Expository Text Comprehension in the Primary Grade Classroom

• 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
• ISSN: 0022-0663; 1939-2176
• DOI: 10.1037/0022-0663.97.4.538

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.