English 423

ENGL 423
Teaching Reading in the English Classroom

1. Catalog Entry

ENGL 423
Teaching Reading in the English Classroom

Credit hours (3)

Introduces students, especially pre-service English teachers, to the teaching of reading comprehension.  Reading critically in fiction and non-fiction texts and as an active thinker and writer is emphasized.

2. Detailed Description of Course

The course content includes:
    1) Study of literacy and how to help students become better readers of a variety of
       texts.
    2) Study of the strategies that support comprehension of fiction and non-fiction texts,
       including pre-reading, during-reading, and post-reading strategies.
    3) Study of measures of readability and of the textual features that make texts more
       or less comprehendible, including illustrations, prior knowledge, and
       motivational factors.
    4) Study of instructional materials designed to support reading comprehension,
       including charts, prior knowledge inventories, organizers, semantic maps,
       response journals, and questioning templates and guides.
    5) Study of reading assessment
    6) Study of vocabulary acquisition

3. Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

ENGL423 offers students an opportunity to investigate the nature of literacy as a cognitive act while also applying that investigation to reading instruction in the English classroom at the middle and secondary levels.  Students analyze texts for readability and interest while designing lessons for larger and smaller group interactions and reading events.  Students in the class participate in a variety of whole-class and small-group discussions; students plan and implement lessons focused on teaching reading strategies; students likewise examine and analyze instructional materials designed to support reading comprehension of fiction and non-fiction texts.  Some attention is devoted to investigation of pertinent, official and statutory standards for both textbooks and trade books as are found in public school classrooms.  Students also write individually and in peer writing groups in response to audio-visual and web-based resources pertinent to specific literature selections, authors, genres, and contexts.

4. Goals and Objectives of the Course

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:
    1) Define literacy and identify its implications for classroom instruction (NCTE/NCATE
       Content Pedagogy III, Element 1).
    2) Plan reading instruction that uses research-based strategies that help students
       actively engage with and respond to a variety of texts (NCTE/NCATE Content
       Pedagogy III, Elements 1, 3).
    3) Plan standards-based reading instruction that uses a variety of individual and
       collaborative approaches (NCTE/NCATE Content Pedagogy III, Element 3).
    4) Design a range of authentic reading assessments that demonstrate an
       understanding of how learners develop and that address interpretive, critical,
       and evaluative abilities in reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing,
       and presenting (NCTE/NCATE Content Pedagogy III, Element 2)
    5) To explain vocabulary acquisition as a socio-psycholinguistic phenomena  
    6) Design or knowledgeably select appropriate reading assessments that inform
       instruction by providing data about student interests, reading proficiencies,
       and reading processes (NCTE/NCATE Content Pedagogy III, Element 4).
    7) Synthesize information from scholarly articles, textbooks, and coursework to
       support reading comprehension activities (NCTE/NCATE Content Pedagogy III,
       Element 1).
    8) Identify and explain measures of readability and of the textual features that
       make texts more or less comprehendible, including illustrations, prior knowledge,
       and motivational factors (NCTE/NCATE Content Pedagogy III, Elements 1, 3, 5).
    9) Identify and describe instructional materials designed to support reading
       comprehension, including charts, prior knowledge inventories, organizers,
       semantic maps, response journals, and questioning templates and guides
       (NCTE/NCATE Content Pedagogy III, Elements 1, 3, 5).

5. Assessment Measures

ENGL 423 uses a variety of assessment measures, which may include a number of the following:
    1) Informal writing activities such as readers’ logs, journals, and discussion questions;
    2) In-class student presentations with learning activities;
    3) Reading quizzes and examinations on assigned readings;
    4) In-class or take-home essay examinations on the assigned readings;
    5) Researched or non-researched essays on the strategies, concepts, and reference
       materials investigated in the course;
    6) Research project and / or final essay focused on an individually chosen topic;
    7) Lesson plans - traditional or web-based - designed to accompany fiction and
       non-fiction readings in a middle or secondary English classroom or library
       setting.

6. Other Course Information

None

Review and Approval