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Abstract
Previous research studies examining the effects of graphic organizers on reading comprehension for students with learning disabilities (LD) are reviewed. An extensive search of the professional literature between 1963 and June 2001 yielded a total of 21 group design intervention studies that met the criteria for inclusion in the synthesis. Using graphic organizers (i.e., semantic organizers, framed outlines, cognitive maps with and without a mnemonic) was associated with improved reading comprehension overall for students with LD. Compared to standardized reading measures, researcher-developed comprehension measures were associated with higher effect sizes. Initial gains demonstrated when using graphic organizers were not revealed during later comprehension tasks or on new comprehension tasks.
Graphic organizers are visual and spatial displays designed to facilitate the teaching and learning of textual material through the "use of lines, arrows, and a spatial arrangement that describe text content, structure, and key conceptual relationships" (Darch & Eaves, 1986, p. 310). Graphic organizers include semantic maps, semantic feature analysis, cognitive maps, story maps, framed outlines, and Venn diagrams.
Ausubel (1963) originally rationalized the use of graphic organizers by speculating that a learner's existing knowledge, which he referred to as cognitive structure, greatly influences his or her learning. When the cognitive structure expands and strengthens by incorporating new information, learning occurs. To facilitate this process, graphic organizers provide learners with a meaningful framework for relating their existing knowledge to the new information (Ausubel, 1963; Wittrock, 1992). Mayer (1984) reaffirmed the utility of graphic organizers by examining reading as an information processing and storage process during which graphic organizers may be used to display connections among concepts. Within the reading process, Mayer suggested that the use of such organizers may better allow readers to connect their existing knowledge base with the text information.
By using graphic organizers, educators hope to facilitate the readers' understanding of the text through visual depictions of key terms and concepts and the relationships among them (Simmons, Griffin, & Kame'enui, 1988). Of course, enhancing all students' reading comprehension is valuable, but making such improvements is particularly important and demanding when focusing on students with learning disabilities (LD). As students progress through school, reading increasingly involves expository text from which students are expected to learn; however, this type of text may pose...