Online Activity, EDU 551

Reading Next documents the growing literacy problem in the United States.  As part of this, the article describes a growing problem following the elementary levels.  Overall, school systems have concentrated on word recognition however comprehension has been ignored.  While this has worked for students developing basic reading skills, through 3rd grade, it has proven to be detrimental to students in 4th through 12th grades.  As a result of this, Reading Next presents several key elements of an effective adolescent literacy programs.  First, and foremost, is the idea of direct, explicit comprehension instruction which is based on instruction in the strategies and processes that proficient readers use.  In reality, this idea has been presented previously, including by Gunning in Chapter 8 Comprehension: Text Structures and Teaching Procedures.  Throughout Chapter 8, Gunning presents ideas and techniques necessary to foster comprehension. As part of this, Gunning explains the tools that will build higher level literacy.


A further review of Reading Next reflects some very important aspects that have been previously discussed in IRA, Adolescent Literacy: A Position Statement.  Throughout this reading, the authors presented the principles that support adolescent literacy growth including the idea that adolescents deserve homes, communities, and a nation that will support their efforts to achieve advanced levels of literacy.  Overall, it is based on the fact that adolescent need support from the school, the local community, and the nation. Reading Next expands on this idea by calling for a comprehensive and coordinated literacy program that may coordinate with out-of-school organizations and the local community.    


As a secondary math teacher several of the elements presented in Reading Next can be utilized in my classroom to improve higher level literacy.  Overall, since math is a language of its own, building comprehension is essential to student success.  As part of this, direct and explicit comprehension instruction is essential.  I could easily achieve this by using techniques that will improve understanding including the use of selective reading guides for new vocabulary.  In addition, I believe that the use of explicit, planned questioning that gauges student understanding and comprehension is imperative.   


Further, the use of text based collaborative learning could be productive in a secondary math class.  For instance, I am a big proponent of jigsaw technique.  First, it requires students to work collaboratively to build understanding.  More importantly, it requires students to explain a topic to their peers.  In many situations, this can greatly improve student comprehension of a topic.  Maybe they do not understand how I explained a topic.  Many times students have a simple way of making sense of complex topics.  Overall, I could use jigsaw techniques in my math class when working through a complex topic that incorporates new math vocabulary.  In addition, it could be used in situations where there is, simply, more than one way to solve a problem.  For instance, when teaching systems of equations, I could have students jigsaw the different techniques (elimination, substitution, and graphing) for solving them.  


Finally, I believe that I could easily implement the use of diverse texts at a variety of difficulty levels and on a variety of topics in my secondary math classroom.  In my opinion, this could be done in several manners.  Initially, it would be very easy to have a "reading corner" in the classroom which includes diverse text and a computer.  Ideally, as a math teacher, some will be math related however a large portion would be student-relevant magazines, books, and approved web sites.  At my current internship placement, a middle school, the students are encouraged to use the computers in the room during homeroom and free time.  As part of this, they are not to use the computer for entertainment purposes.  Further, as a math teacher it is important to relate math topics to real world settings.  This can be done by bringing in relevant math articles or books that are subject related.  In addition, some of the articles could be on topics that students may not, initially, identify as directly related to math.