The results of the 2021 Progress in International Reading and Literacy Study (PIRLS) were released a few days ago. This is a highly regarded International Benchmark conducted by Lynch School of Education, Boston College. PIRLS 2021 is the fifth cycle of the study and most of the surveys were concluded in 2021. However due to the pandemic, some countries did not participate in this round and some of the surveys were actually completed in 2022. Read the full report here: https://pirls2021.org/.
Reading and Comprehension skills are closely related to math achievement. In math, we read to make sense of a problem. Many students misinterpret what they are reading and the use of visuals such as bar modeling is a very effective way to get students to 3-Reads;
- Read for context
- Read to understand the quantities and their relationship and
- Read to determine what mathematical questions we can answer
It is important to note that reading is not the same as comprehending. If we do not comprehend, we cannot draw bar models to represent the question. Conversely, if we comprehend, we are already more than halfway in answering the problem!
Please encourage your students to continue to use visuals to make sense of the problems and to “make their thinking visible” by showing their work!