The intervention package teaches students to use reading comprehension strategies
independently, including text 
prediction, summarization,
Jim's Hints for Using...
Reciprocal Teaching |
Let
students select Reciprocal Teaching passages. Allow the group
to vote for a preferred passage from among several possible choices. Choice often increases student motivation
and investment.
Start a 'Reciprocal Teaching' Tutoring Program. Once students
become proficient in using the Reciprocal Teaching package, consider assigning them as peer tutors to train other
students to use Reciprocal Teaching strategies.
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question generation, and clarification of unknown or unclear content.
For effective-teaching tips to use when introducing this strategy, consult the guidelines presented in Introducing Academic Strategies to Students: A Direct-Instruction
Approach.
Materials:
Preparation:
- · Prepare overheads of sample passages.
Steps in Implementing This Intervention:
Step 1: Set aside at least four successive instructional days to introduce
students to each of the following comprehension strategies:
- Day 1: Prediction,
- Day 2: Summarization ("list main ideas"),
- Day 3: Question Generation,
- Day 4: Clarifying.
As you introduce each strategy, "think aloud" as you apply the technique
to a sample passage, write down responses on the Reciprocal
Teaching Strategies Worksheet, and check for student understanding
of key concepts. (NOTE: See the student handout, Be a Careful Reader!: Four Strategies to Better Understand What You Are Reading, for a review of the core concepts of Reciprocal Teaching.)
Step 2: After students have been introduced to the key strategies, the
group is now ready to apply all four strategies from the Reciprocal Teaching package to a sample reading passage. For each strategy (prediction, summarization, question
generation, clarifying), briefly review the technique. Then randomly select a student "instructor" to
guide the group to apply the strategy and complete the relevant section of the Reciprocal
Teaching Strategies Worksheet. (Be prepared to offer assistance to the
student "instructor" as needed.) Give specific praise to students for appropriately using comprehension
strategies.
Step 3: As the group shows an increased
mastery of the strategies, assign students to read text segments silently. Then take the students as a group through
the four strategies, calling on different students to discuss how they applied the strategies to the passage.
Step 4: Give students copies of the Reciprocal Teaching Strategies Worksheet and instruct
them to read a passage silently without interruption. Prior to their starting, remind students to take time occasionally
during reading to make predictions about the text, note main ideas, formulate key questions, and clarify unclear
material.
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Troubleshooting:
While they participate in the large-group instruction, some students do
not appear to use the comprehension strategies in their independent reading.
After independent reading assignments, pair students off to compare their completed Reciprocal Teaching worksheets.
Have individuals in each student pair alternate in discussing how they applied the strategies. Walk around the
room observing discussion. If you notice that a student has failed to complete his or her worksheet, pull him
or her aside later for a private conference to discover what problems might be preventing the student from using
these strategies.
Students do not use the Reciprocal Teaching strategies across instructional settings. Let other teachers know that you have taught your students to use this package of comprehension
strategies. Share copies of the Reciprocal Teaching Strategies Worksheet with your fellow instructors and invite
them to use it. Share a copy of the worksheet with students' parents and encourage them to see that their child
uses it for all reading assignments.
References
Lysynchuk, L.M., Pressley, M., & Vye, N.J. (1990). Reciprocal teaching
improves standardized reading comprehension performance in poor comprehenders. The
Elementary School Journal, 90, 469-484.
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