Debates in Reading

The ‘Traditional’ View

A first view of reading might be called the ‘traditional’ view. It is also called the ‘bottom-up’ approach, so-called because of its prioritisation of language.

The ‘bottom-up’ approach

The first view is called the ‘traditional’ view.
It is also called the ‘bottom-up’ approach, so-called because of its prioritisation of language.

Dole (et al)

This view is all about having the reader having a set of skills which are built upon to gain full comprehension.
Dole (et al) believe that the text holds clues, meaning and opportunities to learn and that it is the reader's job to decipher these.
In this method, the reader takes a passive role.

Nunan

Nunan believes that the child learns to decode written symbols into their aural equivalents (link the phonics method here).

McCarthy

McCarthy built on this saying that the traditional view is less ‘bottom-up’ and more ‘outside-in’ in the sense that meaning already exists, and the reader has to take this meaning in.

The ‘Cognitive’ View

The next view is called the ‘cognitive’ view. In opposition to the 'traditional' view, it is ‘top-down’ by which it means that the knowledge must be in place at the base.

Schema theory

The next view is called the ‘cognitive’ view.
In opposition to the previous view, it is ‘top-down’ by which it means that the knowledge must be in place at the base.
Linked in most closely with this is schema theory (you may remember this from spoken acquisition).

Rumelhart

Rumelhart believes that reading requires the ‘building blocks of cognition’ in order for the reader to be able to process the information they are receiving.
As a result, missing schema (or building blocks) can prevent a child from properly understanding and processing what the information means.

The psycholinguistic model

You can link this to children who have an excellent ability to read books, but a very poor ability to comprehend what is going on.
This view has also been equated with the psycholinguistic model.

Goodman

Goodman states that the reader is at the heart in the process of learning to read and that the reader makes hypotheses as they read to confirm or reject ideas.

The ‘Metacognitive’ View

The third and final system is called the ‘metacognitive’ view. In this, the reader thinks about what they are doing when they are reading (metacognition – thinking about thinking).

Metacognition

The third and final system is called the ‘metacognitive’ view.
In this, the reader thinks about what they are doing when they are reading.
(Metacognition – thinking about thinking).

Block

Block believes that the other two views are irrelevant because the reader controls their own ability to understand a text.
In this respect, he believes that reading is an active process.

Illustrative background for __Share__ ?? "content

Linked to this, Share believes that there is a process which takes place called phonological recoding in which the reader recodes what they know of phoneme-grapheme correspondence in order to correctly read words.

Klein (et al)

In addition, Klein (et al) believes that metacognitive readers do the following whilst reading a text:
- Finding purpose of the reading (this occurs before reading).
- Deciding what the form (type) of text it is (this occurs before reading).

Klein (et al) cont.

Look for features and conventions which typify the form of the text identified in the above.
Projecting the author’s purpose of writing the text onto the text.
Deciding whether to scan or to read in detail.
Predict what will happen in the text as they read (based on what has already happened, their existing knowledge and chapter endings).

1Language Levels

1.1Assessment Objectives

1.1.1Assessment Objectives

1.2Lexis

1.2.1Introduction

1.2.2Common, Proper, Abstract & Concrete Nouns

1.2.3Collective Nouns

1.2.4Adjectives

1.2.5Main, Auxiliary & Copular Verbs

1.2.6Dynamic & Stative Verbs

1.2.7Transitive, Intransitive, Active & Passive Verbs

1.2.8Mood of Verbs

1.2.9Adverbs

1.2.10Personal, Possessive & Reflexive Pronouns

1.2.11Relative & Demonstrative Pronouns

1.2.12Determiners

1.2.13Conjunctions

1.2.14Synonyms, Antonyms & Phonological Features

1.2.15End of Topic Test - Lexis

1.3Grammar

1.3.1Morphology

1.3.2Clauses

1.3.3Phrases

1.3.4Present Tense

1.3.5Past Tense

1.3.6Future Tense

1.3.7End of Topic Test - Grammar

1.4Semantics & Pragmatics

1.4.1Semantics

1.4.2Pragmatics

1.5Discourse Structure, Graphology & Orthography

1.5.1Discourse Structure

1.5.2Graphology & Orthography

1.5.3End of Topic Test - Semantics, Graphology etc.

2Language, The Individual & Society

2.1Children’s Language Development

2.1.1The Exam

2.1.2Phonemes, Vocal Tract & Articulation

2.1.3Writing About Phonemes

2.1.4Phonological Simplification

2.1.5A Child's First Year & Consonant Acquisition

2.1.6Beginning Stages of Language

2.1.7Lexical Development

2.1.8Stages of Development

2.1.9End of Topic Test - Child Language Development

2.2Children's Language Development - Theories

2.2.1Behaviourism

2.2.2Interactionism

2.2.3Challenging Interactionism

2.2.4Nativism

2.2.5Nativism - Exam Answer

2.2.6Cognitivism

2.2.7Social Constructionism

2.2.8Writing About Spoken Acquisition

2.2.9End of Topic Test - Development Theories

2.3Literacy Development: Reading

2.3.1Introduction

2.3.2Phonics vs Whole Word

2.3.3Debates in Reading

2.3.4Modelling Reading Acquisition

2.3.5Other Reading Theories

2.3.6End of Topic Test - Reading

2.4Literacy Development: Writing

2.4.1Orthography

2.4.2Kroll's Theory

2.4.3Barclay's Theory

2.4.4Creativity vs Accuracy

2.4.5Other Writing Theories

2.4.6The Exam

2.4.7End of Topic Test - Writing

3Language Diversity & Change

3.1The Importance of Gendered Language

3.1.1Writing About Gender

3.1.2Dominance Theory

3.1.3Interruptions - Zimmerman & West

3.1.4Deficit Theory

3.1.5Difference Model

3.1.6Difference Model - Men

3.1.7Diversity Model

3.1.8End of Topic Test - Gendered Language

3.2Social Groups

3.2.1Writing About Social Groups

3.2.2Social Class

3.2.3Social Class 2

3.2.4Age

3.2.5Age - Teen Speak

3.2.6Milroy’s Belfast Study

3.2.7Labov’s Martha’s Vineyard Study

3.2.8End of Topic Test - Social Groups

3.3Occupational Groups

3.3.1Writing About Occupational Groups

3.3.2Jargon

3.3.3Conversations

3.3.4Hierarchy & Power

3.3.5End of Topic Test - Occupational Groups

3.4Accents & Dialects

3.4.1Writing About Accent & Dialect

3.4.2Introduction to Accents & Dialects

3.4.3Accents - Matched Guide Experiment

3.4.4Accents - Received Pronunciation & Brummie

3.4.5Dialects - Dialectal Variations

3.4.6Accent & Dialect Case Study - London

3.4.7End of Topic Test - Accents & Dialects

3.5Language Change

3.5.1Writing About Language Change

3.5.2Modelling Change

3.5.3Modelling Change 2

3.5.4Lexical Change

3.5.5Semantic Change

3.5.6End of Topic Test - Language Change

3.6History of English

3.6.1Old English

3.6.2Old English 2

3.6.3Middle English

3.6.4Middle English 2

3.6.5Early Modern English

3.6.6Late Modern English

3.6.7Present Day English

3.6.8Global English

3.6.9American English

3.6.10Modelling Global English

3.6.11End of Topic Test - History of English

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