Exploring Literacy in Cyberspace

by Valorie A. Stokes, St. Joseph, Missouri

Overview

Whether they realize it or not, students are already immersed in a world full of multiple literacies. This lesson invites students to transfer the analytical skills that they commonly use when reading traditional print texts, along with some other strategies, to navigate and read online texts. Students then share what they discover about the thought processes and skills they can use to read and understand online texts.

From theory to practice

Watts Pailliotet, A., Semali, L., Rodenberg, R.K., Giles, J.K. & Macaul, S.L. (2000). Intermediality: Bridge to critical media literacy. The Reading Teacher, 54, 208–219.

Broadly defined, intermediality is the ability to “critically read and write with and across varied symbol systems.”

Students are part of the youth media culture—like it or not—and are already literate communicators who spend more time engaging with mass media outside classrooms than they spend in schools.

Just as we teach students to be aware of author purpose and text structure in reading, we must also help them identify such organizational structures in viewing and representing ideas through popular and electronic media.

If educators fail to acknowledge the meaning-making capabilities of extracurricular media messages and information, any attempts to increase literacy learning will be rendered incomplete.

Student objectives

Students will

Analyze the thought processes and skills they use to read and understand traditional print texts

Practice using the cooperative learning skills of active listening, taking turns, and sharing materials

Use the think-aloud strategy to record and label the thought processes and skills they use when navigating and reading an online text

Discuss and discern how their reading of print texts is similar to and different than their reading of online texts

Instructional plan

Preparation

Select three brief articles of interest from a local newspaper to use for modeling of the think-aloud strategy and student practice of the strategy. In addition, generate a list of appropriate and varied websites for students to access during Session 2 of the lesson. (See the List of Sample Websites for a few possibilities.) Bookmark the sites for quicker access and designate the student pairs in advance of the lesson.

Session 1

1. On an overhead, white board, chalkboard, or chart paper, record students’ responses to the question: “What are some skills, thought processes, or strategies you use when reading print materials, such as your textbook, a magazine article, or a newspaper article?” If students are not forthcoming with many ideas or suggestions, ask the question in a different way or ask further questions to solicit more information, such as: “How do you go about making sense of what you read from a book, a magazine, or a newspaper?”

2. Once the class has generated enough responses, help students categorize and label the types of thought processes and skills represented. For example, if a student says, “I think about a movie or TV show that is similar to the story I am reading,” the category could be “Connecting Thinking.” If a student says, “I try to figure out the meaning of a word by looking at others words around it,” the category could be “Word Attack Skills.” Make the categories as broad or as narrow as is comfortable for the class. A sampling of categories might include: “Imaging or Visualizing,” “Reacting,” “Evaluating,” “Noticing Text Features,” and “Marking Up Text.”

Before the next class session, type up the list of categories that students have generated and label it as “Reading Strategies Resource List.” The list will serve as a reference tool for later reading activities in the lesson. Make one copy of the list for each student.

Session 2

1. Distribute the “Reading Strategies Resource List,” which represents the thought processes and skills that students use when reading print materials.

2. Help students create shorthand symbols to represent each type of skill or thought process on the list and ask them to record the symbol on their copy of the sheet. These symbols will facilitate the labeling part of the think-aloud activity.

3. Distribute one of the newspaper articles to each student and invite one student to be the scribe. Have the other students follow along as you read the newspaper article aloud. While reading, convey your thoughts about the article for the scribe to record on an enlarged copy of the Reading Think-Aloud Sheet. A copy of the sheet can be presented on an overhead or drawn on chart paper or the chalkboard. Make sure to model a slower pace for this activity to give the scribe time to write your thoughts. Point out the reason for a slower pace to students as well.

Explain to students that as you read aloud, you will also say aloud whatever comes to mind as you read. For example, “This typeface is pretty small,” or “This article is unbelievable,” or “This story reminds me of an episode of the television show Seinfeld because the man sounds like Kramer.” Tell the scribe that they are only responsible for recording the thoughts you say aloud about the reading. These thoughts do not have to be recorded exactly word for word, but should sum up the general ideas.

4. After modeling the think-aloud, have the class work together on labeling the skills and thought processes that you used while reading the article. Students should refer to their “Reading Strategies Resource List” and indicate the appropriate shorthand symbol in the second column of the Reading Think-Aloud Sheet for each portion of the scripting.

Session 3

1. Review the think-aloud strategy modeled in Session 2 and the types of thought processes and skills class members decided might be used when reading a print text. Ask students if they have any questions and make sure that they have a copy of their “Reading Strategies Resource List” to use for the next activity.

2. Have students break into their pairs and practice each role of the process—reader and scribe—using the other two newspaper articles and the Reading Think-Aloud Sheet. Observe students while they are working and address any problems or confusion that the students experience.

3. After students have had an opportunity to practice as the reader and the scribe, allow time for them to share examples of some of the thought processes and skills they used while reading the articles. This will help reinforce the reading categories and shorthand symbols on the “Reading Strategies Resource List.” You may also want to ask about any problems the students had as reader or scribe and address those before continuing with the next phase.

4. Inform students that they will be using the same two-step process to read online texts during Session 4.

Session 4

1. From the list of bookmarked websites, have each student select two sites to read and fill in two copies of the Reading Think-Aloud Sheet with the URL for each site. Make sure that student pairs choose two different sites for a total of four different sites.

2. Students can decide the order for reading and scripting the sites. However, each student should act as reader twice and scribe twice. The reader will think-aloud as he or she is reading the site and the scribe will record the partner’s thoughts in the left-hand column of the Reading Think-Aloud Sheet. If a website has multiple pages, students should read the homepage and an agreed-upon page or pages to facilitate the process.

3. After both students have completed their reading and scripting portions of the activity, they will then use the “Reading Strategies Resource List” and help one another label the types of thought process and skills that they used to navigate and read each site.

Session 5

1. When all pairs have completed their Reading Think-Aloud Sheets, gather the class for a discussion on how their reading of online texts compared and contrasted with their reading of traditional print texts. Possible questions for this discussion include:

How was reading websites different from reading newspaper articles? How was it similar?

Did students use different or additional thought processes and skills to read the online texts? If so, what were those skills? If not, explain why.

Which reading experience, online or print article, did students prefer and why?

2. After the discussion, have students individually complete the Follow-Up Reflections Sheet to show what they learned about their reading process for online texts.

Extensions

Have students choose and read one online article from a magazine or newspaper and the print version of an article from the same magazine or newspaper. Ask them to write a follow-up paper about how the two texts and reading experiences compared.

Ask the class to generate a list of critical questions about nontraditional texts (e.g., a movie segment, television show, commercial, toy, game, logo) that they think should be answered. For example:

Then, have students select and read a triad of nontraditional texts. After reading, have them each choose one of the nontraditional texts to orally present their reading experiences to the class, making sure to address some of the critical questions that the class developed. The purpose of this activity is to help students identify the different kinds of reading strategies they use when reading nontraditional texts.

Student assessment/reflections

Thorough and correct completion of the shorthand symbols portion of the class-generated “Reading Strategies Resource List,” including additions made during the online reading activity and follow-up discussion

Successful navigation to and through the various sites

Completion of the Reading Think-Aloud Sheet for the selected websites, with thinking appropriately identified by shorthand symbols and reflective of sufficient understanding of the online text

Teacher observation and anecdotal notes about the students’ quality of cooperative interaction while working in pairs and their participation during class discussions

Completion of the Follow-Up Reflections Sheet, showing an awareness of the reading strategies for traditional and online texts