This week was about Complex Disciplinary Text, this reading gives students a different viewpoints of learning styles overall. In the beginning of the article, there was an example of Buehl giving of himself struggling with a scientific text. He struggled reading a text that was not his disciplinary text and wished, “we would all prefer to pick up a text and just read it, without any nicks in our flow of understanding without the thud of incomprehension, without the start realization that we have just read is not making any sense, and without that sinking feeling that this is going to take some serious work” (228) Does anybody else have this type of feeling? The feeling where you do not understand anything or that sinking type of feeling when reading a text that is confusing. When I was in high school studying for the ACTs, I was terrible at the science portion. Every time I did practice tests, and it was time for the science portion, I just wanted to cry because I felt as if I was never going to get any of the answers right. Unfortunately, I felt as if I was always going to fail so I never put in the hundred percent. I let my fear of failing get the best of me. But, Buehl states that one way he learned the text was by stopping after each paragraph and summarized what he learned to himself. He reread thoroughly, and jotted notes. In addition, he went back to previous sections and revisited past concepts, and connecting them to current topics. Lastly, he put himself in the shoes of a science guy- someone that knows about the subject and tried to analyze the reading in confidence. By doing all of these strategies he was seeing through a scientific lens. He started seeing possibilities as a science person and ended up getting an A. I wished instead of giving up and taking a bad score on the science part of the ACT, I tried different strategies to conquer it. But, I guess I was so scared that I was going to fail that I didn’t try. What disciplinary texts are difficult for you all? Have you tried these strategies to succeed? Did you fail or did you get a better understanding of the texts?
In addition, couple of the strategies stood out to me in the reading was Metacognition. This one is a really interesting one because the reader is able to be conscious of their own thinking. Behuel informs the audience that it is like having a split personality. One personality works directly with the author and understanding the text while the other personality makes sure everything is proceeding correctly. In the article it states, “The metacognitive voice is the one that periodically interjects, “Hold on there! His isn’t making any sense” The metacognitive voice sometimes evaluates, “I know I didn’t totally get that but I probably understood well enough to meet my goals” or “Unacceptable! We’re going to have to try something else here” (237) As you can see the metacognitive is different voices it can either be controlling, critical, or it can evaluate your understanding of the reading. I certainly talk to myself when reading different passages, but I never knew why I did that. Sometimes, I felt as if I had a split personality when analyzing critical texts. I personally find this beneficial for me because I am forced to be honest with myself. Sometimes, if I don't understand I end up being too critical with myself and give up. Do you talk to yourself sometimes when analyzing a text? If so, does it help?
In conclusion, I found this chapter extremely beneficial. I learned about new learning styles that I never knew about. As a teacher, this chapter can help you convey these learning styles to your students. When I was in high school, my teachers would not give me tips on different learning styles. It was more of you need to copy everything I am saying, and study that. There was no scaffold rehearsing, or learning about metacognition. I wish there was because maybe I wouldn’t have given up on science easily when I was in high school.
Zahra,
ReplyDeleteIt is true that most teachers expect all students to process information the same way. Not only that, but they expect you to read at the same speed. That's why I think what you said about providing the students with multiple comprehension strategies is important. Also letting the students know that one is cognizant that there are different learning styles should be part of our practice.
Hi Daniela!
DeleteYes, I definitely agree, it is important we provide students different multiple comprehension strategies because this can help them succeed in different disciplinary texts.
Great post. I definitely have had that sinking feeling with a difficult text. When starting up college my father gave me some advice he had heard, to read the textbook for the class straight through before class starts or as early on as possible. Even if you don't understand it. I tried to do that with a math textbook and found it to be almost physically painful to try to understood whole chapters of that material without and guidance or practice. And after feeling like I hadn't understood much of anything I had no motivation to try and press onto another chapter. It's very difficult to motivate yourself when the difficulty is just too high. I agree that scaffolding and learning techniques are critical sometimes for a student to be successful.
ReplyDeleteHi Joseph!
DeleteI agree its hard reading a text without different strategies to help you. It honestly becomes difficult and you lose motivation. Hopefully, with these strategies provided we can help our students not lose motivation in their readings
I think different styles of assessment will also help students engage with the text more. Like Chapter 6 says, students are often just looking for the answering and are not engaging with the text. There is obviously scaffolding that needs to happen to help the students get to that point, but there are ways to get around having students give basic answers on a work sheet. Allowing students to show their understanding through different modes will make them more likely to engage with the text fully. There are many strategies we have already discussed to help the students achieve better literacy and understand texts, but teachers need to come up with better assessments to understand the students understanding. -Kiley
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post, Zahra. I also liked the idea of the "metacognitive voice" as something you would hear in your head. It was interesting that Buehl talked about how some students might hear those questions in the teacher's voice instead of their own, which is something I think I have done in discourses that are less familiar to me. This also gets at one of Buehl's major points: that scaffolds should be temporary supports. Hopefully our students can learn, through the instructional supports we provide and continually adjust, to hear their own voice and gain their own "moves" as readers.
ReplyDeleteHi Catrina,
DeleteYou're definitely right! I really hope that students start to use their own voice than their teachers and trust their own instincts.
ReplyDeleteGreat Post! I truly relate to that struggle of approaching a difficult text feeling confused and and intimidated. Rather then figuring out a different way to approach the text, I accepted the lower grade as a result. However, if I knew how to scaffold my understanding of the reading, I could have probably been more successful with building my knowledge of the materials. That is why I feel this post is important when stressing how we need to listen to that meta-cognitive voice telling us that we don't understand. This is especially important in the classroom when students are likely lacking access to a sort of tool kit that breaks down the text in a more manageable way. Our job as teachers is not only to give them the information necessary to pass the class but to provide them the tools that will help them learn how to "teach themselves" in the future.
Hi Kyle!
DeleteI agree with you. It is important we give student tools that not only will help them succeed in the classroom but these strategies where they can be able to apply it anywhere.
Thanks for your post! I definitely can relate, being a Teaching of Mathematics major, I have always been into mathematics. When it came to science, however, I could not understand the articles for the life of me. When reading something you understand, the voice inside your head beings to make connections, but when reading something that is not familiar, we are left confused and the voice in our head further confuses us. There has to be disciplinary strategies for each discipline, to improve students comprehension. These strategies need to be introduced by educators, we should not be trying to read content in English the same as in our science classes!
ReplyDeleteHi William,
DeleteThank you for sharing your experience. I agree those voices in your head can be confusing, sometimes that voice can be beneficial but other times it can be negative and not motivating. Hopefully, educators will introduce these different strategies to the students.
Hi there, so I know exactly what you are talking about with the idea of failure and creating expectations for yourself. We do that so very often and limit ourselves with our own frustration. Slowing down, analyzing the text, and taking the time to interact with the text so that we can understand those that frustrate and confuse us most can grow us tremendously. We really ought to be encouraging this same determination in our future students.
ReplyDeleteI definitely relate to your feelings of frustration over the ACT! These high stake tests/exams put so much pressure on the students and I too had a lot of anxiety over them. I was convinced if I didn't do perfectly on the tests, all of my future plans would fall through the cracks! I think often times schools have good intentions, but end up creating toxic environments for their students by putting so much pressure on them.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the insight on the subject of learning skills. Its interesting to try and think about different strategies of learning. Personally, I can say its good to experiment with visual, direct note talking, or audio learning and trying to experiment with yourself. Exposing yourself to different ideas of processing information can improve a student's understanding information that is received its something that is worth thinking about if one wants to try and be a better student.
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