Characteristics of Middle and High School Text-Dependent Analysis Instruction and the Support Educators Need

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Wednesday 2:30 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: From Transactive to Transformative: Elevating the Reading Practices of Adolescent Youth (Table 8)

Abstract

College and Career Readiness standards in English language arts have identified text-dependent analysis (TDA) skills as crucial to success beyond secondary education (NGACBP & CCSSO, 2010). In TDA, students read a text, respond to a prompt by analyzing the text’s content or structure, form a position supported by evidence from the text, and produce well-organized text presenting the position and relevant evidence. Students regularly struggle to perform TDA (The Nation’s Report Card: Writing, 2011), but research on TDA instruction in middle and high school is sparse. The study developed an understanding of middle and high school TDA instruction through surveys and interviews. The findings underscore areas where students typically struggle and where educators need support to improve student TDA performance.

Authors

• Jonathan Schuster, University of Kansas

• Nami Shin, University of Kansas

• Peter Sherman Johnson, University of Kansas

• Amy Quirin, University of Kansas