Misulis Article

Misulis Article “Promoting Learning…”

Summary: This article discusses the need for both teachers and students to see the importance of content area literacy in order of learning to be maximized. The article also gives four basic literacy skills that can be developed in the class room. These consist of vocabulary strategies, comprehension strategies, study strategies, and writing strategies.

Reading this article was difficult because I feel like the information has been the same throughout all of the different articles that I have read. To understand the article, I had to read slower and reread the information because my reciting voice was on and I felt like my reading went in one ear and out the other.  What I did get out of the article, was that there are four main literary strategies that can be used in any classroom setting. Vocabulary or words that students are unfamiliar with, that are found in the text causes students to figure out the meaning by the context or looking it up. Sometimes the definition is found in the book, but even then, students are still learning a new word that is improving their vocabulary and understanding.  Another skill is comprehension, which is broken down into three different groups: literal, interpreted, and applied. These three groups cause students to take in the information, analyze it and figure out how it is used and the importance of it. If students do not comprehend the information, they are not really learning and understanding. For mathematics students, comprehending is key because everything is based off of the last thing that was taught, and if a student does not understand that, they are unable to move on. Study skills are another one of the literacy skills and this entails taking during class, reading and understanding graphs, charts or diagrams, and reviewing past skills. These are important to “jog” your memory of what has been covered and if there are any things that students may be unsure on or have questions. A review sheet of problems would be sent out for math students, but it is very important for students to look back on their note and see the steps that it takes to get the correct answer. The last literacy skill is writing, which can include journals, papers, essays or notes. As a math teacher, I most likely will not have my students write a paper or journal. Instead to help with literacy, I will have them take notes in class and they will have to write out proofs in some of our sections.