Understanding Rigor in Reading: Text Complexity and Supported Struggle

Text Complexity Factors 2 HUMAN RATED Levels of meaning Structure Language conventionality Clarity Knowledge demands COMPUTER SCORED Word length Word frequency Sentence length Text Cohesion Co-Metrix and Lexiles READER Motivation Knowledge Experiences TASK Purpose/Context Complexity Questions Posed Common Core Standards

What makes a text difficult? (Turn and talk…) – Writing style (formality, genre, historical time, language, literature features) – Content (vocabulary; assumptions about prior knowledge) – Text Structure: arrangement of ideas (narrative/expos) – Coherence: logical connections & explained – Sentence Complexity (coreference/coherence) – Unity: sticks to the topic – Audience Appropriateness: match target reader PK – Themes and Ideas: easy texts, but big ideas – Purpose (for pleasure or to analyze) 3

Determining Appropriate Leveled Texts for Readers… Goldilocks Method – 5 fingers, too hard Oral reading (decode vs. comprehend) but…

Understanding readability The estimated reading level is “the break-off point” (or a student’s limit)! Readability formulas are linked to a 50% correct answer score on a comprehension test (Johnson, 2005). So, if a book has a reading level of 14 years, an average 14-year old pupil would score only 50% on a test of comprehension! For a student to read independently (without help, but with comprehension), the reading level of the text should be 2 years below the students’ reading level!

What are some more formal ways of determining/calculating readability?? TURN AND TALK

How is readability determined? Word difficulty is determined by… COUNTYING SYLLABLES Fry Readability: sentence length & syllables [Grades 1- 12] [Do this by hand] Flesh-Kinkaid: sentence length & syllables [How many years of schooling to understand the content … 0-12] - Use Microsoft Word (Tools: Options: Spelling) Gunning-Fox Index: sentence length & difficult words (3 syllables) [How many years of schooling to understand the content…0-17] Juicy Studio’s Online Readability CalculatorOnline Readability Calculator WORD FREQUENCY/Commonness

Fry Readability Formula = # of sentences and # of syllables 8 ONLY CONSIDERS LIMITED TEXT FEATURES

Word Frequency: Lists of Frequently Used Words Dale Chall’s List of 3,000 Most Frequent Words – see the wiki Coxhead’s (2000) Academic Word List Get to later in vocabulary

Levels, Levels, Levels! “Zombies with Scripts”…. CCSS Appendix A

Lexile Level = sentence length and word frequency 12 CONSIDERS THE TEXT & THE READER

Appendix B List…So now what? The standards leave room for teachers, curriculum developers, and states to determine How those goals should be reached and what additional topics should be addressed. Teachers are free to provide students with whatever tools and knowledge their professional judgment and experience identify as most helpful for meeting goals set In the Standards.

14 So why is this a little scary?? Standard #10: Text Complexity Common Core Standards Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently

Text Complexity Factors 15 HUMAN RATED Levels of meaning Structure Language conventionality Clarity Knowledge demands COMPUTER SCORED Word length Word frequency Sentence length Text Cohesion Co-Metrix and Lexiles READER Motivation Knowledge Experiences TASK Purpose/Context Complexity Questions Posed Common Core Standards Considers Teacher, text, reader, & task/context

Students should read challenging texts in their content area on a regular basis(small groups – then large group) YES NO

What can you control? And how? NO – JUST BY SELECTION How can you design/change/scaffold the task? HUMAN RATED Levels of meaning Structure Language conventionality Clarity Knowledge demands COMPUTER SCORED Word length Word frequency Sentence length Text Cohesion Co-Metrix and Lexiles We’ll consider later…

The Case for Struggle? Struggle Alone vs. Struggle With Support Productive Failure (Ch 1, p. 11 ) = Supported Struggle – Role of “easy” texts with big, complex ideas – Role of guided high-level questioning before, during, and after reading – Role of conversation/dialogue during re-readings – Role of summary, synthesis, transformation

Noticing Good Teaching What are ten effective teaching techniques that Ms. Chin uses that foster “supported struggle” with a complex text?

10 Effective Teaching Techniques for Supported Struggle 1.Pre-read with authentic purpose (character change) 2.Pre: Provide organizer (Beginning, middle, end) 3.During: Read hard text indep. for purpose (get familiar with character, language, and how change) 4.During: (Time 1) Annotate and note author craft 5.After: (Time 1) Dialogue/conversation with evidence- based reasoning 6.During: (Time 2) Revisit purpose to analyze more closedly 7.During: (Time 2) Think-aloud (notice strategy links) 8.After: (Time 2) Discuss with text-dependent questions 9.After: Respond/Transform (Write/new dialogue) 10.Together: Use dialogues and writing as multiple forms of formative assessment (to prepare for PARRC test!)

Homework Fisher & Fry Ch. 3: Qualitative Measures Skim Appendix A& B of Common Core Writing Response: Discussion Web: – Accessible text doesn’t sacrifice rigor – 3 Agree, 3 Disagree – Then write your conclusion with supporting evidence (PLEASE DOWNLOAD & TYPE) Optional: Video (Simplifying Text Complexity)