Toward a Theoretical Model of Text Complexity for the Early Grades: Learning From the Past, Anticipating the Future

Abstract

In this conceptual essay, we offer rationales and evidence for critical components of a working model of text complexity for the early grades. In the first three sections of the article, we examine word‐level, syntax‐level, and discourse‐level features of text, posing questions for future research. In the fourth section, we address elements of text treatments—the collection of texts with which beginning readers will interact longitudinally over the course of their early literacy development. This conceptual essay produces a unified treatment of the complexities of early grade text through the introduction of a theoretical framework, assimilating the extant research into a theory of early grade text and delineating a theoretical and empirical strategy for transforming the framework into a mature model.

An Examination of Text Complexity as Characterized by Readability and Cohesion

“…Although current recommendations are to use a multifaceted approach to evaluating text complexity, available concrete guidance is limited to suggesting how readability be interpreted by teachers, used in instructional decision making, and incorporated into the design of high stakes tests (Begeny & Greene, 2014;Mesmer et al, 2012;NGACBP & CCSSO, 2010b). Including text cohesion in the evaluation has important implications for providing instruction that is appropriately rigorous.…”

“…Questions about determining how challenging a text is and "should be for each student" (Gamson et al, 2013, p. 389) have contributed to the development of new recommendations for evaluating text complexity and matching readers to text (NGACBP & CCSSO, 2010a;Mesmer et al, 2012). Specifically, recent efforts suggest a three-pronged approach that places equal importance on qualitative dimensions (e.g., levels of meaning, requisite background knowledge), reader and task considerations (e.g., motivation, expectations for use or application of text), and quantitative dimensions (e.g., readability-the ease with which the text can be read; cohesion-the explicitness with which ideas in a text are linked).…”

“…We used indicators of the readability and cohesion of a text to explore the extent to which these objective aspects of complexity might influence the reading comprehension of high school seniors. Although educators have been using indexes of readability to evaluate instructional and assessment materials (Begeny & Greene, 2014), modern indexes of cohesion are relatively new to practitioners (Mesmer et al, 2012). Moreover, the cohesiveness of passages used on accountability assessments has not been explicitly provided to educators in the same way that those passages are labeled with a readability or Lexile level.…”

The TextEvaluator Tool

“…Mesmer, Cunningham, and Hiebert (2012) argue that measurements developed from these two different types of evidence are measuring two different constructs: text difficulty, and text complexity. While we agree that two different categories of evidence are collected and interpreted, we disagree that two different constructs are measured.…”

Culturally and Linguistically Relevant Readalouds

“…The standards of most U.S. states are now much more specific about the appropriate difficulty levels for texts in each grade level. In spite of the fact that texts in kindergarten through third grade have actually become increasingly difficult over the past decades (Hiebert, 2012), these standards have pushed even more complex texts into elementary schools though little evidence indicates that providing more difficult texts increases students' reading proficiency (Mesmer, Cunningham,& Hiebert, 2012).…”