Reading comprehension strategies
There is a wide number of comprehension strategies that can be taught to students who are learning to read effectively. While many of these strategies are not taught to students until the middle-upper primary years of schooling, a significant amount of research now argues that comprehension strategies should be taught alongside comprehension skills, from the moment learners begin learning to read. When teaching comprehension strategies in the middle-upper years however, readers need to have sufficient word recognition skills. Comprehension strategies differ from comprehension skills such as word recognition as they require higher-order thinking and as such are known as metacognitive comprehension strategies. They are metacognitive in that they encourage "thinking about thinking".
When thinking about different comprehension strategies it is helpful to remember that children are able to comprehend stories told to them orally before they are able to read stories. Comprehension is therefore something that children initially develop as they interact through listening and speaking. In terms of reading, comprehension becomes just as natural once children have learnt effective skills and strategies for effective reading comprehension.
Below is a list of the main reading comprehension strategies employed by 'good readers'.
Background knowledge/ Semantic knowledge
One very vital aspect that will influence leaners in their comprehension of a written text is their background knowledge of the topic about which they are reading. This is the case for any genre of writing. The more knowledge a reader has on the topic about which they are reading, the more they will be able to relate to this text. As they relate to the text, they will be more able to comprehend the message that the writer is trying to convey. This background knowledge that a reader has on the topic of the text is also referred to as semantic knowledge. As a reader comprehends a text, they are then able to add this new information to their schema (knowledge on a certain topic) and if their memory serves them well they can draw on this new-found knowledge in the future. There are different approaches that can be taken by the teacher to inform the reader's semantic knowledge, one of which would be introducing students to information about the text topic before reading begins. More information on ways to teaching this strategy can be found in the 'How to comprehension strategies' section of this website.
Size up the text
By looking at the text prior to reading students can examine certain features of the text such as the title, images, the layout, and captions, etcetera. Students would be shown how to skim and scan the text in order to gather general meaning and specific information just by examining briefly.
Decode and sample
Decoding of words and word meanings should also be taking place as the reader is skimming and scanning. Students can try decoding and deriving meaning from words, phrases and sentences. They can also try to gain meaning or gauge a general idea of what the text is about by reading a section of the text (sampling).
Make predictions
From the information gathered by sizing up the text and decoding and sampling, students can then try to predict what the topic of the text will be, what the meaning of the text is, and what the message might be that the writer is trying to convey.
Reread
If students become stuck on the meanings of words, phrases or sentences, they can stop and reread in an attempt to gain a better understanding. Reread can be a very simple and helpful way for students to gain a concrete understanding of words, phrases, sentences or concepts. Students may find that changing the speed of their reading will decrease their need to reread.
Reflect
Before, during and after reading students reflect on the meaning that they are forming within the text and can stop and re-examine their understanding throughout their reading. Here, students are also monitoring their own understanding. This is a good example of a metacognitive strategy as students are required to think about their own thinking.
Visualise
During their reading of the text students should be encouraged to construct mental images of what they are gathering from the text. This can also be referred to as a mental-model and will assist readers in their comprehension of the text as they relate the text to their own semantic knowledge. The mental-model theory places great emphasis on this strategy.
Genre
Before, during and after reading students should also be thinking about the genre of the text as they consider the setting, characters and other features of the writing, particularly for fictional texts. If texts are non-fiction, students should be encouraged to think about the characteristics of this text.
Summarise
Once the text has been read students should be encouraged to think about the main ideas behind the text and to summarise the text. They should also be encouraged to infer the meaning of the text, evaluate the text and then question
the intentions of the author. Students can also attempt to draw their own conclusion on the text and respond to the text.
Question
Another good strategy for students to use involves generating and answering questions that are literal, inferential, critical and creative. These types of questions encourage higher-order thinking from the reader and many different types have been proposed by different researchers. Teacher questions could be derived from Blank's Levels of Questioning, Bloom's Taxonomy, or the 3H (Here, Hidden, In My Head) frameworks for example. Students can also be encouraged to use these frameworks to generate their questions.
When thinking about different comprehension strategies it is helpful to remember that children are able to comprehend stories told to them orally before they are able to read stories. Comprehension is therefore something that children initially develop as they interact through listening and speaking. In terms of reading, comprehension becomes just as natural once children have learnt effective skills and strategies for effective reading comprehension.
Below is a list of the main reading comprehension strategies employed by 'good readers'.
Background knowledge/ Semantic knowledge
One very vital aspect that will influence leaners in their comprehension of a written text is their background knowledge of the topic about which they are reading. This is the case for any genre of writing. The more knowledge a reader has on the topic about which they are reading, the more they will be able to relate to this text. As they relate to the text, they will be more able to comprehend the message that the writer is trying to convey. This background knowledge that a reader has on the topic of the text is also referred to as semantic knowledge. As a reader comprehends a text, they are then able to add this new information to their schema (knowledge on a certain topic) and if their memory serves them well they can draw on this new-found knowledge in the future. There are different approaches that can be taken by the teacher to inform the reader's semantic knowledge, one of which would be introducing students to information about the text topic before reading begins. More information on ways to teaching this strategy can be found in the 'How to comprehension strategies' section of this website.
Size up the text
By looking at the text prior to reading students can examine certain features of the text such as the title, images, the layout, and captions, etcetera. Students would be shown how to skim and scan the text in order to gather general meaning and specific information just by examining briefly.
Decode and sample
Decoding of words and word meanings should also be taking place as the reader is skimming and scanning. Students can try decoding and deriving meaning from words, phrases and sentences. They can also try to gain meaning or gauge a general idea of what the text is about by reading a section of the text (sampling).
Make predictions
From the information gathered by sizing up the text and decoding and sampling, students can then try to predict what the topic of the text will be, what the meaning of the text is, and what the message might be that the writer is trying to convey.
Reread
If students become stuck on the meanings of words, phrases or sentences, they can stop and reread in an attempt to gain a better understanding. Reread can be a very simple and helpful way for students to gain a concrete understanding of words, phrases, sentences or concepts. Students may find that changing the speed of their reading will decrease their need to reread.
Reflect
Before, during and after reading students reflect on the meaning that they are forming within the text and can stop and re-examine their understanding throughout their reading. Here, students are also monitoring their own understanding. This is a good example of a metacognitive strategy as students are required to think about their own thinking.
Visualise
During their reading of the text students should be encouraged to construct mental images of what they are gathering from the text. This can also be referred to as a mental-model and will assist readers in their comprehension of the text as they relate the text to their own semantic knowledge. The mental-model theory places great emphasis on this strategy.
Genre
Before, during and after reading students should also be thinking about the genre of the text as they consider the setting, characters and other features of the writing, particularly for fictional texts. If texts are non-fiction, students should be encouraged to think about the characteristics of this text.
Summarise
Once the text has been read students should be encouraged to think about the main ideas behind the text and to summarise the text. They should also be encouraged to infer the meaning of the text, evaluate the text and then question
the intentions of the author. Students can also attempt to draw their own conclusion on the text and respond to the text.
Question
Another good strategy for students to use involves generating and answering questions that are literal, inferential, critical and creative. These types of questions encourage higher-order thinking from the reader and many different types have been proposed by different researchers. Teacher questions could be derived from Blank's Levels of Questioning, Bloom's Taxonomy, or the 3H (Here, Hidden, In My Head) frameworks for example. Students can also be encouraged to use these frameworks to generate their questions.