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Running Head: READING COMPREHENSION

Reading Comprehension Intervention Strategies

EDPS 656

By:Leora Fisher

Wanda ChaulkStephanie JanzenVicki Pederson

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READING COMPREHENSION

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth

Edition-Revision (DSM-IV-TR), the “essential feature of a Reading Disorder is reading

achievement (i.e., reading accuracy, speed, or comprehension as measured by

individually administered standardized tests) that falls substantially below the expected

given the individual’s chronological age, measured intelligence, and age-appropriate

education” (DSM-IV-TR, 2007, p.51). The purpose of this paper is to provide a

description and a variety of evidence-based interventions for the specific domain of

reading comprehension.

Reading comprehension is a complex task that requires a reader to identify the

words in a text, comprehend the meaning of the words, use prior knowledge to connect

ideas, and retain the information long enough to understand what is being read (Wendling

& Mather, 2009). Many components of reading can influence a reader’s ability to

comprehend text, such as fluent word identification, vocabulary knowledge, prior

knowledge, or reasoning abilities. If a reader has difficulty quickly decoding or

recognizing words, then comprehension can suffer. If a reader can decode the word but

does not comprehend what the word means, comprehension is difficult. If a reader has

difficulty connecting ideas in the text with prior knowledge, then comprehension can be

compromised. Each of these skills is important, yet none guarantee that comprehension

will occur. Therefore, comprehension is a complex domain that relies on the integration

of multiple factors and difficulty in any one of these factors can affect understanding

what is being read (Wendling & Mather, 2009). When planning appropriate intervention

programs for a student who has difficulty with reading comprehension, it is important to

consider which factor may be causing difficulty for the reader.

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There are many ways to define reading comprehension. For instance the National

Reading Panel defines it as being "an active problem solving process in which readers

relate the ideas in the text to their own knowledge and experiences which allows the

reader to create a mental construct in memory" (2000, p. 23). Whereas the B.C. Ministry

of Education defines it as being able to retrieve information, recognize meaning, interpret

and then analyze texts (B.C. Ministry of Education, n.d.). Although the wording is

different, there is the overarching agreement among academics that reading

comprehension requires a number of skills that involve recognizing information, relating

it to acquired knowledge, understanding it and then remembering it. Strategies that focus

on improving comprehension may vary slightly as the emphasis may be on one particular

factor or another, but each plays a role in helping the student understand the text that is

being read.

Reading comprehension is perhaps one of the most critical skills for student to

master as it touches on almost all other subjects. For instance, Science, Social Studies,

Literature all require the student to not only read excerpts from textbooks, but also be

able to understand the content and apply it to their learning. Thus, comprehension affects

all aspects of academic progress. Furthermore, if one has difficulty with reading

comprehension, the more they struggle, the more their interest will suffer, thus creating a

vicious circle. Therefore, if one has a reading comprehension disability, it is likely that

they will fall farther and farther behind. The full consequences of which are dire as it is a

critical foundation skill for later academic learning, many employment skills, and life

satisfaction (Kirby, n.d.).

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Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers are visual and spatial displays that make the relationship

between concepts and related facts more apparent (Dexter & Hughes, 2011). They are

intended to promote comprehension through facilitating the learning and understanding

of new materials. The organizers make them more meaningful by making abstract

concepts more concrete and connecting new information with prior knowledge (Kim,

Vaughn, Wanzek, & Wei, 2004). There are many different types of graphic organizers

including: cognitive mapping, semantic mapping, semantic feature analysis,

syntactic/semantic feature analysis, and visual displays (Dexter & Hughes, 2011).

Graphic organizers may be used before, during, or after reading (Wendling & Mather,

2009). For example, when teaching narrative structures, a teacher might use a story map

to help students identify key elements of the narrative. When working with expository

text, graphic organizers may be used to help focus on main idea and supporting details,

sequencing, drawing conclusions, or categorization. Regardless of the type of graphic

organizer being used, it is imperative that the teacher explicitly teach students how to

effectively use the graphic organizer in order for it to be effective for the student (Dexter

& Hughes, 2011).

Research has indicated several consistent benefits of graphic organizers: (a)

they are more beneficial for students with lower verbal ability than students with higher

verbal ability; (b) students with little or no prior knowledge in a subject area gain more

from graphic organizers than students with strong prior knowledge; (c) graphic

organizers are helpful for factual recall; (d) graphic organizers need to be explicitly

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taught for maximum impact; (e) graphic organizers should connect concepts so readers

are more likely to perceive them as being interrelated; (f) graphic organizers should not

contain too much information, just what is important and relevant; (g) graphic organizers

minimize stress on working memory; and (h) graphic organizers can be effective when

used before, during, or after a lesson (Dexter & Hughes, 2011). Kim et al. (2004)

specifically examined the effects of graphic organizers on reading comprehension of

students with learning disabilities, and found that a synthesis of several studies revealed

them to be overall beneficial for this population. Though further research needs to be

done on the effectiveness of using graphic organizers with younger students, as most of

the current studies focus on upper elementary and high school students (Kim et al., 2004).

K-W-L

K-W-L is a three-phase reading comprehension intervention that is shorthand for

Know, Want to know, and Learnt. Its intention is to help students develop their

independent skills in comprehending, composing and learning in regards to reading. It

helps student engage with the reading material by first activating prior knowledge (K),

then by predicting what additional information they are likely to need (W), and by

developing a plan to gather that information. Then lastly to help students reflect on the

new knowledge generated or retrieved as the plan is implemented (L).

The first phase of implementation is for the student to make a chart used to

present the chosen passage. The chart has three columns with the titles: K – What do I

know?, W – What do I want to know?, and L- What have I learnt? The student should

examine the title of the text and list what is known about the topic in the “K” column.

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The teacher then engages the class in an oral discussion about the topic and builds the list

as a group. Part of this phase is to think about this knowledge objectively by asking

questions about sources and substantiveness such as “where did you learn that”, or “how

could you prove that”. This challenges them to a high level of thinking. The teacher then

asks them to put the information generated into categories. This helps those students who

are unaccustomed to thinking in content–structuring terms. For instance, some

information about turtles could be put into the category “diet” or “life cycle”.

The next step is to then ask the students to list what they want or need to know

about the topic in the “W” column. This can be done as a group, but the student should

first write down his or her own question so that they develop a personal commitment that

will guide the reading. The teacher then reads the chosen text to the students or have

them read it themselves.

Lastly, the teacher should ask the students what knowledge they have gained from

the text and list this in the “L” column. The teacher should have them check the

questions to determine if the article dealt with their concerns. If some of their questions

have not been answered, the teacher should suggest further reading as this sets a clear

priority of their personal desire to learn over simply taking in what the author has chosen

to include.

Variations of this strategy include asking student to work individually and record

their own KWL ideas and then trade sheets with another students and discuss the

differences. Another good strategy is to have students use a KWL journal during

independent silent reading. Then ask the students to share and compare their entries in

literature circles, which are groups of students reading the same book at the same time.

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The benefit of the K-W-L strategy for reading comprehension is that it takes into

consideration the importance of what kids bring to reading, rather than rely on just

practicing scripts. Rather, they must first elicit background knowledge before they can

begin to understand and analyze the information being processed. The brainstorming

session also activates prior knowledge of the topic and it in turn develops their interest,

curiosity and motivation. The process also helps them identify why they want to learn

about this topic, and then marking their progress on the sheet helps them monitor their

own comprehension. Lastly, the instructional demands are very simple, thereby making

it appealing to teachers.

The limitations of this strategy are that it does not allow the student to reflect on

their prior knowledge to determine if what they already know is correct. It also does not

encourage vocabulary growth, such as identifying unknown words and learning the

definition. Lastly, it does not encourage them to look for emotional or experiential links

to material being read. For instance there is no column where they are asked how they

feel about a particular text or topic.

There have not been many studies on this K-W-L strategy despite the fact that

teachers have used it often since its creation by Ogle in 1986. Part of the reason is most

likely because there have been so many variations on this strategy since. Of the research

that has been done, one study that was done on the K-W-L with 5th grade readers found

that the “quality of thinking improves, (and) involvement in and enthusiasm for reading

non fiction becomes keen” (Burns, 1994). Though it should be noted that this was a

small study where the results were based on informal teacher evaluations of the strategy.

Another study done by McLain (1991) compared groups of 3rd and 5th grade

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readers on their comprehension. One group used the K-W-L strategy, another used the

Predicting/Evaluating comprehension monitoring strategy, (a checklist strategy where

students check off questions that assess their predictions after reading), and another was a

control group. Results found that the “metacognitive awareness may be a late-developing

process that is not sensitive to type of strategy taught.” Therefore, although the K-W-L

strategy is most likely quite effective in strengthening reading comprehension, it may not

be significantly more effective than another reading comprehension strategy.

The only consideration that must be made is in deciding which populations to use

this strategy on. As the aforementioned study by McLain mentioned, reading

comprehension is likely a late-developing process, and so will not be beneficial to those

students who are still learning the basics of reading (kindergarten to grade 3) (1991).

Apart from age and grade considerations, this strategy can be used on any population

provided that they have a working knowledge of the primary language being used.

Mental Imagery – Improving Text Recall

Mental Imagery is a strategy of constructing ‘mental pictures’ of what is being

read in addition to studying text illustrations in order to increase their reading

comprehension. This strategy may come naturally to strong readers, however many

children who hold strong reading decoding skills often have limited recall of what they

read. This population of students that would lack the skill of mental imagery would also

do poorly when a passage is read to them.

Paivo (2006) introduced the dual coding theory that presents cognition as

involving two distinct subsystems: a verbal system that uses language, and a nonverbal

system that uses imagery. He proposes these two systems work together to improve

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memory and understanding of material read. Nanci Bell created an instructional

program for this population of students that is based on Paivo’s dual coding theory. Her

program is entitled “Visualizing and Verbalizing” and is an effective remedial program

for students who lack the skill of creating mental imagery. Visualizing and verbalizing

entails a progressive buildup of imagery from smaller to larger segments of texts,

beginning with words, phrases, and increasing the skill to sentences and an entire text.

Mental imagery can be explicitly taught through a direct instruction approach. A

formal program such as Visualizing and Verbalizing is not necessary to teach the skill. In

preparation for each lesson the teacher would decide on and make copies of narrative or

expository passages to present to the students. Interventions Central, a website that

provides a wide range of academic interventions, presents the following steps to teaching

mental imagery:

· Step 1: Tell students that they can remember more of what they read by

making pictures in their mind of what they are reading and by carefully

studying pictures or illustrations that appear in their reading or text books.

· Step 2: Using a "think-aloud" approach, read through a short sample narrative

or expository passage. Pause at several points to tell the class what "mental

pictures" come to your mind as you read; ask students to describe their own

mental imagery as they react to the same passage. As you come across pictures

or illustrations in the passage, study them and reflect aloud on what clues they

give you about the passage's meaning.

· Step 3: Read aloud from additional passages. Stop at key points in the passage

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and call on students to relate their mental imagery evoked by the passage or to

give their interpretation of the significance of illustrations or pictures.

· Step 4: When students are able to use mental imagery independently, use a

prompt at the start of reading assignments to cue them to use the strategy. You

might say, for example, "Now we are going to read about what life is like in a

country village in Zimbabwe. Remember to make pictures in your head about

what you are reading and study the pictures carefully."

As students become more skilled at mental imagery invite them into evaluative

discussions on how clearly an author writes based on their ability to create a mental

imagery of what was read. Using the language in context will support the student in

understanding and ultimately using the language to express the comprehension strategy

they are using.

Although studies have been conducted on use of mental imagery to improve

comprehension, they lack adequate standardized populations and/or control groups.

Therefore limited research is available in terms of populations this strategy would be

most effective for. Truch (2004) demonstrated how the Visualizing and Verbalizing

program was effective with hyperlexic learning disabled students, ages 6 – 18+ who had

high reading decoding but poor comprehension. He found the program effective in

recalling information, but his study didn’t look into higher levels of reading

comprehension. Gambrell & Bales (1986) completed a study on poor readers in grade 4

and 5. Their study supported that poor readers do not automatically use mental imagery

when reading, and employ far more energy to comprehend compared to good readers

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who use mental imagery. They felt their study supported mental imagery as an effective

strategy for helping poor readers evaluate their own comprehension. Overall this strategy

is supported for children who are strong decoders with poor comprehension.

Mental imagery is a skill that can be taught within the classroom or in a small

intervention group. It requires very little preparation, however the teacher will need

training on how to direct the dialogue to support students in how to create mental images.

It is imperative to begin small with instruction using words and simple sentences,

allowing students time to develop confidence in a new but crucial skill in reading

comprehension.

Guided Reading

Guided reading is one component of the Four Blocks Reading program developed

by Pat Cummingham and Dottie Hall. This instructional strategy is teacher directed for

small, flexible groups of readers who are placed in reading groups according to their level

of achievement on a reading assessment. A teacher skillfully scaffolds children’s

discussion and development of reading comprehension in these small groups (Philips,

2013). The goal of this instructional strategy is that students will independently apply

strategies to make meaning from print. Although guided reading has been traditionally

associated with primary grades it can be modified and used successfully in all grade

levels (Instructional Strategies On-Line).

Implementing guided reading involves a fair amount of preparation. Prior to

placing students into reading groups the teacher will individually administer a reading

assessment to each student such as PM Benchmarks, Fountas and Pennell, or

Developmental Reading Assessment. Upon interpretation of the reading results the

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following steps are general guidelines to implementing guiding reading: (Instructional

Strategies On-Line)

· Step 1: Students should be divided into small groups (4-6 students). The

younger the students the smaller the groups.

· Step 2: Plan guided reading lessons to be 15-20 minutes in duration.

· Step 3: Gather appropriately leveled reading materials for the group, and each

child should have his/her own copy of the literature.

· Step 4: Pre-Reading -The teacher establishes a purpose for reading through

prediction making, vocabulary introduction, or discussing ideas that will

provide the readers with the background knowledge required for the text.

· Step 5: Reading -The teacher observes the students as they read the text softly

or silently to themselves. The teacher provides guidance and coaching to

individuals based on her/his observations by providing prompts, asking

questions, and encouraging attempts at reading strategy application. At this

stage the teacher is either practicing a new strategy with the student or

encouraging the student to apply a previously introduced strategy.

· Step 6: Post Reading: The teacher asks questions to ensure that the text has

been comprehended by the readers and praises their efforts. Further, the teacher

may observe gaps in strategy application and address these gaps following the

reading in a mini-lesson format.

While teaching guided reading to one small group, the other students in the class must be

kept engaged in an independent literacy activity.

When implemented according to the presentation standards, guided reading

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produces critical readers who apply reading comprehension strategies to make meaning

from the text. A teacher must be skilled at questioning and providing open-ended

responses to ‘coach’ student dialogue in developing inferential comprehension. Phillips

(2013) research on questioning techniques effective for developing children’s reading

comprehension focused on this critical area.

The conclusion of relaxation in questioning guided conversations between pupils

and teacher was more effective than intense questioning. However the research was

based on grade 3 students with achievement slightly higher than national standards

therefore cannot be generalized to all populations of students. Fisher (2008) had studied

the implementation of guided reading in three schools with teachers of various skill

levels. This study highlighted the importance of understanding the purpose of guiding

reading and the need for training of teachers to become skilled in the instructional

strategy; lacking these standards may lead to guided reading being perceived as a mere

lesson of listening to students read.

While guided reading is becoming a common practice in many schools, there

remains a deeper understanding of the reading process and the text characteristics of

leveled books (Fountas & Pennel, 2012). Guided reading also has promise in teaching

English as a Second Language. For instance, Nayak and Sylva (2013) demonstrated

significant growth in reading comprehension amongst young Chinese students learning

English compared to a control group. To support the importance of following

presentation standards to achieve critical readers, companies such as Scholastic Canada

are now producing guided reading kits that consist of leveled books and a teacher plan

with scripts on how to present each lesson. These kits are available for children from

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Kindergarten to Grade 8.

Conclusion

In summation, the overall conclusion for reading comprehension indicates that

teaching explicit reading strategies such as graphic organizers, K-W-L, mental imagery

and guided reading are particularly effective for developing ones reading comprehension.

As a student learns to read, they tend to put most of their energy on decoding and reading

each word flawlessly. Yet, students must also be able to obtain meaning from what has

been read. Unfortunately, students with learning disabilities often experience

considerable difficulty in comprehending what had been read aloud or silently. They may

struggle with processing the main ideas, with relating new information to previously

learning facts, or with using higher order thinking skills to organize, sequence, or

prioritize information appropriately. Therefore, it is vital for educators to use strategies

such as graphic organizers, K-W-L, mental imagery and guided reading to improve a

student’s understanding of text.

Graphic organizers are very efficient as they are easy to construct and utilize.

However, current studies have only shown their effectiveness on upper elementary and

high school students. K-W-L is a very popular reading comprehension strategy, as it is

known to be very efficient. Educators can easily use this strategy by engaging the class in

an oral discussion about a topic of choice and build on that list as a group. In addition,

students can also work independently on a K-W-L chart. Unfortunately, despite the fact

that teachers often use K-W-L there has not been much research on their effectiveness.

Many educators use mental imagery as it is a very efficient reading

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comprehension strategy. It can be implemented in the classroom or small group setting

and requires very little preparation. Although studies have been conducted in the use of

mental imagery to improve reading comprehension they lack adequate standardized

populations or control groups. Nevertheless, some studies have supported the use of

mental imagery as an effective strategy for helping poor readers evaluate their own

comprehension. In contrast to all the other reading comprehension strategies guided

reading requires a fair amount of preparation. An experienced educator needs to

administer a reading assessment to each student before placing them in an appropriate

reading group. In addition, in order for guided reading to be an effective tool teachers

need to be well trained.

Finally, before a strategy or intervention is selected one should examine the

ability and grade level of the student to determine which intervention fits the student’s

needs. Graph organizers are more effective for upper elementary and high school

students, while guided reading works well in lower elementary. Still, it is important to

remember the strength of any reading comprehension strategies lies in the way it is

explicitly taught and reinforced.

References

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American Psychiatric Association (2007). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental

disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author.

Burns, P. (1994). The effect of the KWL strategy of fifth-graders’ reading comprehension

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