A Confluence of Complexity: Intersections Among Reading Theory, Neuroscience, and Observations of Young Readers

• In Event: Literacy, Scholarly Responsibility, and Problematics: An International Analysis of Inequitable Systems in the 21st Century

Abstract

Objectives of the Paper
This position paper draws on theoretical models of reading based on empirical research, emerging trends in neuroscience, and research based on observations of emergent readers to argue for a confluence of evidence that multiple factors, various processes, and multiple sources of information inform learning to read. Our review challenges instructional approaches that deny or ignore the multidimensional and networked nature of children’s reading processes and/or children’s unique literacy learning trajectories. We write this paper as an empirically-based correction to singular and universal approaches to teaching children to read, particularly media reports that misrepresent and/or selectively draw on reading scholarship (Hanford, 2018, 2019; IDA, 2019; Paige, 2020; Pierson, n.d.; Spear-Swerling, 2019).

Methods/Techniques or Modes of Inquiry
We review empirical research related to: 1.) theoretical models of reading based on empirical research; 2.) emerging information related to the brain and reading; and 3.) research findings based on close observations of children.
Data Sources
Theoretical models, and the empirical studies they reference, were explored through a close analysis of Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading/Literacy published between 1970 (Singer & Ruddell) and 2018 (Alvermann et al., 2018). We tracked the evolution of reading/literacy scholarship, through a review of influential research-based theoretical models proposed by recognized leaders in the field of reading/literacy education. Findings related to the brain and reading were gleaned through a review of emerging scholarship that demonstrates the networked and multidimensional nature of brain activity during reading. For example, scientists have mapped reading networks involving information transfer across brain regions (e.g., Friederici, & Gierhan, 2013; Yu et al., 2018). Finally, research that draws on close observations of children reading (e.g., Clay, 1991, 2005; Goodman, K.S., 1976, 2014; Y. Goodman & Marek, 1996) documents how children draw on multiple sources of information as they learn to process text.
Findings
These three bodies of scholarship present a confluence of evidence suggesting that reading is complex and multidimensional. Across these three bodies of research, scholars agree:
• Reading is multidimensional and involves coordinated, networked, and orchestrated processes/actions,
• Children bring unique cultural practices, cognitive strengths, and literacy experiences to becoming literate, and
• Children’s attention to various dimensions of reading changes over time.
Complexities that affect reading include children’s diverse cultural, educational, familial, and experiential backgrounds, which are often affected by economic, social, and nutritional inequities. In short, the “human factor” (Pearson, 2004, p. 236) – differences among individuals and groups, their practices, their interactions, and the unpredictability that accompanies being human - disrupts the possibility of narrow and universally applicable solutions for helping all children become readers.
Scientific or Scholarly Significance
This paper challenges how some scholars and media reporters have characterized a Simple View of Reading (SVR) and narrowly applied that model to young readers. We argue that reductive and singular models of reading fail to not only honor the individuality of young readers but also the systemic changes needed in schools and communities to equitably serve all children.

Author

• Catherine F. Compton-Lilly, University of South Carolina