Supporting knowledge building with informational texts during elementary reading instruction: a design based study

This design study examined the problem of implementing knowledge building activities during elementary reading instruction. The study set out to determine how the classroom environment successfully supported students’ collaborative knowledge building while working with informational text sources. In addition, it looked at how instructional scaffolds and artifacts developed for the classrooms being studied supported knowledge building with informational text sources. Finally, students’ collaborative knowledge construction was examined in the context of Knowledge Forum® software. This study was conducted during two consecutive school years. Two classes of fifth graders, each with 23 students, participated in the research. Study 1 integrated teacher-led small group reading instruction with knowledge building. Students used Knowledge Forum and research guides to build knowledge from nonfiction text sources. Using design based research, the results of the first study were used to modify the procedure of the second study. Study 2 combined small group instruction, reading conferences, and student reading partnerships with knowledge building activities. In this study, students had more opportunities to engage in face-to-face knowledge building discourse. In addition, they used Knowledge Forum, post-it notes, reading journals, and discussion boards to build knowledge from text sources. In both studies, students’ knowledge building discourse was rated based on a tiered coding scheme of Knowledge Forum notes. The tiers attempted to rate how notes contributed to the advancement of community knowledge. In Study 2, small group reading sessions were analyzed using video data, and reading comprehension was assessed with running records and pre- and post-tests. Knowledge Forum discourse showed that children developed ideas and explanations based on nonfiction text sources during the second iteration. Video data of reading conferences also showed how the teacher scaffolded students’ knowledge building. Comparison of reading levels and standardized test scores demonstrated how students in the knowledge building class advanced their independent reading levels at the same rate as those in non-knowledge building classes. The 23 fifth graders in Study 2 were able to build knowledge, improve reading comprehension, and discuss advanced science concepts when knowledge building was integrated with reading instruction.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Julianne Dot