Welcome to the Texas State University
Developmental Reading page

Overview of the RDG 1300 Course

Syllabus

To the Student

RDG 1300 Overview

The units of study in this developmental reading course are designed to help you become more successful in college reading and studying. On average, a college student must read 200 pages of text each week. Being able to comprehend and remember all the information in these weekly assignments is essential to success in college. The successful student reads actively: s/he approaches the text with expectations and purpose; searches out important ideas and recognizes their supporting details; uses the text's organizational patterns to make connections among ideas across sections and chapters; and connects the new information to what s/he already knows. This active reading process helps the student not only to comprehend but also to remember. S/he then rehearses and practices the information read, so that it can be remembered and demonstrated on tests.
To improve your comprehension and your ability to remember you will practice active reading and studying strategies in the laboratory exercises. These strategies involve actions you take before you read, as you read, and after you read. These strategies are combined into a synthesis strategy called PLAN, which stands for Predict, Locate, Add, and Note. The exercises in the first three units will provide you with practice using each part of the PLAN strategy. The last unit will help you refine this strategy as you critically PLAN to read both expository and narrative texts.
The before-reading strategies (Predict and Locate) make up Unit One, PLAN for self-awareness. In this unit, you will develop a better understanding of the reading process and the interrelated factors of self, text, and professor by analyzing the task demands of each of your college courses. You will then learn to Preview text before you read in order to Locate where you need to build background knowledge. Once you have located what you already know and what you need to learn, you will be better able to set specific purposes for your reading. You will also be better able to anticipate or Predict what information will be important for you to learn and how that information will be organized.

back to table of contents


The during-reading strategies (Add) that make up Unit Two, PLAN for text awareness, will involve you using the organizational patterns that exist in text. Anticipating these patterns before you begin to read and recognizing them as you read will help you more quickly and accurately identify main ideas and their supporting details, and realize how each idea is connected to others. In this unit, you will learn to create graphic representations or maps of different organizational patterns. You will also learn to use underlining and marginal notes as aids to your understanding and remembering. Finally, you will learn to Add information you have gained from your reading to the maps you have created. This process of mapping and adding will improve your ability to read to get the "big picture" as well as to remember the supporting details.

The underlining, marginal notes, and maps you have created will be used in Unit Three, PLAN for performance awareness, as you engage in after-reading strategies to "Note what you now know." Reviewing, reevaluating your understanding of the text, revising, and recreating your maps from memory will help insure that the information you have read and studied will be recognized when you see it on objective-type examinations. Reviewing and summarizing your underlinings and marginal notes will help you perform better on recall tests like short-answer and essay examinations.

back to table of contents


Having completed Unit Three, you will have developed a repertoire of before, during, and after-reading strategies that you can then adapt to meet the demands of any college reading. In Unit Four, PLAN for task awareness, you will have the opportunity to refine these strategies to meet the learning demands of critically assessing both expository and narrative texts. The task of critical reading extends beyond the mere remembering of facts and related topics required in many classes. The strategies for before, during, and after reading are useful, but they must be adapted to fit the activities of analyzing, questioning, evaluating, and criticizing in which a critical reader and thinker engages.

Course Syllabus
Reading 1300 - Reading Improvement
Spring, 1996

back to table of contents

Instructor: Ms. Sheila A. Nicholson
Hours: M-10-11, 1-2 W-10-11, 1-2 F-10-11
Office: ED 2063

Phone: 245-2359, 245-2411

Course description:
This course is designed to expand your ability to learn at the college level through effective and efficient reading strategies. As a by-product, you will also be able to perform well on standardized tests such as the T.A.S.P. Combining class lecture, collaborative groups, and individualized instruction, you will participate in a variety of activities focused on learning from textbooks. These activities will develop your approaches to before, during, and after reading strategies.

Required texts:: Nicholson, S., Burrell, K., Sundin McKool, S., & Caverly, D. (1993). Reading 1300: Laboratory manual. (To be copied with a student-purchased $10 copy card); Soto, G. Living Up the Street; Angelou, M. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Course requirements:
1. Completion of 4 units of laboratory exercises plus 4 unit journals worth 40 points total.

2. Completion of 8 e-mail summary/reactions plus 8 responses worth 24 points total.

3. Completion of vocabulary and background knowledge building activities on the Internet worth 16 points.

4. Completion of a pretest, midterm, and posttest worth 20 points.

Grading scale:
Credit (CR) - A grade of Credit will be granted to students who earn 75-100 points and attend class regularly (no more than 6 excused or unexcused absences in MWF sections and 4 in MW sections).

Progress (P) - A grade of Progress will be granted to students who earn 60-75 points and/or fail to attend class regularly (7-9 excused or unexcused absences in MWF sections and 5 in MW sections).

Failing (F) - A grade of F will be granted to students who fail to earn 60 points and/or fail to attend class regularly (more than 9 excused or unexcused absences in MWF sections and 6 in MW sections). This grade will count on your G.P.A.

back to table of contents


Attendance policy:
In order to receive a grade of Credit (CR) or Progress (P) in RDG 1300, students may miss no more than 9 classes in MWF sections and 6 in MW sections (excused or unexcused). This includes lab hours and repeated tardies. Missing any more than this minimum number of classes will result in an automatic Failing (F) grade and may result in your being withdrawn from the university.

TASP Requirement:
If you are taking this course because of TASP requirements, you must register for and take the exam this semester. If you pass the reading section of the exam and wish to drop RDG 1300 and receive a W, you must be in regular attendance and have a passing grade at the time you withdraw. You must then formally withdraw through the registrar's office. Failure to formally withdraw will result in an automatic F.

Rdg 1300
To the student

Purpose:
Reading 1300 is designed to help college students develop a fuller awareness of themselves as readers and develop strategies to meet the demands of college reading. Although this course is mandated by state law to provide remediation for students who have failed the reading section of the TASP exam, its primary purpose is to support students in becoming more successful in any task that requires reading. To achieve this purpose, you will participate in a variety of activities that promote a better understanding of the reading process and that teach you effective strategies for college textbook reading. These activities include lectures and demonstrations, group discussions, group and individual practice, journal writing, and extensive reading both in and out of class.

Responsibilities:
You will be responsible for completing four units of instruction during the semester. Each unit is designed to instruct you in before, during, and/or after reading activities. The procedures for these activities will be introduced and discussed the beginning of each week and practiced in small groups during the rest of the week. You will then apply the procedures individually to your own textbooks as you complete laboratory exercises outside of class. These exercises provide you with the opportunity to independently practice the procedures and adapt them to your own specific needs for reading and studying.

back to table of contents


In addition, during the course of each unit and throughout the semester, you will use computers to write response journals. You will respond to what you are learning and how you are applying this learning to your reading and studying in your other classes. These journals function as an on-going chronicle of the procedures you are learning and the insights you gain into their effectiveness as you use them to meet the reading demands of your classes.

In order to complete both the laboratory exercises and to write in your journals, you will need to schedule an hour outside of class time each week to attend the TASP Reading Lab, ED 2051. Lab assistants are on duty there to assist you in completion of both the laboratory exercises and the writing of the journals and hours are posted on the door. Once you have confirmed your semester schedule, you will choose a time to attend lab each week and your attendance there will be monitored throughout the semester. Not attending the Reading Lab will count toward absences and could lead to your failure in the course. Lab assistants will also check that you have completed assigned work by the deadlines set by your instructor. After you have completed any assigned work for Reading 1300, you may use the lab to complete work assigned in other courses.

The final responsibility you have for meeting the requirements of this course is to read widely and regularly for pleasure and for education. You will need to select a book (novel, short stories, essays, etc.) for Sustained Silent Reading. You will be expected to read this book five times a week for twenty-five to thirty uninterrupted minutes each time. Your instructor may also assign you specific readings which will be considered part of your Sustained Silent Reading.

Benefits:
You can expect to benefit greatly from this course if you are an active participant and in regular attendance. You will learn more about yourself as a reader and student, you will better understand the process of reading, comprehending, and studying, and you will learn strategies that can make you more successful, not only on the TASP exam, but in your other college classes.