READING TO LEARN: ENGAGING UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN MEANINGFUL READING AND DISCUSSION

Headnote

Reading to Learn is an ongoing interdisciplinary research effort designed to understand university students' reading practices and classroom discussions within the context of reading communities. The goal is to contribute to best practices for engaging students in reading course texts and in meaningful classroom discussion that promotes critical thinking and enhances learning. Preliminary data indicate that students perceive reading communities as being helpful in clarifying their thinking, increasing learning, and improving class discussion.

Keywords: inquiry circles, literature circles, reading, reading communities, teaching

To enhance the learning that comes from course readings and classroom discussion, two key components must be in place: First, students need to read. Second, students need the skills to process and articulate their comprehension of course content. Both represent significant challenges. University faculty often struggle to ensure students are completing course readings and to engage them in meaningful classroom discussion that promotes critical thinking (Bean, 1996).

Compliance

Research indicates that university student compliance with course reading assignments hovers at 20-30 percent (Burchfield & Sappington, 2000; Hobson, 2004). In addition, the 2009 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) revealed that only 24 percent of university students consistently completed course reading assignments (NSSE, 2009).

The Reading Communities

The focus of our research effort has been to address the problems of getting students to do assigned reading and developing their higher level reading skills, while creating for them guided opportunities for interpersonal and whole-group discussion. More specifically, Reading to Learn is an ongoing interdisciplinary research effort designed to understand university student behaviors and practices related to course readings and classroom discussions via reading communities. The goal is to establish best practices for engaging students more fully in reading course texts and in meaningful classroom discussion that promotes critical thinking.

In a pilot study using quantitative (online surveys) and qualitative (focus groups) measures, researchers collected data from university journalism students who participated in classroom reading communities. Subsequently, data collection was expanded to include students in journalism, Spanish, and psychology classes who had participated in reading communities.

Reading communities are a university-level adaptation of literature circles commonly used in K-12 education. Defined as small, peer-led reading discussion groups, literature circles help students engage in meaningful reading behaviors, thereby encouraging learning. For nearly 25 years, educators...