The Complexities of Reading Comprehension

What is Reading? Reading is an active and complex process that involves:  Understanding written text,  Developing and interpreting meaning, and  Using meaning as appropriate to type of text, purpose, and situation. (NAEP Framework, 2009) Reading is the single most important educational skill that students will learn. As students move up in grade levels, text demand significantly increases. 2 2

FCAT 2.0 Reading Grades 3-10 All multiple-choice items Increased content rigor — aligned to the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS) 3

FCAT 2.0 Reading: Examples of Increased Rigor Students will be asked more often to:  use reasonable prior knowledge, such as grade-appropriate vocabulary  make reasonable inferences that are not explicitly text-based  analyze information across a pair of texts, such as making comparisons of main ideas 4

Reading Reporting Categories Changing FCAT ReadingFCAT 2.0 Reading Words and Phrases in Context Vocabulary Main Idea, Plot, and PurposeReading Application Comparisons and Cause and Effect Literary Analysis: Fiction and Non Fiction Reference and ResearchInformational Text and Research Process 5

FCAT 2.0 Achievement Levels 6

Florida FY2011 Reading Comparing Percents in Level 3+ *Estimated percents at grades 8 and 9

9 An fMRI Study of Strategic Reading Comprehension While there have been neuro-imaging studies of text comprehension, little is known about the brain mechanisms underlying strategic learning from text. Up until recently, these studies have not examined the differences in brain activity associated with different reading strategies.

10

Reading Strategies Comprehension Monitoring: Being aware of how well you understand what you are reading. Paraphrasing: Stating the sentences in your own words. Prediction: Predicting what will come next in the text. Elaboration: Linking information in the sentence to information you already know. Bridging: Linking different parts of a text together. 11

12 The Percent Of Students Who Have Previously Scored A Level 3 Or Higher On FCAT Reading 2011 FCAT Results GradeOf Students Scoring Level 1 on the FCAT Reading, the Percent who have previously scored a Level 3 or higher in Reading Of Students Scoring Level 2 on the FCAT Reading, the Percent who have previously scored a Level 3 or higher in Reading

The Text Complexity: The Missing Standard 13

Common Core State Standards Text Complexity The Common Core State Standards places a strong emphasis on the role of text complexity in evaluating student readiness for college and careers. “The Common Core State Standards hinge on students encountering appropriately complex texts at each grade level in order to develop the mature language skills and the conceptual knowledge they need for success in school and life.” (p. 3) 14

Text Complexity Included within the Standards is an enhanced focus on text complexity. Specifically, within reading standard #10: Anchor Standard: R.CCR.10Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently. Example Grade-level Standard (6 th grade): RI.6.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range. 15

Guiding Questions What do the Common Core Learning Standards mean by text complexity? What is a text complexity band? and How do we ensure the texts our students are reading are in the appropriate text complexity band? 16

Text Complexity - ACT Study Purpose: Determine what distinguished the reading performance of students likely to succeed in college and not. Process:  Set benchmark score on the reading test shown to be predictive of success in college (“21” on ACT composite score).  Looked at results from a half million students. 17

Performance on the ACT Reading Test by Comprehension Level (Averaged across Seven Forms) 18

Performance on the ACT Reading Test by Textual Element ( Averaged across Seven Forms) 19

Text Complexity Matters Texts used in the ACT Reading Test reflect three degrees of complexity:  uncomplicated,  more challenging, and  complex. 20

21 Performance on the ACT Reading Test by Degree of Text Complexity (Averaged across Seven Forms) In this figure, performance on questions associated with uncomplicated and more challenging texts both above and below the ACT College Readiness Benchmark for Reading follows a pattern similar to those in the previous analyses. Improvement on each of the two kinds of questions is gradual and fairly uniform. 21

Recap of ACT Findings Question type and level (main idea, word meanings, details) is NOT the chief differentiator between student scoring above and below the benchmark. The degree of text complexity in the passages acted as the “sorters” within ACT. The findings held true for both males and females, all racial groups and was steady regardless of family income level. What students could read, in terms of its complexity--rather than what they could do with what they read—is greatest predictor of success. FCAT has complex passages and highly cognitive demanding questions. 22

Close Reading Past standards have been based largely upon theories of reading comprehension drawn from cognitive science. These theories have emphasized procedures or strategies that readers could use to guide their reading (e.g., summarization, questioning, monitoring, visualizing). The common core standards are also based upon theory, but literary theory not psychological theory. These standards depend heavily upon “New Criticism.”

Close Reading (cont.) Implications: Students need to engage in deep analysis of the text and its meaning and implications to a greater extent. Less emphasis on background information, comprehension strategies, picture walks, etc. (though these still can be brought in by teachers). Greater emphasis on careful reading of a text, weighing of author’s diction, grammar, and organization to make sense of the text. Rereading will play a greater role in teaching reading.

Close Reading Good readers engage in close reading to extract the most meaning from complex text. Close reading is a process that entails reading and rereading multiple times, each time with a different purpose and focus. Close reading is micro-reading. It is the attentive reading of a text. It is a finely detailed, very specific examination of a text. For some students, this examination may require teachers to break text into smaller segments. If the text is short, the entire text lends itself to a close read. If, however, the text is lengthy, the teacher may select specific text segments for a close read and then relate those segments to the whole work. 25

Close Reading - Implications Students will need to engage to a greater extent in deep analysis of the text and its meaning and implications. Less emphasis on background information, comprehension strategies, picture walks, etc. (though these still can be brought in by teachers) Greater emphasis on careful reading of a text, weighing of author’s diction, grammar, and organization to make sense of the text. Rereading will play a greater role in teaching reading.

Reader and Task Ten Guiding Principles 1.Make close reading and rereading of texts central to lessons. 2.Provide scaffolding that does not preempt or replace text. 3.Ask text dependent questions from a range of question types. 4.Emphasize students supporting answers based upon evidence from the text. 5.Provide extensive research and writing opportunities (claims and evidence). 27

Step 3: Reader and Task Ten Guiding Principles 6.Offer regular opportunities for students to share ideas, evidence, and research. 7.Offer systematic instruction in vocabulary. 8.Ensure wide reading from complex text that varies in length. 9. Provide explicit instruction in grammar and conventions. 10. Cultivate students’ independence. 28

Teaching Reading is Urgent A student at the 10 th percentile reads about 60,000 words a year in 5 th grade. A student at the 50 th percentile reads about 900,000 words a year in 5 th grade. Average students receive about 15 times as much practice in a year. (Anderson, Wilson, & Fielding, 1988 )

30