Cover not available
Part of
Developmental Perspectives in Written Language and Literacy: In honor of Ludo Verhoeven
Edited by Eliane Segers and Paul van den Broek
[Not in series 206] 2017
► pp. 85–101

Developing reading comprehension interventions

Perspectives from theory and practice

| Leiden University, The Netherlands | University of Minnesota, USA
| Leiden University, The Netherlands | University of Minnesota, USA
| University of Minnesota, USA
| Leiden University, The Netherlands

In this chapter, we describe how research and knowledge from cognitive and educational sciences can be combined to address the question of how to improve comprehension in struggling readers. First, we provide an overview of cognitive processes in reading comprehension. Second, we describe a program of research in which we combined information from cognitive and educational sciences to develop a reading comprehension intervention, and present the results of a series of studies designed to examine the effects of the intervention on comprehension of struggling readers. Third, we discuss several thematic questions that emerged from our research. Throughout the chapter we discuss implications for theory, practice, and future research.

Keywords: reading comprehension, inferences, causal questioning, text representation, reading intervention, reading assessment
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.A cognitive view of reading comprehension and development
  • 3.Developing a reading comprehension intervention
  • 4.Issues in reading comprehension research and practice
    • 4.1To what extent is comprehension of text unique?
    • 4.2Assessing reading comprehension
    • 4.3How difficult is it to improve reading comprehension?
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgments
  • References
Published online: 21 December 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/z.206.06van
References
Bauer, P. J., & Wewerka, S. S
(1997) Saying is revealing: Verbal expression of event memory in the transition from infancy to early childhood. In P. van den Broek, P. Bauer, & T. Bourg (Eds.), Developmental spans in event comprehension: Bridging fictional and actual events (pp. 139–168). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Berkeley, S., Scruggs, T. E., & Mastropieri, M. A
(2010) Reading comprehension instruction for students with learning disabilities, 1995–2006: A meta-analysis. Remedial and Special Education, 31, 423–436. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cain, K., & Oakhill, J
(2006) Assessment matters: Issues in the measurement of reading comprehension. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 76, 697–708. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Carlson, S. E., Seipel, B., & McMaster, K
(2014) Development of a new reading comprehension assessment: Identifying comprehension differences among readers. Learning and Individual Differences, 32, 40–53. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Catts, H. W., Adlof, S. M., & Weismer, S. E
(2006) Language deficits in poor comprehenders: A case for the Simple View of Reading. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 49, 278–293. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Compton, D. L., Miller, A. C., Elleman, A. M., & Steacy, L. M
(2014) Have we forsaken reading theory in the name of “quick fix” interventions for children with reading disability? Scientific Studies of Reading, 18, 55–73. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cook, A. E., & O’Brien, E. J
(2014) Knowledge activation, integration, and validation during narrative text comprehension. Discourse Processes, 51(1–2), 26–49. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2015) Passive activation and instantiation of inferences during reading. In E. J. O’Brien, A. E. Cook & R. F. Lorch (Eds.), Inferences during reading (pp. 19–41). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cutting, L. E., & Scarborough, H. S
(2006) Prediction of reading comprehension: Relative contributions of word recognition, language proficiency, and other cognitive skills can depend on how comprehension is measured. Scientific Studies of Reading, 10, 277–299. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Duke, N. K., & Pearson, P. D
(2002) Effective practices for developing reading comprehension. In A. E. Farstrup & S. J. Samuels (Eds.), What research has to say about reading instruction (pp. 205–242). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.Google Scholar
Dutch Inspection of Education [Inspectie van het Onderwijs]
(2014) De staat van het onderwijs. Retrieved on January 30 2016 from [URL]Google Scholar
Elbro, C., & Buch-Iversen, I
(2013) Activation of background knowledge for inference making: Effects on reading comprehension. Scientific Studies of Reading, 17(6), 435- 452. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Engle, R. W
(2002) Working memory capacity as executive attention. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 11(1), 19–23. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Espin, C. A., Cevasco, Y., van den Broek, P., Baker, S., & Gersten, R
(2007) History as narrative: The nature and quality of historical understanding for students with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 40, 174–182. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Francis, D. J., Snow, C. E., August, D., Carlson, C. D., Miller, J., & Iglesias, A
(2006) Measures of reading comprehension: A latent variable analysis of the Diagnostic Assessment of Reading Comprehension. Scientific Studies of Reading, 10, 301–322. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gernsbacher, M. A., Varner, K. R., & Faust, M
(1990) Investigating differences in general comprehension skill. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 16, 430–445. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gerrig, R. J., & O’Brien, E. J
(2005) The scope of memory-based processing. Discourse Processes, 39, 225–242. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Gersten, R., Fuchs, L. S., Williams, J. P., & Baker, S
(2001) Teaching reading comprehension strategies to students with learning disabilities: A review of research. Review of Educational Research, 71, 279–320. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Graesser, A., Singer, M., & Trabasso, T
(1994) Constructing inferences during narrative comprehension. Psychological Review, 101, 371–395. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Helder, A., Stafura, J. Z., Calloway, R., van den Broek, P., & Perfetti, C. A
(2015, July). Centrality effects on word-to-text-integration during reading: An ERP study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Text and Discourse, Minneapolis, MN.Google Scholar
Hoover, W. A., & Gough, P. B
(1990) The simple view of reading. Reading and Writing, 2, 127–160. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Just, M. A., & Carpenter, P. A
(1992) A capacity theory of comprehension: Individual-differences in working memory. Psychological Review, 99, 122–149. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Keenan, J. M
(2012) Measure for measure: Challenges in assessing reading comprehension. In J. P. Sabatinin, E. R. Albro, & T. O’Reilly (Eds.), Measuring up: Advances in how to assess reading ability (pp. 77–88). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.Google Scholar
Kendeou, P
(2015) A general inference skill. In E. O’Brien, A. E. Cook, & R. F. Lorch, Jr. (Eds.), Inferences during reading (pp. 160–181). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kendeou, P., Bohn-Gettler, C., White, M. J., & van den Broek, P
(2008) Children’s inference generation across different media. Journal of Research in Reading, 31, 259–272. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kendeou, P., van den Broek, P., White, M. J., & Lynch, J. S
(2009) Predicting reading comprehension in early elementary school: The independent contributions of oral language and decoding skills. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(4), 765–778. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kintsch, W
(1998) Comprehension: A paradigm for cognition. New York: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Kintsch, W., & van Dijk, T. A
(1978) Toward a model of text comprehension and production. Psychological Review, 85, 363–394. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Linderholm, T., Gaddy, M., van den Broek, P., Mischinski, M., Crittenden, A., & Samuels, J
(2000) Effects of causal text revisions on more- and less-skilled readers’ comprehension of easy and difficult texts. Cognition and Instruction, 18, 525–556. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lorch, R. F. Jr., Lemarié, J., & Grant, R
(2011) Signaling hierarchical and sequential organization in expository text. Scientific Studies of Reading, 15(3), 267–284. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lynch, J. S., & van den Broek, P
(2007) Understanding the glue of narrative structure: Children’s on- and off-line inferences about characters’ goals. Cognitive Development, 22(3), 323–340. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lynch, J. S., van den Broek, P., Kremer, K. E., Kendeou, P., White, M. J., & Lorch, E. P
(2008) The development of narrative comprehension and its relation to other early reading skills. Reading Psychology, 29, 327–365. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Mackie, J. L
(1980) The cement of the universe. Oxford: Clarendon Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
McKoon, G., & Ratcliff, R
(1992) Inference during reading. Psychological Review, 99, 440–466. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
McMaster, K. L., & Espin, C. A
(2017) Reading comprehension instruction and intervention: Promoting inference making. In K. Cain, D. Compton, & R. Parrila (Eds.), Theories of reading comprehension (pp. 463–488. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
McMaster, K. L., Janda, B., Leinen, A. B., Hsu, H., Espin, C. A., & van den Broek, P
(2014, April). You’re on the right track! Giving feedback during a reading comprehension intervention. Presented at the 2014 Annual Convention of the Council for Exceptional Children, Philadelphia, PA.Google Scholar
McMaster, K. L., Leinen, A. B., Brodeur, K., & Lam, E
(2015, April). Making In-the-Text Connections: Helping students understand what they read. Presented at the 2015 Annual Convention of the Council for Exceptional Children, San Diego, CA.Google Scholar
McMaster, K. L., van den Broek, P., Espin, C. A., Pinto, V., Janda, B., Lam, E. A., Hsu, H., Jung, P., Leinen, A. B., & van Boekel, M
(2015) Developing a reading comprehension intervention: Translating cognitive theory to educational practice. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 40, 28–40. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
McMaster, K. L., van den Broek, P., Espin, C. A., White, M. J., Rapp, D. N., Kendeou, P., Bohn-Gettler, C. M., & Carlson, S
(2012) Making the right connections: Differential effects of reading intervention for subgroups of comprehenders. Learning and Individual Differences, 22, 100–111. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Millis, K., Magliano, J., & Todaro, S
(2006) Measuring discourse-level processes with verbal protocols and Latent Semantic Analysis. Scientific Studies of Reading, 10, 225–240. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Mislevy, R., & Sabatini, J. P
(2012) How research on reading and research on assessment are transforming r eading assessment (or if they aren’t, how they ought to). In J. P. Sabatini, E. R. Elbro, & T. O’Reilly (Eds.), Measuring up: Advances in how we assess reading ability (pp. 119–134). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Education.Google Scholar
Nation, K., Clarke, P., Wright, B., & Williams, C
(2006) Patterns of reading ability in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 36, 911–919. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Nation, K., & Norbury, C. F
(2005) Why reading comprehension fails: Insights from developmental disorders. Topics in Language Disorders, 25, 21–32. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
National Assessment of Educational Progress
(2015) The nation’s report card. Retrieved November 16 2015 from [URL]Google Scholar
Oakhill, J., & Cain, K
(2012) The precursors of reading ability in young readers: Evidence from a four-year longitudinal study. Scientific Studies of Reading, 16, 91–121. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Pearson, P. D., & Hamm, D. N
(2005) The assessment of reading comprehension: A review of practices: Past, present, and future. In S. G. Paris & S. A. Stahl (Eds.), Children’s reading comprehension and assessment (pp.13–69). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Perfetti, C. A
(1985) Reading ability. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
(2007) Reading ability: Lexical quality to comprehension. Scientific Studies of Reading, 11, 357–383. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Perfetti, C. A., Landi, N., & Oakhill, J
(2005) The acquisition of reading comprehension skill. In M. J. Snowling & C. Hulme (Eds.), The science of reading: A handbook (pp. 227–253). Oxford: Blackwell. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Perfetti, C. A., & Stafura, J. Z
(2014) Word knowledge in a theory of reading comprehension. Scientific Studies of Reading, 18(1), 22–37. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2015) Comprehending implicit meanings in text without making inferences. In E. J. O’Brien, A. E. Cook, & R. F. Lorch (Eds.), Inferences during reading (pp. 1–18). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Russel, R., & van den Broek, P. W
(1988) A cognitive-developmental account of narratives in child psychotherapy. In S. R. Shirk (Ed.), Cognitive development and child psychotherapy (pp. 19–52). New York: Plenum Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Sabatini, J. P., Albro, E. R., & O’Reilly, T
(Eds.) (2012) Measuring up: Advances in how to assess reading ability. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.Google Scholar
Sabatini, J. P., O’Reilly, T., Halderman, L. K., & Bruce, K
(2014) Integrating scenario-based and component reading skill measures to understand the reading behavior of struggling readers. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 29(1), 36–43. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Scammacca, N. K., Roberts, G., Vaughn, S., & Stuebing, K. K
(2015) A meta-analysis of interventions for struggling readers in grades 4–12: 1980–2011. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 48, 369–390. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Shapiro, B. P., van den Broek, P. W., & Fletcher, C. R
(1995) Using story-based causal diagrams to analyze disagreements about complex events. Discourse Processes, 19, 51–77. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Shuy, T. R., McCardle, P., & Albro, E
(2006) Introduction to this special issue: Reading comprehension assessment. Scientific Studies of Reading, 10, 221–224. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Snow, C
(2002) Reading for understanding: Toward an R&D program in reading comprehension. Arlington, VA: Rand Corporation.Google Scholar
Trabasso, T., Secco, T., & van den Broek, P. W
(1984) Causal cohesion and story coherence. In H. Mandl, N. L. Stein, & T. Trabasso (Eds.), Learning and comprehension of text (pp. 83–111). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Trabasso, T., & van den Broek, P. W
(1985) Causal thinking and the representation of narrative events. Journal of Memory and Language, 24, 612–630. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van den Broek, P
(1994) Comprehension and memory of narrative texts: Inferences and coherence. In M. A. Gernsbacher (Ed.), Handbook of Psycholinguistics (pp. 539–588). New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
(1997) Discovering the cement of the universe: The development of event comprehension from childhood to adulthood. In P. van den Broek, P. Bauer, & T. Bourg (Eds.), Developmental spans in event comprehension and representation: Bridging fictional and actual events (pp. 321–342). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
(2010) Using texts in science education: Cognitive processes and knowledge representation. Science, 328, 453–456. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van den Broek, P., Beker, K., & Oudega, M
(2015) Inference generation in text comprehension: Automatic and strategic processes in the construction of a mental representation. In E. J. O’Brien, A. E. Cook, & R. F. Lorch (Eds.), Inferences during reading (pp. 94–121). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van den Broek, P., Bohn-Gettler, C., Kendeou, P., Carlson, S., & White, M. J
(2011) When a reader meets a text: The role of standards of coherence in reading comprehension. In M. McCrudden, J. Magliano, & G. Schraw (Eds.), Text relevance and learning from text (pp. 123–140). Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing.Google Scholar
van den Broek, P., & Espin, C. A
(2012) Connecting cognitive theory and assessment: Measuring individual differences in reading comprehension. School Psychology Review, 41, 315–325.Google Scholar
van den Broek, P. W., Helder, A., & Van Leijenhorst, L
(2013) Sensitivity to Structural Centrality: Developmental and individual differences in reading comprehension skills. In M. A. Britt, S. R. Goldman, & J-F Rouet (Eds.), Reading: From words to multiple texts (pp. 132–146). New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.Google Scholar
van den Broek, P. W., & Lorch, E. P., & Thurlow, R
(1996) Children’s and adults’ memory for television stories: The role of causal factors, story-grammar categories and hierarchical level. Child Development, 67, 3010–3029. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van den Broek, P., McMaster, K., Rapp, D. N., Kendeou, P., Espin, C., & Deno, S
(2006, June). Connecting cognitive science and educational practice to improve reading comprehension. Paper presented at the Institute of Education Sciences Research Conference, Washington, DC.
van den Broek, P., Rapp, D. N., & Kendeou, P
(2005) Integrating memory-based and constructionist processes in accounts of reading comprehension. Discourse Processes, 39, 299–316. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van Kleeck, A
(2008) Providing preschool foundations for later reading comprehension: The importance of and ideas for targeting inferencing in storybook‐sharing interventions. Psychology in the Schools, 45(7), 627–643. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
van Silfhout, G., Evers-Vermeul, J., Mak, W. M., & Sanders, T. J
(2014) Connectives and layout as processing signals: How textual features affect students’ processing and text representation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 106(4), 1036–1048. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Vaughn, S., & Wanzek, J
(2014) Intensive interventions in reading for students with reading disabilities: Meaningful impacts. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 29, 46–53. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Verhoeven, L., & van Leeuwe, J
(2008) Prediction of the development of reading comprehension: A longitudinal study. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 22, 407–423. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zwaan, R. A., Langston, M. C., & Graesser, A. C
(1995) The construction of situation models in narrative comprehension: An event-indexing model. Psychological Science, 6, 292–297. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cited by

Cited by 1 other publications

Ferroni, Marina
2021. Habilidades relacionadas con la comprensión lectora en lectores iniciales que crecen en contextos de pobreza. CES Psicología 14:3 ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 22 march 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.