Subject Area Reading...

In continuing my reading, I came across a chapter on academic genres or subject area reading.  The author pointed out that it used to be thought that reading is reading.  That if you can read one kind of text, you can read anything.  Most elementary age children are taught to read by using story text.   However there is a colossal difference between comprehending and retaining story text and informational text.  Furthermore, comprehension of informational text in each individual content field can be very different as well.  In the book, Benjamin goes through the kind of text and language a student is likely to see in each subject area. 

Math language is very domain-specific.  The terminology cannot be figured out through context.  The student must know mathematical definitions before reading them in the context of a mathematical expression or problem.  In math reading, the student will need to read a lot of definitions.  Most math writers use a passive voice structure.  For example, “the ball was thrown” rather than “the pitcher threw the ball”.  This is one reason why some students may struggle when reading math.  The active voice construction is much more accessible: Its meaning is more direct.  As teachers we need to understand how to flip passive voice into active voice in order to effectively teach math.  People tend to say, “You don’t read math text, you work math text”.  But it’s important to read math definitions in order to be able to effectively work math problems.  It’s also important to make sure the students understand the definitions before they are expected to use them.  It may be a good idea to look at the homework that is going to be assigned that day to make sure the class understands the terminology being used.  They need to know what the text is asking them to do. 

Reading for business is sort of a cross between reading form math and reading for social studies.  Business language uses a lot of words that take on a specific meaning, apart from their vernacular meaning.  Benjamin says that getting used to the jargon is part of domain-specific learning.  As novices, we’re tongue-tied, and need a lot of exposure and examples to acclimate to jargon.  I have had two very recent experiences with this.  Firstly, this class has required learning a lot of new terminology and giving new meanings to many of the words I had known to have other meanings.  Secondly, I just bought my first house and I struggled a lot with trying to learn all of the terms that come along with purchasing real estate.  Although eventually after hearing the words multiple times and having to understand the documents I was signing, I finally felt somewhat literate in real estate terminology. 

Benjamin talks a lot about tools and mini-lessons to help students learn to comprehend the different types of reading material.  But one of my favorites is the flowchart.  This is such a good assessment to check for comprehension because you have to know the material in order to make a proper flow-chart.  This tool can be used in any subject area and should be taken advantage of.  


References
Benjamin, Amy.  But I’m Not A Reading Teacher: Strategies for Literacy Instruction in the Content Areas.  Larchmont, NY.  Eye on Education, 2007