Reading for Understanding
[Pages:174]Reading for Understanding
Toward an R&D Program in Reading Comprehension
RAND Reading Study Group
Catherine Snow, Chair
Prepared for the Office of Education Research and Improvement (OERI)
Science & Technology Policy Institute
R
EDUCATION
The research described in this report was prepared for the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), U.S. Department of Education.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Snow, Catherine E. Reading for understanding : toward a research and development program in
reading comprehension / Catherine Snow. p. cm.
"MR-1465." Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-8330-3105-8 1. Reading comprehension--Research. 2. Reading--Research. I. Title.
LB1050.45 .S57 2002 428.4'3--dc21
2001048905
RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND? is a registered trademark. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of its research sponsors.
Cover designed by Barbara Angell Caslon
? Copyright 2002 RAND
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from RAND.
Published 2002 by RAND 1700 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138
1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA 22202-5050 201 North Craig Street, Suite 102, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-1516
RAND URL: To order RAND documents or to obtain additional information, contact Distribution Services: Telephone: (310) 451-7002; Fax: (310) 451-6915; Email:
order@
PREFACE
One of the most vexing problems facing middle and secondary school teachers today is that many students come into their classrooms without the requisite knowledge, skills, or disposition to read and comprehend the materials placed before them. In an effort to inform the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) on ways to improve the quality and relevance of education research and development, RAND convened 14 experts with a wide range of disciplinary and methodological perspectives in the field of reading. The RAND Reading Study Group (RRSG) was charged with proposing strategic guidelines for a long-term research and development program supporting the improvement of reading comprehension. This report is the product of that group's efforts and of the valuable commentary provided by various members of the reading research and practice communities. This report should be of interest to those involved with the planning of education research and development (R&D) programs by public and private agencies, and it should also be of interest to researchers who study reading instruction and practitioners who teach reading. This report is the first in a series of three RAND reports dealing with the topic of education R&D. The second report, scheduled for draft publication in summer 2002, will propose an R&D program for mathematics education and the third report, scheduled for draft publication in fall 2002, will address R&D management issues. Funding for the RRSG research was provided under a contract with OERI. The research was carried out under the auspices of RAND Education and the Science and Technology Policy Institute (S&TPI), a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the National Science Foundation and managed by RAND.
iii
iv Reading for Understanding
Inquiries regarding RAND Education and the S&TPI may be directed to the following individuals:
Helga Rippen, Director Science and Technology Policy Institute RAND, 1200 South Hayes Street Arlington, VA 22202-5050 (703) 413-1100 x5351 Email: stpi@
Dominic Brewer, Director RAND Education RAND, 1700 Main Street Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138 (310) 393-0411 x7515 Email: education@
CONTENTS
Preface .................................................................................................... iii Figures ..................................................................................................... vii Tables ...................................................................................................... ix Executive Summary .................................................................................. xi Acknowledgments .................................................................................... xxiii RAND Reading Study Group and RAND Staff ............................................. xxv Chapter One
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................... 1 Study Methodology ............................................................................ 1 Research Challenges ........................................................................... 2 The Issues Motivating This Study ........................................................ 4 Much Is Already Known About Improving Comprehension .................. 8 The Need for a Definition of Reading Comprehension ......................... 9 Chapter Two DEFINING COMPREHENSION ........................................................... 11 The Reader ......................................................................................... 13 The Text ............................................................................................. 14 The Activity ........................................................................................ 15 The Context ....................................................................................... 16 Chapter Three VARIABILITY IN READING COMPREHENSION ................................... 19 Variability in Readers .......................................................................... 19
Sociocultural Influences .................................................................. 20 Group Differences ........................................................................... 21 Inter-Individual Differences ............................................................ 22 Intra-Individual Differences ............................................................ 23 Variability in Text ............................................................................... 24
v
vi Reading for Understanding
Variability in Activity .......................................................................... 26 Variability in the Context .................................................................... 28
Chapter Four A RESEARCH AGENDA FOR IMPROVING READING COMPREHENSION ........................................................................ 29 Comprehension Instruction ............................................................... 29 What We Already Know About Comprehension Instruction .............. 30 What We Need to Know About Comprehension Instruction .............. 44 Teacher Education and Professional Development in Reading Comprehension .......................................................................... 47 What We Already Know About Teacher Preparation ......................... 50 What We Need to Know About Teacher Preparation ......................... 51 What We Already Know About Teacher Professional Development .............................................................................. 51 What We Need to Know About Teacher Professional Development .............................................................................. 52 Assessment of Reading Comprehension .............................................. 52 What We Already Know About Comprehension Assessments ............ 53 What We Need in the Area of Comprehension Assessments .............. 54 Key Issues the Research Agenda Should Address .............................. 58
Chapter Five STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPING A RESEARCH PROGRAM ON READING COMPREHENSION ........................................................ 61 Prerequisites to Establishing an Excellent Educational Research Program ..................................................................................... 61 Establishing Priorities ..................................................................... 61 Building on Strengths ...................................................................... 64 Improving the Status of Educational Research .................................. 64 Methods Appropriate to the Task ........................................................ 66 The Research Infrastructure: Organizing for Programmatic Research on Reading Comprehension ........................................................ 69
Afterword ................................................................................................. 73
Appendix
A. AN EXPANDED REVIEW OF THE RESEARCH ON VARIABILITY IN READING COMPREHENSION ........................................................ 75
B. OUTLINE OF A SAMPLE REQUEST FOR APPLICATION ....................... 111
References ............................................................................................... 119
Biographical Sketches ............................................................................... 147
FIGURES
S.1. A Heuristic for Thinking About Reading Comprehension ............... xiv 2.1. A Heuristic for Thinking About Reading Comprehension ............... 12
vii
TABLES
A.1. Classes of Inferences That Are Relevant to Expository Texts ............................................................................................ 108
A.2. Levels of Cognitive Processing and Mastery .................................. 109
ix
................
................
In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.
To fulfill the demand for quickly locating and searching documents.
It is intelligent file search solution for home and business.
Related download
- reading abilities and strategi es a short introduction
- chapter two defining comprehension
- glossary of reading terms
- c h apter 1 reading comprehension definitions research
- a research review of cognitive skills strategies and
- reading comprehension strategy definitions 12 13 04
- reading comprehension reading for learning
- levels of comprehension
- reading for understanding
Related searches
- summer reading for 10th graders
- reading for 7th grade games
- benefits of reading for children
- reading for kindergarten free online
- reading for grade 1 pdf
- reading for free 4th grade
- printable easy reading for kids
- summer reading for 9th graders
- easy reading for kids printables
- reading for 4th graders free online
- beginning reading for kindergarten free
- word for understanding both sides