JultikaUniversity of Oulu repository

Abstract

This thesis focuses on two vital elements of a reading comprehension program called “Reading is being forward”: the textbooks and the teacher’s accompaniment model.

It is a qualitative study based on thematic analysis using the theoretical points of Schema Theory and Cognitive view of learning to read. The theoretical framework states that, in order to achieve reading comprehension, the background knowledge of the reader must be activated by pre, during and post-reading activities. These activities should promote, in this case, the cognitive learning. This means that the student is always aware of what he/she is learning and with what kind of educational tools. Two textbooks will be analyzed and the Teacher’s Accompaniment Form (TFA) used to observe teacher’s pedagogical practices in classrooms.

The objective is to find what elements presents in the textbooks and in the Teacher’s Accompaniment Form follows the theoretical framework and how do they work in the teaching and learning of reading comprehension skills. The thematic categories arise in a deductive way always focused on the theoretical framework and they display teacher’s and student’s guidelines as well as the abilities and moment of reading. These categories constitute the deep structure of the textbooks and they showed a way to be teach and learn. The articulation between thematic categories and sub-categories states that learning can be improved from a gradual development of skills and strategies manifested in the structure of the textbooks.

In the case of TAF, the categories reveal that the questions to be answered by the accompanying person are guided by the principles of the five standards for evaluating good teaching practices: productive joint activity, language and literacy development, contextualization, challenging activities and instructional conversation. These standards are aligned with what is proposed by the theoretical framework because the questions are about concrete pedagogical practices that help to activate the previous knowledge of the students and to conduct cognitive methods that help in the acquisition of reading skills. In this way, companions can provide feedback by emphasizing cognitive concepts and the activation of prior knowledge.