During-Reading Activity

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Every learner may achieve success in responding to literature despite of reading ability and one of the main benefits of reading journals and logs is increased comprehension. Students are empowered to grow as both readers and writers using own background in constructing their personal meaning and further encourages them to integrate new experiences with the past (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). During reading activities also helps in transforming students’ feelings and thoughts regarding what they have read into words hence enabling them to make personal connection to texts (Smith & Rubiano, 2011). Using journals and logs, students develop understanding of reading strategy, comprehension and record the progress of the students’ writing and new literature.

During reading activities, help students in to make notes in their own words and even write questions that may help them improve their memory. Students are likely to remember significant issues they derive by themselves and feel deeply. Reading a journal or logs is an ongoing process of evolving thinking and readers normally carry on an inner conversation with the text. Readers tend to respond with delight, wonder, or sometimes argue with the author, make connections and draw inferences to understand what they read.

Journal writing includes challenges of rationalizing one’s insecurities since most people are always tempted to portray themselves as perfect hence refusing to acknowledge what needs to be changed. Confused students may have the challenge of finding their place in the world, which eventually prompts the journal writers to be reactive to other people and suppress their desires. Some people may fear writing journals because they only reflect their own thoughts and emotions and that no one will ever read them (Schoenbach, Greenleaf & Murphy, 2012). They are simply not empowered by the fact that the contents of the journal are not supposed to be read by the third party. Journals and logs relay opinions and feelings making their content to cover one person’s perspective instead of giving a picture of the topic covered. A reader may therefore not acquire knowledge from different people and school of thoughts as opposed to reading other articles that are peer reviewed. Reading journals may not be objectively understood because various people may experience large discrepancies in the judgment of different types of work.

Reading activity greatly improves comprehension and understanding if properly applied. During reading, students are always actively involved in the text and a teacher is required to assist them in self-monitoring by guiding them in attending problems that may arise in during reading activities. Additionally, during reading activities facilitates comprehension while focusing attention, promoting reactions and allows for personal responses (Yopp & Yopp, 2010). Moreover, during reading enables students to construct image of what they have read and provides a memory representation of their interpretation. The mental representation of the students’ interpretation of the journal tends to improve the retention of the information and further positively affect conceptual development and comprehension monitoring.

According to Yopp & Yopp (2010), students’ entire lives depend on how they develop the ability to comprehend what they read because the main goal of reading comprehension is to enable the knowledge, skills, and experiences. The research points out at some strategies and corresponding instructional techniques that must be addressed before, during and after reading to activate students understanding and comprehension (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000). The research based strategies include activating prior knowledge, self-questioning, evoking sensory images, drawing inferences, conducting summaries, seeking clarification, and using fix up strategies to repair comprehension.

Readers ought to recall what they know concerning a topic prior to reading with new insight because this will lead to building necessary knowledge to ensure comprehension. Students may use various strategies such as anticipation guides, story impressions, and preview to recall even more information already known. Additionally, seeking clarification may greatly enhance students’ understanding, which is critical to learning and development. Readers’ awareness in understanding what they read is very important and teachers may include the explicit modeling of fix-up strategies to help students resolve their problems (Schoenbach Greenleaf & Murphy, 2012).

All these strategies play significant role in enhancing comprehension and understanding. The instruction provides a clear goal or purpose to improve on their awareness in understanding what the students are reading and employ strategies to identify difficult concepts and be aware of how a particular text is organized (Yopp & Yopp, 2010). Reading provides opportunity for both students and teachers to discuss what students read and encourage students to read and learn about concept or meaningful topic. The strategy further encourages the students to engage in reading related activities and even empowers them to read independently. Reading journals and logs sharpens students’ wits and make them comprehend and understand variety of concepts provided by the writers.

References

Harvey, S., & Goudvis, A. (2000). Strategies that work: Teaching comprehension to enhance understanding. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.Schoenbach, R., Greenleaf, C., & Murphy, L. (2012). Reading for understanding: How reading apprenticeship improves disciplinary learning in secondary and college classrooms. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, a Wiley imprint.

Smith, Rene J., & Rubiano, Margaret. (2011). The Book Lover’s Journal: My Personal Reading Record. Peter Pauper Pr.Yopp, R. H., & Yopp, H. K. (2010). Literature-based reading activities. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.