Reading Questionnaire and Data Collection
Recently I created a reading questionnaire as a tool to get to know my students as readers. Using some of the questions from the Burke Reading Inventory and other inquiries of my own, this questionnaire examines student attitudes toward reading environments, access to text, reading strategies they know and use, and genres/ mediums of personal interest. Over break, I finally sat down to create a data table to record the information gathered from the questionnaire. My plan is to hold a discussion group with my students upon our return to discuss our findings and make plans for improving negative feelings/ attitudes toward reading, expanding our knowledge and use of reading strategies, and increasing access to high interest text.
There are many conclusions that can be gleaned from the data collections I have compiled, including a topic of high interest to me right now which involves the use of comics and graphic novels in the classroom to discuss important literary elements and enhance comprehension (more on this topic later).
Reading Attitudes
The questionnaire focuses on how students feel when they are reading by themselves, and with a group of other students. Looking at the word choices they used, here are the negative, neutral and positive feelings my students reported about reading both alone and in the company of others:
Genres/ Mediums
In looking at the types of text my students are interested in reading, 90% of my students reported comics/ graphic novels as a medium they currently enjoy or have interest in exploring. In my quest to gain more knowledge about the use of comics and graphic novels in a classroom setting, I'm reading a highly recommended book called: Adventures in Graphica by Terry Thompson, a K-5 literacy coach near Houston, Texas. Since ten of the twelve students in my 5th grade reading intervention class speak a language other than English at home, I appreciate the rationale Thompson offers for the use of graphica* to support second language learners.
I am currently working to build my comic/ graphic novel collection in my classroom while familiarizing myself with several high-interest and high quality titles. Most of my selections come highly recommended from the aforementioned Graphic Classroom website.
There are many conclusions that can be gleaned from the data collections I have compiled, including a topic of high interest to me right now which involves the use of comics and graphic novels in the classroom to discuss important literary elements and enhance comprehension (more on this topic later).
Reading Attitudes
The questionnaire focuses on how students feel when they are reading by themselves, and with a group of other students. Looking at the word choices they used, here are the negative, neutral and positive feelings my students reported about reading both alone and in the company of others:
Negative Feelings Neutral Feelings Positive Feeling
lonely kind of half and half fun
bored okay happyuncomfortable relaxed
distracted good
unfocused
bad
self-conscious
not relaxed
don't like it
Results show the students in my class expressed more than twice as many negative feelings about reading than positive feelings.
Genres/ Mediums
In looking at the types of text my students are interested in reading, 90% of my students reported comics/ graphic novels as a medium they currently enjoy or have interest in exploring. In my quest to gain more knowledge about the use of comics and graphic novels in a classroom setting, I'm reading a highly recommended book called: Adventures in Graphica by Terry Thompson, a K-5 literacy coach near Houston, Texas. Since ten of the twelve students in my 5th grade reading intervention class speak a language other than English at home, I appreciate the rationale Thompson offers for the use of graphica* to support second language learners.
*Graphica noun A medium of literature that integrates pictures and word and arranges them cumulatively to tell a story or convey information; often presented in comic strip, periodical, or book form; also know as comics (2008, 6).Graphica offers a text to visual cue relationship that is visually stimulating while supporting the reader at their own pace as the story unfolds. Though the artistic images offer an enticing hook, particularly for younger and "struggling" or "reluctant" readers, they also offer assistance to such readers in need of additional support as they travel through the text. This can increase motivation, engagement, and comprehension while being less daunting than an imageless page of challenging text. In addition, because conversations in graphica are more authentic using tangible dialogue and thought bubbles to demonstrate characterization, etc., readers can experience real, everyday discourse in English as opposed to the more contrived language found in many basal readers and ELL materials (2008, 18). Furthermore, since comics and graphic novels tend to be more engaging than more traditional forms of text, they often spark interest in more passive readers while offering the experience of what it feels like to be an active participant in the reading process- a feeling that regrettable many of my students have not yet experienced.
I am currently working to build my comic/ graphic novel collection in my classroom while familiarizing myself with several high-interest and high quality titles. Most of my selections come highly recommended from the aforementioned Graphic Classroom website.
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