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EdNews has a good interview with Daniel Willingham posted today on "reading comprehension:
6) What are your three main factors that you see as important in reading comprehension?There you go: decoding, fluency, and background knowledge. Three things that don't get systematicallt taught in your typical balanced literacy classroom.
Decoding, fluency, and background knowledge. Obviously, if you can't decode, it's pretty much "game over." And if you don't have some degree of fluency, you're so occupied with decoding, that you can't pay attention to the meaning of the text. Finally, if you don't have some background knowledge to which you can relate the text, you may comprehend it, but your understanding will be pretty shallow—it will be closely tied to the text itself, and you won't be able to generalize the message of the text
Here's a question: "To what extent have educators and policy-makes recognized the importance of background knowledge to reading comprehension?" My answer would be "not enough!" I'm specifically concerned about the role of the National Reading Panel report. That Report is becoming crystallized in state and federal legislation as the final word on reading, and the report is great. . . but it's incomplete because it doesn't say anything about the role of background knowledge in reading comprehension. If we're concerned about having students who are good readers we have to recognize that reading is an interaction between the words on the page and the knowledge in the reader's head. Without background knowledge, you can't comprehend a text to a level we would call "understanding." We need to pay attention to developing background knowledge in students from the first day that they are in school, and encouraging parents to do so even before then. It's not a trivial matter to decide what that content should be and how to deliver it. But if we want all children to be excellent readers it has to be done.Background knowledge: the untaught subject. Read the whole thing.
8 comments:
wow!
What a great way to start my day!
ELA tests are today; the kids have been taking "practice tests."
More time well spent.
I plan to lodge my third request for gender subscores for last year's test.
Answers thus far:
1st request:
"check the NY state website" (wrong URL provided)
2nd request:
"subscores are unavailable"
more fun with stonewalling here in Irvingtonland!
How to build background knowledge prior to entering school:
1) Replace all SpongeBob and Rugrats with Reading Rainbow, the Magic Schoolbus, Popular Science for Kids etc. Get rid of your tv all together and check these titles out of your library.
2) Expose your children to many fact-based books (Look-and-Find-Out science series, Step into Reading Biographies, DK encyclopedias).
3) Get some great books on tape/cd and let your kid's listen to Tom Sawyer, Farmer Boy, Anne of Green Gables, Greek Mythes etc. Discuss, discuss, discuss...
Then you won't have to worry about reading comprehension.
Thanks for the recommendations, nicksmama. I'll check them all out and see which ones my four year old likes. Magic Schoolbus is already a big hit.
well, this all comes too late for me
we just bought a big-screen TV, AND put it in the family room
what was I thinking?
The Hirsch What Your First Grader Should Know books are fantastic.
THE brainiest kid I know read every single one of them.
I also saw a Listmania telling people how to get their GED; the List recommended the 3rd grade WYCSK!
Hirsh is my hero.
I just wanted to relate a story about background knowledge.
I had heard the term "Trojan Horse" used in reference to computer virus' etc. for many years. I never understood what it meant until I read Rosemary Sutcliff's "Black Ships Before Troy" to my then 2nd grader. I had an "ah-ha" moment.
Sad, isn't it?
If you don't know Classical myths (and Biblical stories) then you're at a HUGE disadvantage for studying literature. Read just one scene from Shakespeare and see how many references you wouldn't know.
We were studying 'ancient lands' at my school, and so I promptly turned it into a myths and legends fest. Now they at least know a few more classical characters than big strong Hercules.
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