| Abstract: |
This paper describes the Reading Enhancement Across Disciplines (READ) workshops at Brookdale Community College, New Jersey. The READ workshops focus on practical strategies for faculty across the disciplines to use in order to enhance the level of students' interaction with both written and oral discourse. The author of this report argues that frequent quizzes regarding assigned reading help the students and the instructors to clarify goals and assess progress. The paper suggests that instructors establish students' prior knowledge at the outset. Critical thinking skills should then be developed. An exercise suggested here consists of students writing out a "who, what, when, where, how, and why" in relation to a classroom topic, followed by group work in which students expand their summaries. These summaries make information easier to recall. Students also need to see the relevance of their learning. The author argues that students can create a real-world application for what they learn in any class. The paper offers guidelines for creating a small group evaluation form for students in order to help the instructor determine how productive their group work is. Finally, the paper also contains an English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) reading rating sheet that can be adapted for most courses, as well as an exam evaluation form. (NB) |