Johnson, M. M., Elsner, R. J. F., Poon, l. W., Meyer, B. J. F., Yang, B., Smith, G., Noble, C. A., Talbort, A. P., Hetrick, C. J., Stubblefield, R. A., Puskar, D., Edmondson, J., & Shaffer, S. C. (1997). Building a model to test the capacity-speed hypotheses. In C. A. Noble & R. J. F. Elsner (Eds.), An odyssey in aging (pp. 123-141). Athens, GA: University of Georgia Gerontology Center.

Elsner, R. J. F., Johnson, M., Poon, L. W., & Meyer, B. J. F. (1997). Comparison of linear structural equation models and their implications for prose reading retention. In C. A. Noble & R. J. F. Elsner (Eds.), An odyssey in aging (pp. 143-153). Athens, GA: University of Georgia Gerontology Center.

Poon, L. W., Meyer, B. J. F., Johnson, M. M., Elsner, R. J. F. Talbot, A. P., & Hetrick, C. J. (1997). A conceptual introduction: Understanding the contributions of working memory capacity and processing speed in prose memory for young and older adults. In C. A. Noble & R. J. F. Elsner (Eds.), An odyssey in aging (pp. 111-122). Athens, GA: University of Georgia Gerontology Center.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Poon, L. W. (1997). Age differences in efficiency of reading comprehension from printed versus computer-displayed text. Educational Gerontology, 23, 789-807.

Deegan, D. H., Salisbury, J. D., & Meyer, B. J. F. (1997). Curricular decision-making in the first year of medical education: What can it tell us? Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 9, 103-110.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1996). Review of J. Sinnott's Interdisciplinary handbook of lifespan learning. Contemporary Gerontology, 3(1), 31-33.

Meyer, B. J. F., Russo, C., & Talbot, A. (1995). Discourse comprehension and problem solving in an ill-structured domain: Decision about the treatment of breast cancer by women across the life span. Psychology and Aging, 10, 84-103.

Meyer, B. J. F., Marsiske, M., & Willis, S. L. (1993). Text processing variables predict the readability of everyday documents read by older adults. Reading Research Quarterly, 28(1), 235-249.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1992). An analysis of a plea for money. In W. C. Mann & S. A. Thompson (Eds.), Discourse description: Diverse linguistic analyses of a fund raising text (pp. 79-108). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Meyer, B. J. F., Young, C. J., & Bartlett, B. J. (1992). Reading comprehension and the use of text structure across the adult life span. In S. R. Yussen & M. C. Smith (Eds.), Reading across the life span. Springer-Verlag.

Rice, G. E., Meyer, B. J. F., & Miller, D. C. (1989). Using text structure to improve older adults' recall of important medical information. Educational Gerontology, 15, 527-542.

Meyer, B. J. F., Young, C. J., & Bartlett, B. J. (1989). Memory improved: enhanced reading comprehension and memory across the life span through strategic text structure. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Rice, G. E. (1989). Prose processing in adulthood: The text, the reader, and the task. In L. W. Poon, D. C. Rubin, & B. A. Wilson (Eds.), Everyday cognition in adulthood and later life (pp. 157-194). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Rice, G. E., Meyer, B. J. F., & Miller, D. C. (1988). Relation of everyday activities of adults to their prose recall performance. Educational Gerontology, 14, 147-158.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1987). Reading comprehension and aging. In K. W. Schaie (Ed.), Annual review of gerontology and geriatrics (V7, pp. 93-115). New York: Springer.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1987). Following the author's top-level structure: an important skill for reading comprehension. In R. Tierney, J. Mitchell & P. Anders (Eds.), Understanding readers' understanding. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Rice, G. E., & Meyer, B. J. F. (1986). Prose recall: Effects of aging, verbal ability, and reading behavior. Journal of Gerontology, 41, 469-480.

Rice, G. E., & Meyer, B. J. F. (1985). Reading behavior and prose recall performance of young and older adults with high and average verbal ability. Educational Gerontology, 11, 57-72.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1985). Signaling the structure of text. In D. H. Jonassen (Ed.), The technology of text (pp. 64-89). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Educational Technology.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1985). Prose analysis: Purposes, procedures, and problems. In B. K. Britton & J. Black (Eds.), Analyzing and understanding expository text (pp. 11-64, 269-304). Hillsdale,NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Rice, G. E. (1984). The structure of text. In P. D. Pearson (Ed.), Handbook on reading research (pp. 319-352). New York: Longman.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Freedle, R. O. (1984). Effects of discourse type on recall. American Educational Research Journal, 21, 121-143.

Meyer, B. (1984). Organizational aspects of text: Effects on reading comprehension and applications for the classroom. In J. Flood (Ed.), Promoting reading comprehension. Newark, DE: International Reading.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1984). Text dimensions and cognitive processing. In H. Mandl, N. Stein, & T. Trabasso (Eds.), Learning and understanding texts. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Rice, G. E. (1983). Learning and memory from text across the adult life span. In J. Fine & R. O. Freedle (Eds.), Developmental studies in discourse (pp. 291-306). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1983). Text structure and its use in studying comprehension across the adult life span. In B. A. Hutson (Ed.), Advances in reading/language, V1. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.

Britton, B. K., Glynn, S., Meyer, B. J. F., & Penland, M. (1982). Use of cognitive capacity in reading text: Effects of variations in surface features of text with underlying meaning held constant. Journal of Educational Psychology, 73, 51-61.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Rice, G. E. (1982). The interaction of reader strategies and the organization of text. Text, Interdisciplinary Journal for the Study of Discourse, 2, 155-192.

Meyer, B. J. F., & Rice, G. E. (1981). Information recalled from prose by young, middle, and old adult readers. Experimental Aging Research, 7, 253-268.

Walker, C. H., & Meyer, B. J. F. (1980). Integrating different types of information in text. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 19, 263-275.

Meyer, B. J. F., Brandt, D. M., & Bluth, G. J. (1980). Use of the top-level structure in text: key for reading comprehension of ninth-grade students. Reading Research Quarterly, 16, 72-103.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1977). The structure of prose: effects on learning and memory and implications for educational practice. In R. C. Anderson, R. Spiro & W. Montague (Eds.), Schooling and the acquisition of knowledge (pp. 179-200). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, B. J. F. (1975). The organization of prose and its effects on memory. Amsterdam: North-Holland.

Meyer, B. J. F., & McConkie, G. W. (1973). What is recalled after hearing a passage? Journal of Educational Psychology, 65, 109-117.