Reading and Writing in the Subject Areas

Timothy Shanahan

Cynthia Shanahan

University of Illinois at Chicago

www.shanahanonliteracy.com

Two Problems

PROBLEM I

Significant numbers of students read so poorly that they are unlikely to have access to full participation in American society

Lack

of

Lit

era

cy

25% of 8 th and 12 th graders

read at below basic levels

(NAEP, 2010) 1.2 million students drop out of

high school each year (AEE,

2007) High school dropouts earn an

average of $17,299 per year

(U.S. Census, 2005) Less than 10% of African

Americans read at proficient or

higher levels (NAEP, 2005)

Two Problems (cont.)

PROBLEM II

Significant numbers of students who are deemed literate – who meet standards – are not sufficiently literate to succeed in college or career

Insu

ffici

ent

Lit

era

cy

Att

ain

ment

A college degree is single greatest

factor in access to better job

opportunities and higher earnings

(Children's Defense Fund, 2000)

36% of college students require

remedial classes at a cost of $3.7

billion annually (U.S. DOE, 2011)

Remedial courses aren’t as helpful

as regular college classes

(Complete College America, 2012)

Only about 50% of students

entering college are equipped to

handle the reading assignments of

beginning college classes (ACT,

2006)

Thus,

2

pro

ble

ms:

A very real remedial problem of

students who read below

national averages and who are

unlikely to participate

economically or socially in

American society (don’t qualify

for either higher education or

entry level work) Significant numbers of students

who can read near, at, or above

U.S. averages, but who cannot

read well enough to complete

freshman-sophomore years at

college without remedial help or

to get beyond entry level in the

workplace

Som

e P

oss

ible

Solu

tions

Enhancements to early literacy instruction--According to NAEP, there

have been clear reading

improvements among

fourth-graders since 1992

--And yet, middle school

students are reading no

better than in 1992 (and

high schoolers appear to

have fallen)

Som

e P

oss

ible

S

olu

tions

(cont.

)

Avoiding text --Since 1990 there have been

content (knowledge) standards

in history, science, mathematics,

English language arts --Teachers have found ways of

getting info to students without

texts (e.g., PowerPoint, video)

--But ACT has found that amount

of challenging text reading

between 7 th and 12 th grades was

the best preparation of later

success

Som

e P

oss

ible

S

olu

tions

(cont.

)

Increasing remedial classes--This would mainly impact

those who are not going to

college--IES secondary studies and

funding streams (e.g.,

Striving Readers) suggest

that at best remedial classes

in high school raise reading

achievementonly by about 2 mos.

Som

e P

oss

ible

S

olu

tions

(cont.

)

Elevating literacy and

literacy instruction up

through through the

grades--ACT found that state standards

did not take specific reading

standards through high school

--Common core changes that for

46 states --Specific to content area classes

(literature, science, social

studies)

Not

Conte

nt

Are

a R

eadin

g

The shift in emphasis is

not to content area reading Content area reading is an

idea long advanced in

education (“every teacher

a teacher of reading”)

Focus is teaching general

reading and study skills in

the different subject

matter classes However, the underlying

idea of it is flawed

Dis

ciplinary

R

eadin

g

Inst

ruct

ion

Each discipline possesses its own

language, purposes, and ways of

using text that students should be

inducted into There are special skills and strategies

needed for students to make complete

sense of texts from the disciplines

As students confront these kinds of

texts (especially in middle school and

high school), instruction must facilitate

their understanding of what it means

to read disciplinary texts Instead of imposing the reading

curriculum on the subjects, the idea is

to identify the special reading skills of

the subject areas

Sourc

es

of

Dis

ciplinary

Lit

era

cy

Studies out of the cognitive science that

compare expert readers

with novices (Bazerman,

1985; Geisler, 1994;

Wineburg, 1991, etc.) Functional linguistics

analyses of the unique

practices in creating,

disseminating, evaluating

knowledge (Fang, 2004;

Halliday, 1998; Schleppegrell, 2004, etc.)

Conte

nt

are

a

readin

g:

Voca

bula

ry

Focus is on memorization

techniques: make connections among concepts, construct graphic organizers, brainstorm, semantic

maps, word sorts, rate

knowledge of words,

analyze semantic features

of words, categorize or

map words, develop

synonym webs,

Dis

ciplinary

lite

racy

:

Voca

bula

ry

Focus is on specialized

nature of vocabulary of

the subjects Science: Greek and Latin

roots (precise, dense,

stable meanings that are

recoverable) History: metaphorical

terms, words/terms with a

political point of view

Disciplinary Literacy

Intermediate Literacy

Basic Literacy

Increasing Specialization of Literacy

Dis

ciplinary

re

adin

g

The focus is on the specialized

problems and processes of a

subject area – including the

inquiry and communication

processes Disciplines represent cultural

differences in how information is

used, the nature of language,

demands for precision, role of

author in critical reading,

graphics and their relationship to

prose, etc.

Math

Readin

g

Goal: arrive at “truth”

Need to construct abstract

understanding of mathematics

(more than learning the concrete

examples) Importance of “close reading” an

intensive consideration of every

word in the text Rereading a major strategy

Heavy emphasis on error detection

Precision of understanding essential

His

tory

R

eadin

g

History is interpretative, and

authors and sourcing are central

in interpretation (consideration

of bias and perspective)

Often seems narrative without

purpose and argument without

explicit claims (need to see

history as argument based on

partial evidence; narratives are

more than facts) Single texts are problematic (no

corroboration)

History Reading (Wineburg)

Sourcing: considering the

author and author perspective

Contextualizing: placing the

document/info within its

historical period and place

Corroboration: evaluating

information across sources

History Events ChartTEXT WHO? WHAT? WHERE? WHEN? WHY?

1

Relation:

2

Relation:

3

Relation

4

Main point:

History Reading (Fang & Schleppergrell)

History text constructs time

and causation Attributes agency (readers

need to focus on the reasons

for actions and the outcomes

of those actions—cause/effect)

Presents judgment and

interpretation (argument)

Often narratives with lack of

clear connections to thesis

His

tory

Readin

g

(Fang &

Sch

lepperg

rell)

History texts construct meaning

about time, place, manner

through “grammatical

circumstances” Thus, in history, many clauses

begin with grammatical

circumstances realized in

prepositional phrases and

adverbs Over the next decade events led

to war. They gathered in Philadelphia.

They made enemies by their

harsh stands

His

tory

Readin

g

(Fang &

Sch

lepperg

rell)

History also constructs participants/actors and the

processes that they engaged in

to move towards their goals.

His

tory

Readin

g

(Fang &

Sch

lepperg

rel)

Clause

Circumstance

Actor Process Goal Circum.

1 Over the next decade,

further events

steadily led

to war

2 Some colonial leaders, such as Samuel Adams

favored independ-ence from Britain.

3 They encour-aged

conflict withBritish authorities.

4 At the same time,

George II and his ministers

made enemies of many moderate Colonists

by their harsh stands

Sci

ence

(C

hem

istr

y)

Readin

g

Text provides knowledge that

allows prediction of how the

world works Full understanding needed of

experiments or processes

Close connections among prose,

graphs, charts, formulas

(alternative representations of

constructs an essential aspect of

chemistry text) Major reading strategies include

corroboration and transformation

Chemistry Note-taking

Substances Properties Processes InteractionsAtomic Expression

Sci

ence

Readin

g

(Fang &

Sch

lepperg

rell)

Sentence density: unpacking complex nouns

Experimental verification of

Einstein’s explanation of

the photoelectric effect was

made 11 years later by the

American physicist Robert

Millikan. Every aspect of Einstein’s

interpretation was confirmed, including the

direct proportionality of

photon energy to frequency.

Sci

ence

Readin

g

(Fang &

Sch

lepperg

rell)

Technical, abstract, dense,

tightly knit language (that

contrasts with interactive,

interpersonal style of

other texts or ordinary

language) Nominalization (turning

processes into nouns)

Suppresses agency (readers need to focus on

causation not intention)

Lit

era

ture

(E

LA

)

Focus on explorations of

the meaning of human

experience and the aesthetic uses of language Much literature is fictional,

but meant to address

larger truths Usually unstated messages (themes)

Literary devices (allusion,

metaphor, symbolism,

etc.)

Character Change Chart

What is main character like at the beginning of the story?

What is the main character like at the end of the story? How has he or she changed?

Crisis

Given this character change, what do you think the author wanted you to learn? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A C

riti

cal M

issi

on:

Maki

ng

Adole

scent

Lite

racy

an

Imm

edia

te P

riori

ty

2009 SREB report called for states to identify the reading skills students needed

to improve reading achievement in key academic subjects through high school.

Com

mon C

ore

S

tate

Sta

ndard

s Common core state standards for

the English Language Arts and

Literacy in Social Studies/History

and Science/Technological

Subjects Includes a specific focus on what

literacy abilities to foster in

history/social studies, literature,

and science/technical subjects

Other states joining in, too

Educa

tional

Implica

tions

Shifts in teacher preparation

and professional development

for existing teachers Need for programs,

instructional materials, and

other curriculum supports

Need for assessments that

include science, history,

mathematics, and literary

texts (with disciplinary

specific questions) But what about students who

have not had opportunities to

learn these aspects of

literacy?

Transi

tional

cours

es

SREB, with the support of Gates

Foundation, and in partnership

with Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky,

North Carolina, Oklahoma, and

Tennessee, is developing

“transitional courses” with a focus

on disciplinary literacy

Not remedial courses, per se, but

courses that will allow success for

those students on track to

graduate high school, but who are

not college ready These courses will not be general

reading courses, but disciplinary

literacy courses aimed as honing

students’ abilities to read

literature, science, and history

Course modules (2 per discipline)

being developed to reduce need

for college remediation

Concl

usi

ons

Economic vitality of the

region requires higher

literacy skills Remediation alone insufficient to meet needs of

remedial readers (so

literacy learning opportunities in subject

areas is essential) But many literacy

limitations not evident until

college, and these need to

be addressed through

disciplines

Som

e

reso

urc

es

Shanahan & Shanahan. (2008).

Teaching disciplinary literacy to

adolescents. Harvard Educational

Review, 78, 40-59. Shanahan, Shanahan, & Misichia

(2011). Analysis of expert readers in

three disciplines: History, mathematics,

and chemistry. Journal of Literacy

Research, 43, 393-429. Shanahan, T., & Shanahan, C. (2012).

What is disciplinary literacy and why

does it matter? Topics in Language

Disorders, 32, 1–12.

Fang & Schleppegrell. (2008). Reading

in second content areas: A language-

based pedagogy. University of Michigan

Press..

Reading and Writing in the Subject Areas

Timothy Shanahan

Cynthia Shanahan

University of Illinois at Chicago

www.shanahanonliteracy.com