Four Reader Roles
Luke & Freebody’s Four Reader Roles have articulated a set of reading practices to encourage a balanced approach when developing critical reading skills (Winch, G., Ross-Johnston, R., March, P., Ljungdahl, L. & Holliday, M., 2011). The four roles of a reader approach enables students to remain focused on their reading goals and learn the various ways they can actively engage with the text to achieve them (Winch et al., 2011).
Code breakerCode-breaking practices focus on "basic decoding" of the text and knowledge of the words and sentences contained within (Winch et al., 2011, p.38).
By applying knowledge of grammar, vocabulary and semantics, students are in a position to monitor their understanding of the text (Winch et al., 2011). Students can ask themselves:
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Text-participantText-participant practices are related to how readers extract meaningful information (Winch et al., 2011).
When trying to learn new texts, students construct this new knowledge based on prior knowledge and experiences (Winch et al., 2011). Text-participant practices also concern with the reader’s ability to draw literal and inferential meanings within the text (Winch et al., 2011). Students can ask themselves:
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Text-userText-user practices enable students to learn how different text types can be used for different purposes, such as reading a recipe to make biscuits (Winch et al., 2011).
The associated social context is also important, such as texts that require participation with others (e.g. book and film reviews) and texts that guide activity (e.g. instructions for building blocks) (Winch et al., 2011). Students can ask themselves:
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Text-analyst
An understanding of a text is deepened when an author's viewpoint is considered and bias' recognised (Winch et al., 2013).
For example, an observation of the type of language used to elicit particular thoughts, attitudes and feelings from the audience, allows students to make critically informed judgments (Winch et al., 2011). Students can ask themselves:
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'Lock', 'Person Reading Book' and 'Manual Book' images courtesy of Pixabay