More to Know: The Construction-Integration Model of Comprehension Duke et al. (2011) provides a cogent explanation of Walter Kintsch’s widely cited theoretical model of comprehension, Construction-Integration (2004): We bring knowledge to the comprehension process, and that knowledge shapes our comprehension. When we comprehend, we gain new information that changes our knowledge, which is then available for later comprehension. So, in that positive, virtuous cycle, knowledge begets comprehension, which begets knowledge, and so on. In a very real sense, we literally read and learn our way into greater knowledge about the world and greater comprehension capacity. Kintsch’s own explanation follows this logical line of thinking: When we read, we draw on our knowledge of the world together with our perceptions of what we believe the text is about to construct a mental representation of what we think the text means. Learning is a matter of merging or integrating our mental representations with our stored knowledge. Thus, every time we read, we learn more. Kintsch suggests there are two aspects of reading that must merge for comprehension to occur: 1) the text base—what the text says; and 2) the situation model—what the text means. The text base (words, sentences, paragraphs) requires an accurate reading of the text for the purpose of getting the key ideas from the text into working memory. The situation model, on the other hand, integrates information from the text base with relevant prior knowledge retrieved from long-term memory, which is then folded into an emerging situation model of meaning of the text. Duke et al. (2011) sum it up: In our classrooms, comprehension begins with learning language in connection with experiences with text—hearing written language read aloud and engaging with and talking about books. In this regard, reading is not just a skill we help our students acquire but an integral part of the way they learn to use their minds—to think deeply within the text, beyond the text, and about the text—and engage in the quality, high-level comprehension that the new, more rigorous standards remind us is necessary if our students are to graduate from high school as proficient readers. What’s more, the ability to engage in sustained comprehension and sophisticated thinking and reflection is the hallmark of a successful, literate life (Scharer et al., 2018; Beers and Probst, 2017). Expand Knowledge and Enrich the Imagination Every day, we want our students to stretch themselves intellectually— to explore new concepts, topics, and themes, to try out new ways of thinking about books, to extend their vocabularies and increase their control over language. We also want them to challenge themselves through wide, varied reading, precise, focused writing, and as always, deep
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CHAPTER 2: READING
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