Q. What is wrong with our teaching of
comprehension?
A. Comprehension is expected, not taught. Comprehension strategies are not
often taught.
S Dymock. Reading Teacher
(Oct. 07), 161-167.
What are comprehension strategies?
Answer:
SQ3R (Robinson,
1961): “A study strategy in which readers survey a text before reading and
devise questions to answer, generally using the headings to guide question
writing. They read to find answers to their questions; after reading, readers
recite their answers. Finally, they review by going over their answers and
rereading where necessary. The emphasis is on using questions to guide study
reading.”
DR-TA (Stauffer,
1969): “A comprehensions strategy in which readers speculate on what will occur
in a text (e.g., what the topic is, what content a selection will cover, what a
story is about, what will happen in a story). While reading, readers stop to
check on predictions and predict what will happen next. The emphasis is on
predictions.”
K-W-L (Ogle, 1986): A
study strategy in which readers think about what they already know about the topic of a selection and
predict categories of information they expect to learn from reading it, and
also decide what they want to learn.
After reading, they think about what they have learned. In this scheme, K
stands for what I know; W for what I want
to learn, and L for what I have learned.”
Comment: Excellent techniques for improving students’
comprehension. RayS.
Title: “Essential
Reading: Targeting, Tracking, and Thinking about Main Ideas.” DG Hennings. Journal of Reading (February 1991), 346-353.
