Expository Text Comprehension in the Primary Grade Classroom

This study investigates the effectiveness of an instructional program designed to teach 2nd graders how to comprehend compare-contrast expository text. Along with introducing new content (animal classification), the program emphasizes text structure via clue words, a sequence of questions, and a gra...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of educational psychology 2005-11, Vol.97 (4), p.538-550
Main Authors: Williams, Joanna P, Hall, Kendra M, Lauer, Kristen D, Stafford, K. Brooke, DeSisto, Laura A, deCani, John S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Classrooms
Conventional Instruction
Educational psychology
Elementary school students
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Grade 2
Human
Instructional Materials
Male
Primary Education
Program Effectiveness
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Pupil and student. Academic achievement and failure
Reader Text Relationship
Reading Comprehension
Reading instruction
Teaching Methods
Text Structure
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Summary:This study investigates the effectiveness of an instructional program designed to teach 2nd graders how to comprehend compare-contrast expository text. Along with introducing new content (animal classification), the program emphasizes text structure via clue words, a sequence of questions, and a graphic organizer, and via the close analysis of specially constructed exemplar paragraphs. The authors compared the program with (a) more traditional instruction that focused only on the new content and (b) a no instruction control; 128 7- and 8-year-olds participated. Classroom teachers provided the instruction. The program improved students' ability to comprehend compare-contrast texts. Students were able to demonstrate transfer to uninstructed compare-contrast texts though not to text structures other than compare-contrast. Moreover, the text structure instruction did not detract from their ability to learn new content. The results provide evidence, heretofore lacking, that explicit instruction in comprehension is feasible and effective as early as the 2nd grade.
ISSN:0022-0663
1939-2176
DOI:10.1037/0022-0663.97.4.538