Decoding, knowledge, and strategies in comprehension of expository text

Abstract

We examined the relative contribution of decoding, topic knowledge, and strategic processing to the comprehension of social science text in a sample of Norwegian junior high school students. Additionally, we examined the interaction of topic knowledge with strategic processing on students' text comprehension, and whether poor word-level skill could be effectively compensated for by higher-level processing involving knowledge or strategies. Multiple regression analysis indicated that students' prior knowledge about the topic of the text contributed most to their comprehension. Students' reported use of organization and monitoring strategies contributed less but still significantly to text comprehension, as did their word decoding skills. However, no interaction between topic knowledge and strategic processing was found. Analyses of variance and post-hoc comparison tests, supplemented by a descriptive analysis, suggested that the coexistence of poor decoding skill and good text comprehension may be related to much topic knowledge, good strategy use, or both.

Developmental Relations Between Reading Comprehension and Reading Strategies

“…In addition, reading comprehension in Grade 4 had a unique effect on knowledge of reading strategies in Grade 5. Previous cross-sectional studies found small to moderate correlations between reading strategies and reading comprehension (e.g., Muijselaar & de Jong, 2015;Samuelstuen & Bråten, 2005). In accordance with these previous studies, we also found moderate relations between knowledge of reading strategies and reading comprehension, in both fourth and fifth grades.…”

Measuring strategic processing when students read multiple texts

“…Presumably, this concentration on accumulating historical facts may be reinforced by teacher beliefs in knowledge and knowing in history as the memorization and reproduction of factual information (cf., VanSledright 2002). At the same time, it should be noted that all elaborative processing is not created equal, and that elaboration may not always be facilitative and sometimes even counterproductive, as when it involves the incorporation of idiosyncratic, irrelevant background knowledge into text representations (Martin and Pressley 1991;Samuelstuen and Bråten 2005;Williams 1993).…”

Challenges and Support When Teaching Science Through an Integrated Inquiry and Literacy Approach

“…One of the prominent NLS scholars, Brian Street (1984), refers to the simple view of reading as an "autonomous model" of literacy, because it relies on the idea that literacy in itself-autonomously-will have specific cognitive effects regardless of the context in which these "skills" are applied. Autonomous models of literacy thus ignore how factors such as prior knowledge and cultural conventions greatly influence our understanding of a text (Norris & Phillips, 1994;Samuelstuen & Bråten, 2005) A social view of literacy, on the other hand, shifts the focus from a set of individual skills or competences to a view of literacy as something you do-a social practice involving text (Barton, 2007). Street (1984) refers to this as an "ideological model" of literacy, because it acknowledges that literacy is always embedded in different cultural and ideological contexts.…”