Critical Reading Research Articles

The Influence of the RADEC Learning Model on Critical Reading Ability of PGSD Students

<div class="page" title="Page 1"><div class="layoutArea"><div class="column"><p><span>This research was motivated by the low level of critical reading of PGSD students during direct learning activities. The aim of this research is to see the influence of the RADEC learning model on critical reading of PGSD students. The research method used is a quantitative method with a pre-experimental one group pretest posttest design with a sample size of 20 PGSD students. </span><span>The </span>research instruments used were questionnaires and observation sheets to see students' critical reading abilities.The research results showed that the critical reading scores during the pretest of 20 students were in the moderate category, totaling 8 people with a percentage of 40%, the low category totaling 10 people with a percentage of 50%, and the very low category totaling 2 people with a percentage of 10%. At the time of the posttest, 20 students experienced significant changes, namely 14 people were in the very high category with a percentage of 70%, 3 people in the high category with a percentage of 15%, and 3 people in the moderate category with a percentage of 15%. So it can be concluded that the RADEC learning model influences the critical reading of PGSD students.</p></div></div></div>

EXAMINING THE APPLICATION OF CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS IN ANALYTICAL EXPOSITION TEXT COMPREHENSION AMONG EFL STUDENTS

This research analyzes students' critical thinking when reading exposition texts. Conducted at the Health Department of SMKN 1 Tolitoli, this qualitative research utilized observations as the data collection method to gather data relevant for this research and thematic analysis to analyze the collected data. The observation phase analyzed students' engagement with analytical exposition texts, revealing proficiency in various aspects of critical thinking, including comprehension, analysis, and evaluation. Students demonstrated the ability to recall key facts, summarize main ideas, and critically evaluate evidence to form well-supported opinions. Students emphasized the importance of activities such as careful reading, summarization, and discussion in enhancing their understanding and critical thinking abilities. The findings suggest the need for explicit instruction and support for all stages of critical reading to foster students' holistic development of critical thinking skills. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of students' critical thinking practices and provides valuable insights for educators seeking to enhance students' critical reading abilities in the context of analytical exposition texts.

Teaching critical reading in higher education: A literature review and pedagogical framework proposal

The article reviews different interventions to teach critical reading and proposes a tested two-stage critical reading model, starting from identifying the author's purposes to responding to the text. In the stage of identifying the author's purposes, students need to analyse the text and connect the text to its context. In the stage of responding to the text, students need to evaluate the author's message. After a teaching experiment carried out with undergraduate students (n = 39), a vast majority of the participants (94.87%) believed that the model helped them to practise fundamental reading skills, such as predicting, identifying the main idea, arguments and evidence, to construct their critical thinking by reflecting, understanding different perspectives and building their own arguments. From students’ suggestions, the model is revised to make it more interactive and dynamic by applying the double-entry note technique and repetitive reading in groups with discussion to exchange viewpoints and interpretation.

On the post-human political potential of puppets: a case study of Storm, an eco-activist

With the confluence of interest in socio-natural or human-nonhuman entanglements and concern for the maintenance of a minimal humanism within such post-human ontologies, the puppet arises as a post-human artform that is well placed to address both simultaneously. To argue that the puppet is a post-human artform is not a new proposition, but what is new in this paper is its detailed account of how different features of puppet performance function in post-human fashion, both drawing the human spectator into the performance as part of its singularity and rendering accessible the enviro-political message behind the performance. Focusing on a giant (10 m tall) puppet – Storm – who attended COP26 in Glasgow in 2021 to promote protection of the world’s seas, we first address how the post-human puppet form was brought to performative life through identification of a series of constructional mechanisms, which function as spatial manoeuvres to reposition the spectator with respect to both the puppet character and her political message. Subsequently, we consider how these mechanisms differentially influence legibility, acuity and potency of the political message, explore potential risks to the effectiveness of those constructional mechanisms, and draw out three foundational tensions that must seemingly be navigated for optimal political effectiveness (relating to post-human, political and spatial concerns respectively). Ultimately, we hypothesise a bidirectional spatial and subjective transition on the part of the spectator, progressing from being one who becomes bound into the collective singularity of the puppet assemblage to one who funnels the agency of the collective singularity into their one-ness for optimum political potency. Thus, we present both a detailed empirical and critical reading of one specific puppet performance and provide a more abstracted account of the political potency of (giant) puppets.

Mapping Trends and Challenges in Political Science Research in Indigenous Policy and Politics (2019-2023)

What are the trends and challenges for political science research on Indigenous policy and politics? The present paper aims to answer this question through a critical reading of articles published in specialized journals between 2019 and 2023. The study highlights four main axes of research on Indigenous politics: 1) The relationship between Indigenous peoples and nation-states; 2) Indigenous activism and struggles for territorial, cultural, and environmental rights; 3) The impact of large construction sites on Indigenous territories; and 4) Critical engagement with Western political theory. Conclusions point to epistemic avenues for interested researchers to explore in-depth in future studies: 1) The importance of broadening the scope of sources for more fruitful comparative analyses; 2) The urgency to decolonize political theory; and 3) The imperative of methodological diversification and rigor.

PENGEMBANGAN BAHAN AJAR MEMBACA KRITIS TEKS SASTRA UNTUK PELAJAR BIPA TINGKAT MAHIR

The research and development of literary text-based reading teaching materials for advanced BIPA learners was motivated by the results of a preliminary study that showed the potential of literary texts as reading learning materials in advanced BIPA classes. This study aims to produce teaching materials that meet the requirements of content feasibility, presentation systematics, language, and appearance so that they can help train critical reading skills for BIPA learners. The research model used is the 4D model by Thiagarajan, et al., involving test subjects in the form of BIPA material experts, teaching material preparation experts, design experts, practitioners (advanced BIPA teachers), and advanced BIPA students. The data obtained through the validation test shows that this teaching material is classified as very feasible and ready to be implemented with a percentage of feasibility reaching 89.1%. However, through the limited field test, there were several aspects that required revision to increase the percentage of feasibility to 83.3%. Nevertheless, this product is still feasible to be implemented with minor revisions. This teaching material can be utilized by BIPA students as an enrichment material in practicing critical reading skills by utilizing literary texts. Advanced level BIPA teachers can also use this teaching material to teach reading skills to students and introduce the works of Indonesian writers. BIPA researchers and activists are advised to consider this teaching material as a reference in developing literary text-based reading teaching materials that are still not widely available.

STUDI KASUS PEMANFAATAN POJOK LITERASI PRAKTIK DEAR DI SMPN 5 KEPANJEN (KETERAMPILAN MEMBACA KRITIS SISWA)

This study aims to examine school efforts in instilling a culture of literacy and practice of DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) at SMPN 5 Kepanjen with critical reading skills, the benefits obtained from the literacy corner in class, the obstacles in practicing DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) and the utilization of the corner literacy that has not had an impact on students in SMP Negeri 5 Kepanjen classes and solutions to related obstacles in optimizing the use of class literacy corners at SMP Negeri 5 Kepanjen. This qualitative research uses a phenomenological type. The research informants involved all school members, namely students, teachers and the principal of SMPN 5 Kepanjen. The results of the study show that the school is trying to instill a culture of DEAR (Drop Everything And Read), which must be done every day by students at SMP Negeri 5 Kepanjen. By habituating students to visit literacy corners, creating literacy activity programs, applying critical reading skill and trying to bring in publishers to offer a wide selection of reading books to students to be used in literacy corners as literacy materials. The reading corner functions to create a new classroom atmosphere, can also be used as a place for casual reading, fosters student creativity and can be used as a place to channel hobbies. In addition, students enjoy reading under the guidance of the teacher, because they can learn and share ideas and experiences while learning. The obstacle to optimizing the function of the literacy corner is the low introduction of a reading culture, the solution to optimizing the function of the literacy corner is that the teacher participates in providing books to be read by students, adapts to the needs of students in class and tries to complete a collection of various readings, so that when students read they do not seem boring. When they are in the literacy corner, carrying out DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) activities can create critical thinking so that they finally like reading activities.

Enhancing Critical Reading Through Metacognitive Scaffolding in Flipped-Classroom

Critical reading is paramount for students to comprehend texts efficiently during and beyond their academic studies. Searching for and filtering information is crucial in distinguishing between important and unimportant content. Despite its significance, students often lack proper instruction in critical reading, highlighting a need for effective learning models. The Metacognitive, Scaffolding in Flipped Classroom (Ms-Flics) model addresses this gap by combining metacognitive reading and scaffolding strategies in a flipped classroom. This study evaluates the model’s efficacy in enhancing students’ critical reading skills. The research employs quantitative methods, conducted with grade 9 students in Surakarta, Indonesia, comparing pre- and post-treatment test results. Using cluster random sampling, two classes of 65 students were administered tests before and after the intervention. Analysis using paired T-tests revealed a significant improvement post-treatment. The findings underscore the effectiveness of the Ms-Flics model in enhancing critical reading skills among grade 9 students. The study contributes theoretically by proposing a novel learning model that integrates metacognitive reading, scaffolding strategies, and flipped classroom approaches to improve critical reading skills.

The Immediate Effects of Collaborative Writing on Omani University Students

Collaborative writing is considered to be one of the most important approaches in the second language classroom. This paper explored the effects of practicing collaborative writing in Omani classrooms for eight teaching hours, analyzed six pairs’ dialogues and, interviewed four students and their teacher. Significant immediate effects were established and an insight into students’ attitudes and problems was identified. From the research, two main findings emerge; first, the immediate effects included signs of noticing and transfer of knowledge; an increase in motivation; critical reading and sharing knowledge through discussion; and second, positive attitudes of students towards collaborative writing were found. Therefore, this research recommends that Omani students require collaborative writing in the classroom and they need to be trained in it.

The Implementation of PORPE Strategy for the Teaching of Descriptive Reading Text

Reading is Reading comprehension ability is very important to improve learning achievement, because it increases vocabulary, fluency and language proficiency in various subjects, thereby influencing all material and teaching in each subject. This research investigates the application of the PORPE strategy in comprehending descriptive reading texts and its impact on student comprehension using a mixed methods research approach. The data was collected using observation, pre-test and post-test. It can be seen in this research, that the PORPE strategy, which consists of the stages of predicting, organizing, training, practicing and evaluating, can significantly improve students' understanding and analysis of descriptive texts, develop critical thinking and reading skills, and encourage active participation. In this research found, that there was a significant increase in students' average scores after implementing the PORPE strategy, from 57.37 to 80.37, which showed a statistically significant difference in scores before and after treatment. The PORPE strategy improved students' reading comprehension and critical thinking skills by facilitating interactive learning, increasing understanding of descriptive texts and fostering students' positive contributions.

MiR-340-3p-modified bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes inhibit ferroptosis through METTL3-mediated m6A modification of HMOX1 to promote recovery of injured rat uterus

BackgroundFerroptosis is associated with the pathological progression of hemorrhagic injury and ischemia–reperfusion injury. According to our previous study, exosomes formed through bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells modified with miR-340-3p (MB-exos) can restore damaged endometrium. However, the involvement of ferroptosis in endometrial injury and the effect of MB-exos on ferroptosis remain elusive.MethodsThe endometrial injury rat model was developed. Exosomes were obtained from the supernatants of bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (BMSCs) and miR-340/BMSCs through differential centrifugation. We conducted RNA-seq analysis on endometrial tissues obtained from the PBS and MB-exos groups. Ferroptosis was induced in endometrial stromal cells (ESCs) by treating them with erastin or RSL3, followed by treatment with B-exos or MB-exos. We assessed the endometrial total m6A modification level after injury and subsequent treatment with B-exos or MB-exos by methylation quantification assay. We performed meRIP-qPCR to analyze m6A modification-regulated endogenous mRNAs.ResultsWe reveal that MB-exos facilitate the injured endometrium to recover by suppressing ferroptosis in endometrial stromal cells. The injured endometrium showed significantly upregulated N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification levels; these levels were attenuated by MB-exos through downregulation of the methylase METTL3. Intriguingly, METTL3 downregulation appears to repress ferroptosis by stabilizing HMOX1 mRNA, thereby potentially elucidating the mechanism through which MB-exos inhibit ferroptosis in ESCs. We identified YTHDF2 as a critical m6A reader protein that contributes to HMOX1 mRNA degradation. YTHDF2 facilitates HMOX1 mRNA degradation by identifying the m6A binding site in the 3′-untranslated regions of HMOX1. In a rat model, treatment with MB-exos ameliorated endometrial injury-induced fibrosis by inhibiting ferroptosis in ESCs. Moreover, METTL3 short hairpin RNA-mediated inhibition of m6A modification enhanced the inhibitory effect of MB-exos on ferroptosis in endometrial injury.ConclusionsThus, these observations provide new insights regarding the molecular mechanisms responsible for endometrial recovery promotion by MB-exos and highlight m6A modification-dependent ferroptosis inhibition as a prospective therapeutic target to attenuate endometrial injury.

Critical reading: a challenge for early childhood education

Critical reading: a challenge for early childhood education

Resistance of estrogen receptor function to BET bromodomain inhibition is mediated by transcriptional coactivator cooperativity.

The Bromodomain and Extra-Terminal Domain (BET) family of proteins are critical chromatin readers that bind to acetylated histones through their bromodomains to activate transcription. Here, we reveal that bromodomain inhibition fails to repress oncogenic targets of estrogen receptor due to an intrinsic transcriptional mechanism. While bromodomains are necessary for the transcription of many genes, BRD4 binds to estrogen receptor binding sites and activates transcription of critical oncogenes independently of its bromodomains. BRD4 associates with the Mediator complex and disruption of Mediator complex reduces BRD4's enhancer occupancy. Profiling changes in the post-initiation RNA polymerase II (Pol II)-associated factors revealed that BET proteins regulate interactions between Pol II and elongation factors SPT5, SPT6, and PAF1 complex, which associate with BET proteins independently of their bromodomains and mediate their transcription elongation effect. Our findings highlight the importance of bromodomain-independent functions and interactions of BET proteins in the development of future therapeutic strategies.

Cleveland Zionists: Raising Awareness of the Holocaust

Through a critical reading of newspapers, official government documents, and secondary sources Megan Moledor sheds light on the Jewish groups in Cleveland, Ohio that tried to raise awareness to the United States government about the Holocaust. Moledor argues that the efforts of these specifically Jewish groups in Cleveland were largely successful in raising Holocaust awareness, and turns to the widely debated question of why it took the United States so long to aid Europe during the Holocaust.

Baudelaire and historical time, or, the limits of allegorical reading

ABSTRACT This essay engages with lyric poems by Baudelaire as a means of probing the limits of allegorical-political reading. Critically confronting, and to some degree recoding, Theodor Adorno’s practice of allegorical-dialectical interpretation, the essay seeks alternative, abstract, non-allegorical logics of historical time within Baudelaire’s verse. These are located in both moments of paradoxical stasis – the apparent negation of time and forward movement – and in instances of sudden material impact, neither easily recuperated in an allegorical reading. The essay distinguishes its distinctive formalism from deconstruction, and, in conclusion, its interpretive procedures are tested against those of Fredric Jameson, perhaps the most distinguished inheritor of the allegorical-political tradition of literary critical reading.

Rough Excision: a poetic response to Great Expectations (1861) and Jack Maggs (1997)

ABSTRACT Read together or as stand-alone pieces, the thirteen poems offered below are conceived as a creative-critical response to two novels, a Victorian one, Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations (1861), and its neo-Victorian counterpart, Peter Carey’s Jack Maggs (1997). Rather than simply inspired by these novels, the poems are the result of a critical reading of both Carey’s reimagining of Dickens’s great English novel and the source text itself. As such they implicitly engage with Carey’s critics, who have almost unanimously analysed Jack Maggs from a postcolonial perspective, thereby largely ignoring the rewriting of the women characters. Scholars have systematically pointed out how Dickens’s orphan Pip is rewritten by Carey as Henry Phipps, the Australian convict Abel Magwitch as Jack Maggs and Dickens himself as the great Victorian author Tobias Oates. Together with the annotations in part II, the poems offer a creative contribution to the critical engagement with Carey’s novel, by arguing that Carey’s Mercy, servant and mistress of would-be gentleman Percy Buckle in Jack Maggs, can be fruitfully read as a re-imagining of Dickens’s Molly, biological mother of Estella and housekeeper of unscrupulous lawyer Jaggers in Great Expectations. The poems raise questions concerning neo-Victorianism, patriarchal discourse and trauma theory from a feminist perspective.

Gender differences, academic patenting, and tenure-track reform in China: Evidence from life sciences at elite universities.

This study is the first to examine the gender gap in academic patenting among faculty members in Chinese universities, a critical issue for the sustainable development of scientific research and innovation. Using a unique dataset that includes the patenting activities and professional status of 1,836 faculty members in life science-related departments at 36 top Chinese universities, this research reveals an evolving landscape of patenting dynamics. The trend of male faculty members leading in the annual number of patent applications and patents granted has shifted among newly graduated faculty members. Female faculty submit and receive their first patent applications significantly earlier than male faculty. However, male faculty are more likely to be lead inventors, and this gender gap remains difficult to close, with female faculty more likely to be supporting inventors. This research is contextualized within the broader framework of China's university tenure reform and the growing presence of women in the life sciences. While progress is evident, the study uncovers persistent systemic barriers that prevent women from fully translating their research into patentable innovations. By identifying these social and institutional barriers, our study not only sheds light on the gender gap, but also suggests policy measures to promote gender equity in scientific innovation, making it a critical read for policymakers and academic leaders.

A Promising Amalgamation

First-year law students often struggle with the transition from writing as an undergraduate to writing as a lawyer. Incorporating poetry into the first-year legal writing curriculum may assist students in making that transition. The close, active reading poetry requires is a strong scaffold to the critical reading lawyers must undertake. In addition, poetry aptly models how language can create an emotional impact, which is akin to how effective lawyers use language to tell a compelling story on their client's behalf. This Assignment has students read and analyze Gwendolyn Brooks's poem “Boy Breaking Glass,” and then imagine the protagonist of the poem was being criminally prosecuted for his act of vandalism and write the story of the case from both the defense side and the prosecution side. The Assignment enables students to appreciate how a text (or a set of facts giving rise to a legal dispute) can give rise to varied interpretations, and how language and storytelling techniques can be used persuasively.

Critical Thinking Skills and Reading Proficiency among the English Language Students of Public Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Sulu

The sobering realization of the critical thinking and the difficulty in the language comprehension, specifically in English language piques the researcher's interest in learning more about the experiences of tertiary students majoring in English language studies at other public HEIs in Sulu. This study sought to investigate the significant difference in the extent of critical thinking skills and reading proficiency among the English language students. This study employed a variety of statistical techniques, including the adopted weighted mean, standard deviation, t-Test for independent samples, One-way ANOVA, and Pearson’s r test of correlation to analyze the reading comprehension and critical thinking skills among English language learners in Sulu's public HEIs throughout the 2023–2024 academic year. A surveyed has been conducted on 200 female students aged 20-21 from public Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Sulu, revealing high critical thinking abilities and average reading proficiency ratings. Students' demographic profiles did not significantly influence their assessment of critical thinking or perceived reading proficiency. The study supports Anderson's Theory of Schema, which suggests that comprehension is an interactive process involving the reader's background knowledge and the text, requiring the ability to relate the material to one's own knowledge. The school administration will partner with language teachers to provide reading materials that enhance students' critical thinking skills and reading proficiency. Teachers must guide students to comprehend texts thoroughly, while parents play a crucial role in their children's future. Students will develop the ability to comprehend texts thorough through books and other reading materials provided by teachers. The objective of this study is to offer a foundation for upcoming researchers to enhance their own investigations on critical thinking abilities and reading competence within their field of study. The study will be conducted during the Academic Year 2023-2024 in Sulu province.

Continuous glucose monitoring devices in people over 65 years: literature review

The use of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in elderly patients with diabetes is not well documented. The present study search to know the current status of use of CGM devices in patients with diabetes over 65 years of age. A systematic literature search was performed in PubMed and Scopus databases in November 2023. The following descriptors were used, linked using the Boolean operators AND and OR: Diabetes, Continuous glucose monitoring, Flash glucose monitoring, Glycemia, Glycemic control, Controlled diabetes, Diabetes care, Metrics, Older and Elder. The CASPe critical reading system and the PRISMA methodology were applied to document the review. Fourteen selected studies published between 2019 and 2023 were reviewed. Publications from European countries used small sample sizes and were intervention studies. The duration of the interventions was generally short: 7 were ≤14 days in duration and only 3 were 6-12 months in duration. Overall, the selected articles found that CGM improved glycemic outcomes due to a decrease in glycosylated hemoglobin value and an improvement in CGM metrics, and diabetes-associated complications in elderly patients with diabetes. CGM seems to be a useful and effective tool to improving glycemic outcomes of people with diabetes over age 65. Further studies under real-world conditions and of longer duration are needed to expand and improve the evidence.