Continuing with the topic from my last post, there are
several other subject areas that the author delves into as far as what type of
reading is expected. Reading for
computer education is largely metaphorical. The meanings of some words are very obvious,
like the word mouse for the finger-operated cursor-control that looks a little
bit like the rodent. Others, such as
cookie, are more obscure. In science
text, we see a great deal of graphic information, such as tables and charts, as
well as photos and illustrations. However
because the text is inauthentic, it can be bland. Inauthentic text refers to text that has been
written to explain the subject to students in a particular grade level and not
to advance the field. A good thing about
this type of text is that it has been tailored to meet the reading needs of
school-aged kids. But a bad thing is
that it’s difficult to get students interested in straightforward facts devoid
of a point of view. Authentic text is a
primary source document. A primary research study in the medical field would be
an example of authentic text. Social studies tends to be like science in the
way that it uses mostly inauthentic text in secondary education although some
primary source articles have also been known to be used from time to time.
Benjamin breaks down the reading process even further in the
next few chapters. The first topic she
describes is, “Before reading strategies”.
To be a successful reader, one must establish a purpose for
reading. We can divide reading into
three categories based on purpose. These
include, skimming, scanning and close reading.
Skimming gives you an overview or a general idea of what the text is
about. Any kind of informational text
can be skimmed but fiction and poetry are not meant for this type of reading. The purpose for scanning is to look up or
locate specific information in order to answer a question. Close reading is what we do for reading comprehension
and it usually begins with skimming.
Skilled readers are used to knowing, before they begin, what they are
looking for in a text. Benjamin put
together a reader’s guide to prepare for reading, that includes these questions:
1.
What am I about to read?
2.
Approximately how long do I plan to spend
reading today?
3.
Approximately how many pages will I read today?
4.
What is my purpose? What am I looking for?
5.
What are my expectations?
She gives a great example of a mini-lesson to establish a
purpose for reading. A 10th
grade Biology class is supposed to read a passage about how the heart pumps
blood. The teacher in this case divided
the class up into three groups who each had a different purpose when reading
the passage. To achieve their goal,
group 1 had to read the whole passage carefully, group 2 had to scan for the
key words and group 3 had to scan for some specific words. She describes this as a worthwhile
expenditure of class time. I would have
to agree. I think group assignments
really help the students to comprehend the material.
References
Benjamin, Amy. But
I’m Not A Reading Teacher: Strategies for Literacy Instruction in the Content
Areas. Larchmont, NY. Eye on Education, 2007
Yes, “Skilled readers are used to knowing, before they begin, what they are looking for in a text.” I understand this statement in the context of the subject. Surprises can be beneficial and tangential thoughts may uncover new and helpful information.
ReplyDeleteTeaching kids to differentiate important information from non-essential info is one of the most important skills we can teach our kids. We have to start by defining our goal, before we read. We can get a lot out of any piece of literature, so if we don't tell the kids what it is that we are looking for, they won't know what to look for.
ReplyDeleteI like the 5 pre-reading questions. I also think group assignments work well as long as each group has specific tasks and are responsible for sharing their information with classmates and are willing to have a discussion about it.
ReplyDelete