Through Literacy to Fluency: Reading in the Religious Studies Classroom

Abstract

This paper addresses a perennial question of the religious studies and, indeed, of most liberal arts classrooms: How do I get my students to read texts thoroughly and with understanding? After briefly reviewing the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) data, I argue that what teachers desire is not just basic literacy, but fluency, which is the capacity to read analytically (and, for me, appreciatively), deploying the strategies of reading in a high process, improvisational mode. I unpack the elements and efficacy of one close reading classroom teaching practice I use, guided annotation, as a strategy for developing fluency. I argue that close analysis of a short, intentionally chosen passage with a guiding question builds towards reading fluency. Annotating short passages, singly and then in relation to other passages, with the author's and disciplinary concerns as the foci, practices the skills that build fluency. Annotation is akin to playing scales in music, repeating a baseline task of reading; working slowly and simply at first, but then with increasing speed and complexity, moving the student towards reading whole texts well.

Testing the KAPS Model of Reading Comprehension in a Turkish Elementary School Context from Low Socioeconomic Background

“…In other words, fluent readers are able to effectively use reading strategies during reading. This enables them to monitor reading comprehension processes [48,49]. The students' scores of strategy use made statistically significant and substantial contributions to reading compression.…”

From reading to thinking: Student lines of thought in a seminar on Christianity and colonialism

“…Even within one discipline, such as religious studies, scholars read differently in different sub‐disciplines or for different types of projects. There is not much literature on reading in religious studies, but one exception is Carolyn Medine's () article on teaching close reading. She outlines a classroom exercise in which her students individually annotate a short excerpt, collectively discuss their observations, and end up with an articulation of what may be important in the text and why.…”

“…She outlines a classroom exercise in which her students individually annotate a short excerpt, collectively discuss their observations, and end up with an articulation of what may be important in the text and why. Her aim is “fluent reading,” which she defines as “the capacity to read analytically (and, for me, appreciatively), deploying the strategies of reading in a high‐process, improvisational mode” (Medine, , 359). She discusses the intertwined web of reading strategies that students practice through this close reading exercise, such as selecting, reflecting, responding, questioning, deciphering, and drawing connections to other texts.…”