Internet: Online Reading Comprehension

    The internet can be a very confusing and intimidating place for a beginner, and reading it is like reading several things all at once.   The concepts of text are very different from teaching a child to read a linear book or page.  “In contrast, Internet texts are part of a complex open-ended information system that changes daily in structure, form, and content.  Readers may enter into the "middle" of an Internet text from countless origins, and, often, they encounter distracting advertisements, inconsistent text structures, broken links, and access to an infinite amount of information completely unrelated to their intended reading purpose.”(Coiro, Dobler, p.220)  We have to teach students to filter out the less important information that may pop up and be on the side of a page.  They need to understand what not to click on what is appropriate to click on.  My little brother has used a computer from a very young age and we were always sure to remind him not to click on any pop-ups or things offering him free deals.  This article focused on a study of 6^th graders reading various types of websites.  The findings were that is helped students comprehend a site when they had prior knowledge of “knowledge of the topic, knowledge of printed informational text structures, knowledge of informational website structures, and knowledge of Web-based search engines.” (Coiro, Dobler, p.231) I think the more practice the students get with reading on the Internet the better they will get at it.  It is important not to assume that all students just know what they are doing, no matter what the age, because they have all had different experiences coming in. 

- “Exploring Online Reading Comprehension Strategies used by sixth-grade skilled readers to search for and locate information on the Internet”

There is a whole new world of comprehension when we compare reading a book to reading the internet.  Children have to develop the strategies for reading the internet before they can begin to comprehend what they are reading.  Webpages come in ALL forms…so as teachers, where do we begin to teach children the best strategies for reading them?  The article talks about first having your students pose a question or problem to try to answer before they begin exploring the internet. (Leu, Coiro, Castek, Hartman, Henry, Reinking, p.4) This way they are giving themselves a focus and not just getting lost in all that they could find.  Also, like with anything we need to stress to students to be critical of what they are reading, especially when reading on the internet.  Giving students the tools needed to analyze a web site, and make sure it is a reliable source, is a vital step in internet reading.  This article addresses that there should be scaffolding happening when teaching reading and comprehension online.  It explains it in phases, where first the teacher is modeling to the class the best strategies for reading a webpage are, and then gradually they give the students more and more independence with the process. “It is also likely that students and teachers will engage in important online reading projects to advance content area learning while they also develop greater proficiency with online reading comprehension. In addition, it is quite likely that students will collaborate with other students around the world in common learning projects.” (Leu, Coiro, Castek, Hartman, Henry, Reinking, p.15) These things are already becoming a part of many classrooms, and teachers need to begin teaching these future citizens the tools needed to explore reading on our rapidly growing internet.

- “Research on Instruction and Assessment in the New Literacies of Online Reading

Comprehension”

In this article the authors believe there are “five processing practices required when reading on the Internet: (a) reading to identify important questions; (b) reading to locate information; (c) reading to evaluate information critically; (d) reading to synthesize information, and (e) reading and writing to communicate information.” (Leu, O’Byrne, Zawilinski, McVerry, Everett, p.5)  Again, like the other two articles, this shows there are many skills that go into reading on the internet as opposed to reading a book.  BUT this article brings up a vital point, why aren’t there internet skills required for the State tests, when there is research saying that students are going to need these skills.  From that the “rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer,” (Leu, O’Byrne, Zawilinski, McVerry, Everett, p.6)  just like what is being fought in the “Occupy Wall Street Movement.” The poorer school districts are focusing on getting their test scores up for these tests, therefore they are straying away from building these internet reading skills.  They may not have the same supplies and richer districts, but they should still be practicing with the few computers they may have.  Meanwhile the rich schools have an abundance of technological supplies and are incorporating this growing reading “technique” into most lessons.  How can we lessen this gap?  How can we help give EVERY student the same chance at success in the real world?

- “Expanding the New Literacies Conversation”