Running head: ARTICLE SYNTHESIS

Article Synthesis Deneen Robie University of New England EDU 743 1/29/12

D. Robie ARTICLE SYNTHESIS All teachers must find ways to incorporate more reading and writing skills into their classrooms. Reading comprehension is key to learning content. There is a common set of strategies that good readers employ. It is important that classes help develop this skill set. Regular discourse in the classroom is vital to have students increase these skills. The following articles highlight conversation and cognitive strategies that aid students in reading comprehension and writing.

The first article was Conversation: The comprehension connection by Ann Ketch. The article is about conversation being the foundation of reading comprehension. The basis of the article is that different types of conversations help students become critical thinkers. As this is a skill that our students need to continue developing it is important to use strategies to do so in all content areas. The article surmises that the use of cognitive strategies connected to conversation helps with comprehension. First the article details seven cognitive strategies that help readers comprehend what they are reading. These strategies are making connections, questioning, mental imagery, determining what is important, retelling, synthesizing and corrective measures. (Ketch, 2005) At the top of the list, it is important for students to connect, text to text, text to self and text to world while they are reading. Students paying attention to the questions they ask themselves as they read is another learning strategy. Creating pictures in their head about what they are reading is also part of understanding. The ability to weed out what is important in a piece, what are the main ideas and key points is critical. Students should be able to understand the reading in order to retell it and synthesize it with prior knowledge. The article also touches on the

D. Robie ARTICLE SYNTHESIS

fact that readers are constantly making corrections while reading to understand and be active readers. These are the strategies described that help enhance comprehension. The conversation piece of this article that Ketch writes about can be in many forms such as whole class instruction, think/pair/share, small group discussions, individual conferences, book clubs, literature circles and cross-age conversations. Ketch writes that conversation is what gives students the practice to think. When we create discussion amongst students about what they are reading and writing we then practice more in depth comprehension. These oral conversations help students become thinkers in the world around them. (2005) The second article was, Using written conversation in middle school: Lesson

from a teacher researcher project by William P. Bintz and Karen S. Shelton. The article
is about a research project that Ms. Shelton completed in her middle school language art classes. The idea came from the fact that middle school age students communicate with each other through note writing. Then research was compiled by William Bintz concluding that students were practicing cognitive strategies while engaging in this form of writing to a classmate. The research was based on a conference that Karen Shelton attended promoting text sets for use in reading and writing lessons. Teachers were to create and complete a research project and then report out on their findings. Ms. Sheltons project started with her reading aloud from a social studies connected text to her students. At different points she stopped reading and had students converse by writing notes on one

D. Robie ARTICLE SYNTHESIS tablet back and forth about the text. She then had them reflect on the activity. The research was compiled by Mr. Bintz and written into the article. After the summary of how the research project was completed the results were discussed. Mr. Bintz put together the data into categories of the reading processes. The six categories were predicting, inferring, connecting, taking a position, questioning and picking up on inconsistencies in the text. (Bintz & Shelton, 2005) These reading processes were determined from students written conversation. The article speaks of

how reading and writing when taught together help students in their understanding and deeper level of thinking. The conversation piece is described well by Mr. Bintz saying, In this instance, students recognized that written conversation was a social engagement, not an individual activity and expressed a heightened awareness of their responsibility to each other. (2004) Comments were made from the students saying they wanted to write better and listen to the reading more so they would know what to write. The nature of the activity created enthusiasm. The research connected to other research about conversation and how it helps with comprehension. These two articles clearly believe that reading and writing are important skills for students to build upon in all content classes. There is a similar theme that one can take from these articles. The idea is that conversation, whether it is oral or written, allow students to practice cognitive strategies that enhance comprehension. Mike Schmoker in his book FOCUS concentrates on literacy skills stating, Effective text-based reading and discussion are, in turn, the perfect preparation for writing - which takes thinking to

D. Robie ARTICLE SYNTHESIS an even higher level. (2011) When students read, cognitive strategies like connecting,

inferring and questioning, help in understanding. Students need to practice these skills. Both articles are promoting conversation for students to practice. The articles differ on how students might communicate. While the Ketch article promotes oral conversation, such as whole class discussions or think-pair-share, the Bintz & Shelton article uses a note passing approach to engage students in a written dialogue. As a middle school social studies teacher, both articles are very informative in their similarities and in their differences. Students practicing oral conversation should be part of every classroom. Ketch uses Regie Routman as a source, summarizing her saying that, Conversation is our connection to comprehension. (2005) Oral conversation takes many forms and each has its place. Another idea that promotes the students listening and thinking is the note writing. This will be a great strategy to mix in amongst the oral conversations. It is clear that cognitive strategies are necessary and conversation is a great way to promote them.

ARTICLE SYNTHESIS References

Bintz, W. P., & Shelton, K. S. (2004). Using written conversation in middle school: Lessons from a teacher researcher project. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 47(6), 492-507. Ketch, A. (2005). Conversation: The comprehension connection. The Reading Teacher, 59(1), 8-13. Schmoker, M. (2011). FOCUS. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.