Content Area Reading: Teaching and Learning in the Age of Multiple Literacies
by Maureen McLaughlin
From MaryEllen Vogt:
During the past twenty years, Maureen McLaughlin has been a pioneer in articulating comprehension processes and critical literacy. At the same time, she has provided teachers with practical, use-tomorrow, classroom-tested instructional techniques and activities for effectively teaching comprehension, while incorporating critical literacy perspectives.
Maureen McLaughlin is first and foremost a teacher, and in her writing, research, and professional development efforts, it is the teacher’s voice that is always heard. In this bold, new content reading text, she once again breaks down barriers between the theoretical exploration of diverse literacies (e.g., critical, media, information, and multicultural), and the practical realities of today’s elementary and secondary students. She suggests that these youngsters, whose generation is identified as the Millennials, are plugged in, turned on through a myriad of technological tools, and at times tuned out while they sit placidly in their traditional content classrooms.
Early in this ground-breaking text which teachers, teacher-educators, and administrators will find indispensible, Maureen McLaughlin states, “In the past, being literate required only that we be able to read and write, but in today’s world, we need to be fluent in multiple literacies.” Through this book, the reader will find practical, effective instructional techniques situated in the multiple literacies of our time. Always grounded in the realities of the classroom, the book includes textual features that engage the reader, including Making Connections, electronic resources, portfolio and performance assessment ideas, and opportunities for collaboration with other teachers. Teachers who commit to using the approaches as recommended in this terrific content reading book, will motivate, stimulate, and engage their students in carefully and critically examining the content and varied texts they encounter both in school and out. The strategies the students will learn are those that will prepare them to be successful readers, learners, and thinkers in this exciting and challenging multiple-literacy environment.
From Dick Allington:
Maureen McLaughlin's new book on content area reading is a gem. A gem because 1) it so thoroughly addresses what we already know about developing content reading proficiencies in students and 2) it also addresses a broad and contemporary set of issues around content area reading that have been too often omitted in previous works on the topic. This is a practical book, a useful book. Readers will not only learn about how we might better address content area reading but also will learn about the emerging theme of developing multiple literacies in students. For too long actual reading instruction typically ended shortly after students completed fourth grade. If we hope to foster better reading achievement throughout the school years, we must continue to teach students how to read more complex and different sorts of texts than those found in elementary school reading series. This book provides teachers with a great start in achieving that goal.
With three full chapters on reading comprehension (reflecting the before, during, after reading approach) and a separate chapter that explores multiple literacies, Content Area Reading: Teaching and Learning in an Age of Multiple Literacies, has a wealth of practical strategies for teaching reading, writing and study skills in the content area classroom.
See what's inside:
- Teaching Ideas icons found throughout chapter margins highlight practical strategies to use across content areas. Teaching Ideas that are specific to fostering student comprehension feature 5 steps of explicit instruction: 1. explain, 2. demonstrate, 3. guide, 4. practice, 5. reflect. After students walk through the strategy, they are able to see applications of the strategy within content-specific classroom examples. Student artifacts, student dialogues, and student writing samples show the real-life application of each Teaching Idea.
- Every chapter opens with a chapter outline highlighting the key questions addressed within each chapter. Chapter outlines also have a complete list of the Teaching Ideas offered in the chapter.
- Chapters are supported by feature streams that enhance comprehension by "making connections:"
- Making Connections to Multiple Literacies notes found in all chapters connect chapter topics to different aspects of multiple literacy (ex. media literacy, critical literacy, mathematics literacy, visual literacy, etc.)
- M aking Connections to Struggling Readers apply chapter topics to issues surrounding struggling readers
- Making Connections to English Learners are notes that explore issues related to teaching English language learners
- Making Connections to Writing features link chapter coverage to writing opportunities and give examples of ideas for writing assignments
- Making Connections to Study Skills are notes that connect chapter topics to teaching different aspects of study skills and strategies
- Making Connections boxes encourage students to actively engage with the chapter content by posing a question and then asking students to share their responses with a small group
- Final Thoughts at the end of each chapter provide a chapter summary
- E-Links annotated weblinks at the end of every chapter give students an opportunity to explore chapter topics in greater depth
- Accountable Talk provides students with ideas for small group discussions
- Portfolio/Performance Opportunity at the end of each chapter are ideas for expanding students' professional teaching portfolios
The Appendixes are practical, reproducible, idea-filled teaching resources that support a variety of topics addressed throughout the book. Examples featured include blackline masters, Discussion Circle Bookmarks, Double Entry Journal formats, Press Conference Checklist, First-Person Experience Rubric, form poems, and examples from projects such as the Content Area Resource Anthology, Student-Authored Electronic Books, and Transmediations.
MyEducationLab icons throughout connect chapter content to video, student artifacts, and lesson planning resources. To get access to MyEducationLab with the book, use the ISBN: 0136101313
To order this book WITH MyEducationLab, use either ISBN:
ISBN-13: 9780136101314
ISBN-10: 0136101313
To order this book WITHOUT MyEducationLab use either ISBN:
ISBN-13: 9780205486618
ISBN-10: 0205486614
About the Author
Dr. Maureen McLaughlin, professor and chair of the Reading Department at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania has been elected vice president of the International Reading Association (IRA) for the 2011-2012 term. She will assume the board presidency of the organization in two years’ time under IRA’s succession rules. Dr. McLaughlin was also named the 2010 recipient of the IRA Outstanding Teacher Educator in Reading Award, which honors an outstanding university professor engaged in teacher preparation in reading at the graduate level.
Dr. McLaughlin has been a professor in the ESU Reading Department for more than 20 years and has served as chair for the past three years. During her tenure she has taught a variety of undergraduate and graduate courses in her field and developed an endorsement in literacy coaching and a program for reading supervisor certification in collaboration with faculty colleagues. In addition, Dr. McLaughlin is an educational consultant at the local, state, regional, national, and international levels. She is also a profilic writer. She earned her doctorate at Boston University in reading and language development, and received her bachelor of arts and her master of science degrees from Marywood University. Prior to her tenure at ESU, she spent fifteen years as a classroom teacher, reading specialist, and department chair in a public school system.
Dr. McLaughlin has authored numbers articles, chapters, and books throughout her distinguished career. She is the author of two of the of the IRA’s best-selling titles, Guided Comprehension in the Primary Grades and Guided Comprehension in Grades 3-8., as well as “Critical Literacy as Comprehension: Understanding at Deeper Level,” a chapter in The Handbook of Research on Teaching the English Language Arts by D. Lapp & D. Fisher (Eds.) (Philadelphia, PA: Erlbaum, 2010).
