How instruction in critical thinking skills increases middle-level reading comprehension
The research question addressed in this capstone was, how will effective lesson instruction in Language Arts Standards embedded with critical thinking skills affect sixth graders' comprehension? It documents one teacher's creation of Language Arts mini-lessons that integrate critical thinking skills with Sixth Grade MN Language Arts Standards through effective lesson design. Utilizing lesson design methods based on Hunter and Marzano, mini-lessons were developed to teach critical thinking skills based on research from Bloom, Harvey and Goudvis, Fountas and Pinnell, and other reading researchers. The author documents the results of comprehension tests and uses related literature to construct meaning and to validate the study. She describes both successes and struggles encountered during the study and concludes that instruction in critical thinking skills is a valuable strategy to improve middle-level students' reading comprehension.
Akre, Susan Kathleen Wilder, "How instruction in critical thinking skills increases middle-level reading comprehension" (2008). School of Education Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations. 2121.