Synchronized Multimedia E-book Technology¿.

This is a research and development undertaking to demonstrate improvement in children's reading fluency and comprehension through sustained interaction with computer-based multimedia e-books. Critical design factors in the materials include phrasal parsing of text and synchronized diplay of that text with the prosodically rich oral reading of text. This project is undertaken by USteach, Inc., of Santa Cruz, CA, with research assistance from the Center for Educaitonal Technology and Learning at California State University, Long Beach. Dr. Robert Berdan is the principal investigator. Dr. Carol Lord is the senior scientist. Research will be conducted in three phases. The first will comprise a series of case studies of third grade children, taking closely their use and performance with the e-book materials for fifteen weeks. Data will be modeled with growth curve analysis to develop a model of fluency and comprehension change over time.