| The purpose of this study was to assess the validity of a researcher-developed procedure designed to analyze the structure explicitness of comparison/contrast-patterned expository text.;The design of the procedure focused on expository text which reflected a comparison/contrast pattern as an overall organizational theme. The procedure yielded a measure of a text's structure explicitness, which represented the degree to which structure is obvious to a reader, and a profile of individual structural features, which were organized into three levels: macrostructure, mesostructure, and microstructure. Each structural feature was assigned a point value, and evidence of each feature in a text resulted in a score. The cumulative value of all structural features yielded a measure of structure explicitness.;To collect data about procedure validity, 18 comparison/contrast-patterned analysis passages were identified from a review of nine social studies textbooks. Application of the procedure by this researcher to these passages provided data with respect overall structure explicitness, structural levels, and individual structural features. Additional methods included: a review of the procedure by three expository text structure authorities; rating of passages into three structure explicitness categories by three expert readers; comparison of the procedure to Meyer's (1975) expository text structure procedure; and application of the procedure by expert readers.;Analysis of the data showed that the procedure effectively identified the overall structure explicitness of comparison/contrast-patterned texts, and described the structural dimensions of texts at the macrostructure, mesostructure, and microstructure levels. Further procedure validity was established through authorities' reviews and experts' ratings. Finally, the reliability of procedure use by independent evaluators was established through high reliability coefficients.;Results suggested three purposes for procedure use. First, the procedure could be used by researchers and classroom practitioners to assess the overall structure of comparison/contrast-patterned expository text. Second, researchers, classroom practitioners, and textbook editors could employ the procedure to analyze specific structural strengths and weaknesses of expository text. Third, the procedure may offer criteria for authors and editors regarding effective composition of expository text. |
