EDBED 2006 Language and Literacy in the Primary Years
Assessment one Comprehension Strategies The following essay discusses the use comprehension strategies and how they can be managed within a primary classroom setting. Citing the Victorian Curriculum and reading comprehension theories, this essay will explore the research, benefits and application of two different strategies, predicting and summarising. Throughout the discussion the application of the chosen comprehension strategies within a level 2 classroom will be introduced, offering strategies and activities for implementation. Reading makes use of many different skills at the same time, readers must decode, translate, recognise and then comprehend (Berk, 2013). Comprehension refers to the ability to understand and make meaning from written text using the information to create perspective (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl, & Holliday, 2014). It can be argued that comprehension is a difficult skill to master, however the results of this for good readers are both satisfying and productive (Duke, & Pearson, 2008). Comprehension strategies are the approaches readers use develop their comprehension skills (NSW Department of Education and Training Literacy Continuum, 2010). Once a reader is able to comprehend the words on the page, the text becomes more enjoyable, with the use of different strategies comprehension becomes achievable (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl, & Holliday, 2014). Good readers understand the meaning of the text they are reading. This begins from a young age with informal texts. Children learn to understand what is happening in the text even before they can read themselves. Text refers to the way the information is being presented to students, this could be print, digital or live (performance) texts, these text will often be multimodal texts. Multimodal texts are texts that use two or more forms of communication to help the reader gather meaning (Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, 2016). Regardless of the way the text is presented the students must find a way to create meaning from these. Comprehension strategies support readers to understand the different types of text. Teachers use many different strategies to convey the meaning of the text to the students, this can include read aloud, predicting what they thing will happen using the cues on the page, for example pictures, questioning and clarifying the unknown (Fellows and Oakley, 2010). According to Duke and Pearson (2008) reading comprehension comes with the collaboration of explicit instruction and the use of [1]
Lauren Kennedy 30125179
EDBED 2006 Language and Literacy in the Primary Years Assessment one comprehension strategies, this is referred to as a balance comprehension instruction. Research has also found links between students fluency and their comprehension, the easier the student can read the words on the page, it is said they will be more likely to be able to comprehend what they are reading (Berk, 2013). The Victorian curriculum outlines that by then end of level two students are able to Use comprehension strategies to build literal and inferred meaning and begin to analyse texts by drawing on growing knowledge of context, language and visual features and print and multimodal text structures (Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, 2016). To achieve this strand students will be given strategies to make connections between a text and their own lives, make connections between print and images, use their vocabulary to build on prior knowledge and make inferences from the text based on their own prior knowledge. From these strategies students will be able to predict, ask and answer questions as they read, summarise and review meaning (VCAA, 2016). This curriculum provides a framework for teachers, instructing them of what students should be learning at each level, how it does not explain how this should be taught, which allows teachers to create their own lessons for individual groups of students. This is important as children learn differently. Different learning styles can be accounted for through lesson and unit planning, offering a range of activities to support students of all levels (Berk, 2013). Summarising is one strategy that can be used to help develop students comprehension skills. Creating a summary requires students to find the main ideas of a text (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl, & Holliday, 2014). This shows a student has comprehended what they have read. This is particularly relevant in the grade two classroom it is outline as a strand within the curriculum for this year level. Luke and Freebodys four resources model outlines that students develop the ability to break the codes within a text, decoding words and creating meaning. Students are text participators creating meaning from the text in a functional manner (1999). Explaining concepts in ones own words is way of demonstrating comprehension (Berk, 2013). To implement this in a classroom setting, prevalent research suggests that is important to give explicit instruction and a demonstration of the task. Modelling tasks offers students the opportunity to see what it is that is required of them, allowing for a [2]
Lauren Kennedy 30125179
EDBED 2006 Language and Literacy in the Primary Years Assessment one gradual release of responsibility (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl, & Holliday, 2014). This offers support to all students within the class as they are able to see a physical demonstration of the skill before putting it into practise for themselves. Within the grade two classroom demonstrating the skill of summarising using a familiar text would help students to pick up on the main points, using phrases such as need to know and nice to know helps students distinguish what the core ideas of the story might be. This tool can be used in the English classroom and beyond. Comprehension and employing different comprehension strategies is not just limited the English domain. Leopold and Leutner (2009), conducted research into how summarising can be successfully applied within the science classroom. They found a positive correlation between students understanding complicated science texts by applying the strategy of summarising to the science classroom. Summarising as a strategy for reading comprehension has been researched in different classrooms around the world. A recent study of Iranian students found that summarising and presentation had a positive effect promoting students reading comprehension abilities (Khoshsima, & Tiyar, 2014). Comprehension will often reflect a students prior knowledge about the topic, experience, genre etc. knowing students backgrounds can help teachers to implement teaching strategies that complement the students learning style and the knowledge and skills they already bring to the topic (Mills, 2009) . Prediction is a device for teachers to identify what level of prior knowledge the student has about a topic. Prediction is the ability of considering what might happen? This extends the students ability to comprehend what is happening in the story as well as gives the teacher some information about the students prior understanding. Students will gather their prior knowledge from what they already know about the world and from previous books that they have read. It is helpful for teachers to draw reference to the type of text, supporting students to draw on their knowledge of what to expect from this particular text type (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl, & Holliday, 2014). The cue system plays a role in effective prediction, this is when the reader gathers evidence from all of the information supplied and used this to construct meaning. The strategy of prediction can be used prior to reading the book, using the visual [3]
Lauren Kennedy 30125179
EDBED 2006 Language and Literacy in the Primary Years Assessment one cues, such as title, layout and pictures of the book to guess what this story may be about and what might happen. It could also be used throughout the story, where students are asked what they think may happen next. Readers predicting what is going to happen shows an understanding of what has happened so far developing the readers understanding of the book. The reader will then have the opportunity to confirm the meaning by continuing to read. If the reader finds they were off track with their prediction they can go back to where this misunderstanding may have developed and reread those pages to help develop connections between the text and its meaning (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl, & Holliday, 2014). Predictability within familiar can create a pleasant learning experience within the grade two classroom. Knowing the layout of a narrative for example will help students make predictions if they understand, there will be a problem and a solution within the story. This can be linked back to the summarising strategy, where you discuss the problem and the solution within particular stories. This relates to Luke and Freebodys (1999) four resources model, linking to the meaning maker and text user components of the model. Making meaning from the text fundamental for students comprehension. Without this skill, students would not be able to make predictions. Students are able to make meaning from a number of the cues that they are presented, this is written, spoken and visual cues such as pictures, and making meaning of these cues allows students to make connections and predictions about the text. Text user is where the reader is using the text functionally, adding cultural perspectives, social interrelationships, tone of the text and prior knowledge to put the pieces together. Comprehension is a vital skill for all readers, it gives them the ability to understand the meaning of any text. Comprehension is essential for skilled readers to be able to engage with a text. Without comprehension, text is merely words on a page, which is not exciting or informative for the reader. The use of comprehension strategies such as predicting and summarising empower readers to derive the message of a text, making the text more enjoyable. It can be argued, without this skill, reading is pointless and frustrating. This is why it is essential to develop the readers comprehension within classrooms of all ages and countries.
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Lauren Kennedy 30125179
EDBED 2006 Language and Literacy in the Primary Years Assessment one References: Berk, L. (2013). Child Development, 9th edition. USA: Pearson Education. Duke, N. K., & Pearson, P. D. (2008). Effective practices for developing reading comprehension. The Journal of Education, 189(1/2), 107-122. Fellowes, J. & Oakley, G. (2010). Language, Literacy and Early Childhood Education. South Melbourne, Victoria: Oxford University Press. Khoshsima, H., & Tiyar, F. R. (2014). The Effect of Summarizing and Presentation Strategies.International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature, 3(4), 88-96. Leopold, C., & Leutner, D. (2012). Science text comprehension: Drawing, main idea selection, and summarizing as learning strategies. Learning and Instruction, 22(1), 16-26. Luke, A., & Freebody, P. (1999). A map of possible practices: Further notes on the four resources model. Practically primary, 4(2), 5-8. Mills, K. (2009). Floating on a sea of talk: Reading comprehension through speaking and listening. The Reading Teacher, 63(4), 325-329. NSW Department of Education and Training Literacy Continuum (2010) Teaching Comprehension Strategies. NSW Department of Education and Training. Winch, G., Johnston, R., March, P., Ljungdahl, L., Holliday, M. (2014). Literacy: Reading, writing and children's literature (5th ed.). Melbourne: Oxford University Press. Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority. (2016). The Victorian Curriculum F 10. Retrieved from: http://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/