The goal of reading is understanding, for as adults, we read with intention (however, admittedly, as a lover of the act of reading, I will read the back of the toothpaste tube while brushing my teeth!). Yet successful reading is a complex composite skill to which readers must bring a myriad of other skills that interact in combination in order for the text to be accessed and understood. Obviously a firm knowledge of these elements, as informed by rigorous research, is required by teachers and applied to our teaching of reading.
The publication “Put Reading First: The Research Building Blocks of Reading Instruction (Kindergarten through Grade 3) (Armbruster, Lehr & Osborn, 2003, 2nd ed.), developed by the Centre for Improvement of Early Reading Achievement and funded by the National Institute for Literacy, clearly summarises the findings and from the extensive research into reading. I've jotted my notes below.
Introduction:
Extensive knowledge base exists that indicates skills that must be learnt for effective reading
Should provide the basis for sound curriculum decisions and instructional approaches
Predictable consequences of early reading failure
100 000 studies reviewed and screened for
measurement of reading skill outcomes
generalisability
examination of approach effectiveness
high quality
5 areas of instruction identified: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and text comprehension
Phonemic Awareness (PA) Instruction
Ability to notice, think about and work with the individual sounds in spoken words
Often misunderstood as phonics (instead, PA required to reap benefits from phonics instruction)
Also often misunderstood as phonological awareness (instead, PA a subcategory of phonological awareness)
Key findings from research:
PA can be taught and learnt
PA instruction helps children learn to read
PA instruction helps children learn to spell
PA instruction is most effective when children are taught to manipulate phonemes by using letters of the alphabet
PA instruction is most effective when it focuses on only one or two types of phoneme manipulation, rather than several types
Types of activities to build phonemic awareness include phoneme:
isolation (recognition in a word)
identity (recognition of same sound in different words)
categorisation (recognition of same/different sounds in a set of 3 – 4 words)
blending (combine separate phonemes, then write and read them)
segmentation (break a word into its separate phonemes, then write and read it)
deletion (recognise what word remains when a phoneme is removed from a given word)
addition (create a new word by the addition of a phoneme to a given word)
substitution (substitution of a phoneme in a word for another to create a new word)
In general, small group instruction is more effective than individual or whole-group
Not a complete reading program
Whether benefits lasting depends on comprehensiveness and effectiveness of entire literacy curriculum
(N.B. 'Of course, many other things, including the size of children's vocabulary and their world experiences, contribute to reading comprehension' – this is the bugbear.)
Phonics Instruction
Known by many labels
Goal for children to learn and use the alphabetic principle
This knowledge contributes significantly to reading of words in isolation and connected text
Key findings from research:
Systematic and explicit phonics instruction is more effective than non-systematic or no phonics instruction
Systematic and explicit phonics instruction significantly improves kindergarten and first-grade children's word recognition and spelling
Systematic and explicit phonics instruction significantly improves children's reading comprehension
Systematic and explicit phonics instruction is effective for children from various social and economic levels
Systematic and explicit phonics instruction is particularly beneficial for children who are having difficulty learning to read and who are at risk for developing future reading problems
Systematic and explicit phonics instruction is most effective when introduced early
Phonics instruction is not an entire reading program for beginning readers
Systematic phonics instruction clearly identifies and sequences for teaching, a carefully chosen set of letter-sound relationships
Systematic instruction is not incidental or just-in-time
A means to an end. Allot time for children to put this knowledge into reading (and writing) words, sentences and texts
(N.B. Regarding the criticism of this area of instruction due to the irregularity of English spellings, this irregularity can serve as a useful indication of word origins, enriching the learning experience.)
Fluency Instruction
Fluency develops over time through substantial practice
Not a stage of development
Ability to divide sentences into meaningful chunks (phrases and clauses) required for expressive reading
Close relationship between fluency and reading comprehension
Key findings from research:
Repeated and monitored oral reading improves reading fluency and overall reading achievement
Several effective techniques:
- Four rereadings sufficient for most students
- Oral reading practice is increased through the use of audio recordings, tutors, peer guidance or other means
No research evidence is available currently to confirm that instructional time spent on silent, independent reading with minimal guidance and feedback is improves reading fluency and overall reading achievement
Provide models of fluent reading
Have students repeatedly read passages (at their independent level) as you offer guidance
It is the actual time that students are actively engaged in reading that produces gains
Poetry is particularly suitable for fluency practice as they frequently contain rhythm, rhyme and meaning
Student-adult reading, choral reading, CD-assisted reading, partner reading
Calculate and monitor correct words per minute (Guidelines: 60 cwpm by the end of year 1; 90 – 100 cwpm by the end of year 2; and approx 114 cwpm by the end of year 3)
Direct instruction especially important for struggling readers
Non-fluent readers unlikely to make effective and efficient use of silent, independent reading time (takes away from needed reading instruction)
Indicators for fluency instruction:
* > 10% errors on unpractised text
* cannot read orally with expression
* Poor comprehension on orally read text
(N.B. Then accelerated literacy (AL) component of identifying and working with grammatical elements of texts may be of assistance in this regard)
Vocabulary Instruction
Findings from research:
Children learn the meanings of most words indirectly, through everyday experiences with oral and written language (via [1] engaging daily in oral reading, [2] listening to adults reading to them and [3] reading extensively on their own)
Although a great deal of vocabulary is learnt indirectly, some vocabulary should be taught directly (such as difficult words that represent complex concepts that are not part of their everyday experiences)
- Specific word instruction (before reading/extended and repeated exposure in many contexts)
- Word learning strategies (dictionaries and other reference aids/using word parts/using context clues)
Focus on teaching [1] important words, [2] useful words and [3] difficult words
Four types of word learning:
1. A new meaning for a known word
2. The meaning for a new word representing a known concept
3. The meaning of a new word representing an unknown concept
4. Clarifying and enriching the meaning of a known word
Foster word consciousness – an awareness of an interest in words, their meanings and their power
Text Comprehension Instruction
Without understanding what they are reading, readers are not really reading
Good readers are purposeful and active
Purposes: find out how to use/do; gather information; entertainment; experience pleasure
Active: know when they have problems understanding and how ti resolve these problems as they occur
Findings from research:
Text comprehension can be improved by instruction that helps readers use specific comprehension strategies
1. Monitoring comprehension (identify where difficulty occurs, identify what the difficulty is, restate the difficult sentence or passage in their own words, look back through the text, look forward in the text for information that might help them to resolve the difficulty)
2. Using graphic and semantic organisers (can help readers focus on concepts and how they are related to other concepts)
3. Answering questions (focuses students' attention on what they are to learn)
4. Generating questions (improves active processing of text)
5. Recognising story structure (also aids memory)
6. Summarising (requires determination of what is significant in what they are reading and to condense and restate)
Students can be taught comprehension strategies
* Effective comprehension strategy teaching is explicit, or direct
* It can be accomplished through cooperative learning
* It helps readers use comprehension strategies flexibly and in combination
We should emphasise text comprehension from the beginning rather than waiting until students have mastered 'the basics' of reading
The 6 strategies above have the strongest scientific support. The following also have some support – making use of prior knowledge; using mental imagery
The findings for the publication from which I have taken the above notes were drawn from the National Reading Panel's report Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and Its Implications for Reading Instruction – Reports of the Subgroups
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