Training Inference Making Skills Using a Situation Model Approach Improves Reading Comprehension.

Lisanne T Bos,Menno Van Der Schoot,Stephanie I Wassenburg,Bjorn B De Koning

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00116

Abstract

This study aimed to enhance third and fourth graders’ text comprehension at the situation model level. Therefore, we tested a reading strategy training developed to target inference making skills, which are widely considered to be pivotal to situation model construction. The training was grounded in contemporary literature on situation model-based inference making and addressed the source (text-based versus knowledge-based), type (necessary versus unnecessary for (re-)establishing coherence), and depth of an inference (making single lexical inferences versus combining multiple lexical inferences), as well as the type of searching strategy (forward versus backward). Results indicated that, compared to a control group (n = 51), children who followed the experimental training (n = 67) improved their inference making skills supportive to situation model construction. Importantly, our training also resulted in increased levels of general reading comprehension and motivation. In sum, this study showed that a ‘level of text representation’-approach can provide a useful framework to teach inference making skills to third and fourth graders.

Highlights

It is recognized that many primary school children fail to attain a sufficient reading comprehension level
We developed a reading strategy training targeted at strengthening children’s inference making skills, which are generally regarded as essential for situation model construction (e.g., Radvansky et al, 2001; McNamara and Magliano, 2009)
This study shows that a ‘level of text representation’-approach can provide a useful framework to teach inference making skills to third and fourth graders

Summary

Introduction

It is recognized that many primary school children fail to attain a sufficient reading comprehension level. Periodical analyses of children’s reading comprehension performance in the Netherlands have shown similar results (e.g., van der Schoot, 2008). One way to enhance reading comprehension is to teach children how they can use reading strategies (see Pressley, 2000, for a review on comprehension instruction). Instructional methods and materials to teach reading comprehension often are insufficient and the empirical support for the taught reading strategies’ effectiveness is equivocal (Droop et al, 2012; Houtveen and van de Grift, 2012; Stoeldraijer and Forrer, 2012). It has been suggested that instructional methods have not been sufficiently grounded in relevant reading comprehension literature focusing on the different levels of mental text representation. van der Schoot et al (2010) argued

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Conclusion