Return-Path: <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id h7DL0e724078; Wed, 13 Aug 2003 17:00:40 -0400 (EDT) Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2003 17:00:40 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <016c01c361dd$c1237920$22cdc418@pavilion> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "Amy Trawick" <atrawick@charter.net> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-4EFF:2490] Re: Assisted Reading Methodology X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2800.1106 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; Status: O Content-Length: 8584 Lines: 177 Using an EFF Lens in an Assisted Reading Approach George, I wanted to see what might be added if you used the Read With Understanding standard to guide the lesson. The components of the standard are: *Determine the reading purpose *Select strategies appropriate to the purpose *Monitor comprehension and adjust reading strategies *Analyze the information and reflect on its underlying meaning *Integrate it with prior knowledge to address reading purpose Here's what I came up with: FIRST READING: I think before jumping into the material I would mention that skilled readers have a purpose in mind when they read and then lead a short discussion in which students decide why we're reading this particular piece. Hopefully, it connects with an expressed (topical) need or interest of the students, so determining the purpose might involve asking questions we hope to answer from reading the piece, making predictions about the contents and reading to find out if our predictions are right, etc.. (If it is something that the students have written together, the purpose of this first reading might be to see if they want to make any changes). I would also want to see what students knew about the topic... Moving to the second component: Depending on the purpose, I might propose to students that, since they are focusing on content first and since this is a challenging passage, students should follow along as I read, pointing at each word as I say it. I (or students, depending on their familiarity with the standard and with specific strategies) might also suggest a strategy for monitoring their comprehension, say stopping periodically and checking to see if any questions have been answered (or predictions confirmed, dis-confirmed, or revised). Third component: Here is where the lesson would pick up as you described it: students would follow along as the teacher read; however, the teacher might model application of the strategy discussed in the previous component. Fourth component: I might lead a discussion here about the content, encouraging students to identify major points in the text, what surprised them, etc. Fifth component: Here would be a discussion that ties directly to their purpose, personalizing the content to what they wanted to find out. There, that's the first reading, but now the students have seen and practiced some comprehension strategies that focused on meaning and are developing skills that will be important as they become more comfortable with print clues. SUBSEQUENT READINGS Before the second reading, I might say something like, Now let's use this text to develop print skills. The purpose for reading has now changed and we would be clear about that. The strategy we choose at first might be echo reading: I read a section first, students repeat after me, tracking the words with a tool (finger or pencil). The next reading might be choral reading, if students are having difficulty, or we might move straight into students pairing off to read it. (With each reading, I'm releasing more responsibility to the student). We might stop periodically to talk about words that seem problematic for whatever reason. We might talk about the meaning of the words, possibly identifying a few words important to the content that students want more work with. I might also want to review/introduce a letter/sound correspondence or a pattern and having them find words in the text that match. As George points out, an activity like this is "designed to open instructional space for students at this level to work with connected text, to simulate a fluent reading process and to engage meaningful texts among those with extremely limited reading capacity." However, adding the Read With Understanding standard, both in planning and explicitly with students, helps to build awareness of what skilled reading is. One last word, I'm not sure I would choose the *hardest* words to use for further instruction--the ones students still don't know after 3-4 readings. I would focus on what you know about where the students are in their development of phonics knowledge. I've found two books to be very helpful in my thinking about systematic phonics instruction--helpful because I've come to see palatable "systematic" phonics instruction to be that which is based on an understanding of general stages that individuals go through in developing their understanding of print/sound correspondences. Decisions about where to focus instruction (if the point is to build phonics knowledge) start with knowing where students are and what will move them to the next step. Words that are conceptually well-beyond their current phonics understanding, which may very well be the case with words they are still missing after 3-4 readings, may end up being memorized but will *not* build their understanding of how words work. This was a flaw in the instruction (at least that which we were able to see) in the Brokaw report, in my mind. In case anyone is interested, the two books are *Words Their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction* by Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton, and Johnston and *Building Words* by Thomas Gunning. Thanks for the brain exercise, George! Amy ----- Original Message ----- From: "George Demetrion" <george.demetrion@lvgh.org> To: "Multiple recipients of list" <nifl-4eff@literacy.nifl.gov> Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2003 3:41 PM Subject: [NIFL-4EFF:2486] Assisted Reading Methodology > The following is part of a balanced or integrated methodology that we use > with beginning level adult literacy students. We also do a lot of isolated > work with phonics, word patterns, and sight words. > Might there be comments/questions/observations/criticisms of the > methodology? > > Sure is slow around here. > > George Demetrion > ____________________________________________________________________ > > Assisted Reading Approach > > In the Assisted Reading Approach, the instructor initially reads a few lines > of a short passage with students following along, at first sub-vocalizing > and gradually taking over the reading process in successive readings. This > allows beginning-level readers to work with connected and interesting texts > and to simulate the process of fluent reading well before independent > mastery (which, for some students at this level may never be achieved) is > attained. This approach is based on the assumption that learning to read > takes place through a combination of unconscious assimilation over time > through practice, along with specific teaching techniques utilized to build > up basic skill mastery. In the assisted reading methodology, explicit word > mastery activities (whether phonics or sight-word memorization) are limited > to those words that persistently stump students even after three or four > readings. That will still require actively working with many words and the > giving of much attention to the development of phonemic mastery, which, with > this level of readers, is a very gradual and generally incomplete process. > Moreover, this methodology does not require a rejection of systematic > phonemic work at other places in the lesson. It is simply designed to open > instructional space for students at this level to work with connected text, > to simulate a fluent reading process and to engage meaningful texts among > those with extremely limited reading capacity. > > The assisted reading process works in the following way: > > * The teacher reads a passage whole, slowly, while the students follow > along. > * In successive readings, the students (either one at a time or chorally) > read more of the passage, with the tutor providing support to insure fluent > reading. > * After the 3rd or 4th reading, students take on more of the passage. Some > students will be able to read the passage independently at that time. > * One of the advanced students might take over the reading at that point, > leading the rest of the class > * Meantime, the tutor keeps track of words students are having persisting > problems with after the 3rd or 4th reading. > * The tutor works on those words only, whether through sight-sound > association (phonics), sight word memorization, or context clues. > * These words become the focus of special attention through drilling in > various formats. It would be useful too, for students and tutors to make a > word bank of words they have difficulty with and want to learn how to > recognize and spell. > * After the drill work, the group reviews the passage again. >
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