Does concept-oriented reading instruction increase strategy use and conceptual learning from text?

The authors define reading engagement asthe mutual support of motivations, trategies, and conceptual knowledge during reading. To increase reading engagement, a collaborative t am designed ayear-long integration of reading/language arts and science instruction (Concept-Oriented Reading Instruction, CORI). The authors compared students who received this instruction to similar students who received traditionally organized instruction aimed toward the same objectives. A path analysis howed that CORI had a positive effect on strategy use and text comprehension for students at Grades 3 and 5 when accounting for past achievement and prior knowledge. CORI also had a positive, indirect effect on conceptual knowledge mediated by strategy use, and this instruction facilitated conceptual transfer indirectly through several paths simultaneously. The findings are discussed in relation to a growing literature on instructional contexts for motivated strategy use and conceptual learning from text. The term engagement i reading refers to the motivated use of strategies and conceptual knowledge during reading. These processes operate dynamically, increasing over time.