My high school did something slightly similar, but not exactly the same. In eighth grade, all of us were required to take placement tests. A few months later, we got our results. What they did with the results was place us in either an advanced, intermediate, or topic level class. All of the levels covered the same material, but they all moved at different paces. The advanced level moved the fastest and the topic level moved the slowest and was aimed at students that had trouble catching on to the material quickly. I believe that even if you placed into the topic level class you could still take the intermediate class if you wanted to. To my knowledge these topic level classes didn't do anything special like focus on specific strategies and what not to get the students up to grade level. This is where my high school differed from the school in the article.
On page 3, the author says "The ability to comprehend written texts is not a static or fixed ability, but rather one involves a dynamic relationship between the demands of texts and the prior knowledge and goals of readers." I really liked this quote because I feel that it articulated comprehending disciplinary texts very nicely. I think that so many of our students are having trouble understanding texts in different disciplines because they are not given the chance to interact with these texts. We need to tie in their prior knowledge where we can and we need to tie in the different modalities to give our students opportunities to see the texts in different ways other than just reading the words on the page. I think that if we try to bring the text to life as much as we can, it will help them get a better understanding and really build their vocabularies.
What are some other ways that you think we could help improve students' reading comprehension in different disciplines?
Did your high schools offer courses like the one mentioned in the text for struggling readers?
Thanks for reading!
My high school also did something similiar. We took placements tests and were given a schedule suggestion based on the results. They also would explain why they think the class would be beneficial and it was not simply "You did not test well." We also had to get approval from our teachers and advisors to either move to the more "advanced" class or to move to the class that provided more support. I think that schools, and not just high schools, should have options for students who either need more support or more challenging material. Every class we have had has discussed the importance of differentiating instruction. I am not sure exactly how to do it all in a classroom. I think centers are a good place to start. Students can access the material in different ways and can comprehend it as well.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that your counselors and teachers were able to explain to teachers why they thought the classes were a good fit for them. I also think it would be very beneficial for students to have that option. It would also take a lot off of the teacher's shoulders to know that their students are getting the help that they need
DeleteHey Des! Great post! I really like how you incorporated your own personal experiences from high school and middle school. Great connections! I think from my own thinking, that the other ways that you could help a students' reading comprehension in different disciplines is to really emphasize the importance of comprehending the readings that are given in any classroom. Because through all of the other disciplines, there's always going to be reading involved. Even if the class is a math or science class, they have to be able to read and understand what was read or what is being told to them. In some of my high school classes, they were given different levels, G, regular, and advanced/AP. The G courses were given to students that weren't at the regular level but still could benefit from the extra help.
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