Effects of an Intervention in Active Strategies for Text Comprehension and Recall

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of an intervention program to promote active text-processing strategies (main-idea identification and summarization) at two developmental levels (12- and 16-year-olds). The independent variables were training condition (experimental and control) and school level (7th and 10th grades). Several measures were taken as dependent variables: reading span, reading time, construction of macrostructure, and structural recall. The hypothesis claimed that training would increase comprehension and recall significantly. Furthermore, as a result of the training program, a reduction in developmental differences in the experimental groups at posttest was also expected. Results supported the predictions, showing a significant improvement in the experimental groups' reading comprehension and recall. These results are discussed in terms of the importance of active and self-controlled strategies for text comprehension and recall. El objetivo de este estudio fue investigar los efectos de un programa de intervención para promover estrategias activas de procesamiento de textos (identificación de la idea principal y resumen), en dos niveles de desarrollo evolutivo (12 y 16 años). Las variables independientes fueron la condición de entrenamiento (experimental y control) y el nivel escolar (7° EGB y 2° BUP). Como variables dependientes se utilizaron varias medidas: la amplitud lectora, tiempo de lectura, construcción de la macroestructura y recuerdo estructural. Las hipótesis predecían que el entrenamiento aumentaría de manera significativa la comprensión y el recuerdo. Además, como resultado del programa de entrenamiento, se esperaba también una disminución en las diferencias evolutivas en los grupos experimentales en el postest. Los resultados confirmaron las predicciones mostrando una mejora significativa en la comprensión y recuerdo de los grupos experimentales. Estos resultados se interpretaron en términos de la importancia de las estrategias activas y de autocontrol en la comprensión y recuerdo de textos.

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