Culture and Comprehension: A Mixed Methods Study of Children's Responses to a Fictional Story About Interracial Conflict

Abstract

This article explores the relationship between early adolescents' understanding of social issues and their comprehension of a fictional story about interracial conflict. It combines qualitative and quantitative analyses to examine the ways in which social awareness and reading comprehension skills may be interrelated when children and adolescents read texts that deal with social issues. Results suggest that adolescents use their social awareness skills to comprehend fictional texts, but reading skill moderates the effect. Poor readers who demonstrate a capacity for high levels of social awareness comprehend the story as well as their better reading peers. The authors discuss implications for educational practice and the need for an integration of research in social development with language and literacy.