Dimensions of Comprehension

Dimensions of Comprehension

Dimensions of Comprehension

Comprehension

Comprehension

- the core of

- the core of reading

reading

- involves thinking

- involves thinking

- the ultimate aim

Comprehension

Comprehension

- the core of

- the core of reading

reading

- involves thinking

- involves thinking

- the ultimate aim

Dimensions Of Comprehension

Dimensions Of Comprehension

Based on the Gray, Gates, Smith & Barrett  Based on the Gray, Gates, Smith & Barrett 

models models

Level I

Literal Comprehension

-is the ability to obtain a low-level type of understanding by using only information explicitly stated in the text.

 Facts and details

 Rote learning and memorization  Surface understanding only

 Common questions used are who, what, when and where questions.

Question starters:

Level

II

Interpretation

- demands a higher level of thinking because the questions concerned with answers not directly stated in the text  but suggested or implied.

 Drawing inferences

 Tapping into prior knowledge /

experience

 Attaching new learning to old information

 An inference is the ability to connect  what is in the text with what is in the mind to create an educated guess.

2003)-Question starters:



why



how might 

Level III

Evaluation (Critical Reading)

- involves the making of a

personal judgment on the

text by the reader.

Looking at the text on two aspects:

-the use of language -literary devices

Question starters:



what can you learn from



how might you



what if 

Sample Questions:

1.

Does

the

author

provide

adequate

support

for

his

conclusion? Is he attempting to

sway your opinion?

2.

What part of the story best 

Level IV

Integration (Application to self & life) - stresses reading for use and for values clarification.

Level V

Creative Reading

- uses divergent thinking skills

to come up with new ideas or

alternate

solutions

to

those

presented by the writer.

 Reproducing the text information in a different form through dramatization, oral or musical interpretation, personal narrative, visual expression, or written expression.

The Blind Men and the Elephant

by John Saxe

It was six men of Indostan To learning much inclined, Who went to see the elephant  (Though each of them were blind)

That each by observation Might satisfy his mind.

The First approached the Elephant,

And happening to fall

Against his broad and sturdy side,

At once began to bawl:

“God bless me! But the Elephant 

Is very like a wall!”

The Second, feeling of the tusk,

Cried: “Ho! what have we here

So very round and smooth and

sharp?

To me it’s mighty clear

This wonder of an Elephant 

Is very like a spear!

The Third approached the animal,

And happening to take

The squirming trunk with his hands,

Thus boldy up and spake:

“I see,”

quoth he, the Elephant 

The Fourth reached out an eager

hand,

And felt about the knee

“What most this wondrous beast is

like

Is mighty plain,”

quoth he:

“

Tis very clear enough the Elephant 

The Fifth who chanced to touch the

ear,

Said, “E’en

the blindest man

Can tell what this resembles most;

Deny the fact who can,

This marvel of an Elephant 

The Sixth no sooner had begun

About the beast to grope,

Than, seizing on the swinging tail

That felt within his scope,

“I see,”

quoth

he, “the Elephant 

Is very like a rope!”

And so these men of Indostan

Disputed loud and long,

Each in his own opinion

Exceeding stiff and strong,

Though each was partly right,

Level I

 Who went to see the elephant?  Why did they wish to see it?

 Which part of the Elephant did each blind man touch and feel?

Level II

 What kind of man were the six men of  Indostan? Why do you say so?

 Read aloud the last two lines of the poem. What is meant by this part?

Level III

 This poem tells a story. What kind of  poem is it?

 What is the rhyme scheme of each stanza?

 What figure of speech is used in every stanza?

Level IV

 In what ways can people be like the men of Indostan? Explain.

 What must people do before making a conclusion or decision?

Level V

 List other things which resemble the parts of an Elephant. Based on your list, write a stanza or two about other blind men.

Check Your Understanding:

1. The reader makes inferences or “reads

between the lines”.

2. The reader applies the author’s ideas

to his own values.

3. The reader tries to come up with new

or alternate solutions to those presented by the writer.

4. The reader recalls what the text says.

5. The reader makes judgments about the ideas presented or the elements of style used by the author.

6. The core of reading or the ultimate aim of reading.

Identify the following:

1. What is the rhyme scheme of the

song?

2. Add another stanza to the song. Follow

the tone of the song by mentioning impossible or improbable quests.

3. Do you also have an impossible

Sources:

 ENGLISH 75 (The Reading Process)  ED 109A (Developmental Reading 1)  www. google.com