The November/December 2006 issue of "Adolescent Literacy In Perspective" focuses on "Using Textbooks More Effectively" and features Ohio educator Jeffery L. Williams' look at an important reading concern: "Fostering Comprehension in Content-Area Reading." Understanding the frustration of having to teach students who cannot read well coupled with the reality of having to use resources that are not well constructed, Williams targets reading research and strategies that increase students' comprehension.

He begins with what educators already know-- that to continue to simply assign text, lecture about the text, and then test the text is to get the same results that they're already getting. The author suggests that it is not that content-area teachers should teach reading or discard all the materials they've purchased. Instead, Williams sees the answer lying in a shift in time and focus: teachers providing students ways to navigate these materials successfully, shifting the emphasis away from teachers doing the majority of talking to students talking and constructing thinking. The article provides a quick overview of the framework for teaching comprehension, ways in which to provide reading comprehension strategies in the classroom, and a list of resources and references at the end of the article. (author/ebm)