Question Answer Relationships QAR: A Framework for Improving Literacy Teaching and Learning

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Question Answer Relationships (QAR)A Framework
for Improving Literacy Teaching and Learning

• Taffy E. Raphael, Ph.D.
• University of Illinois at Chicago
• Spring, 2005

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Focus for Today

• What is QAR?
• Why use QAR
• How can QAR support comprehension instruction
  that connects across grade levels and subject
  areas and enhances test-taking?

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What is QAR?

• Why Not Tell Them Where Information Comes From?

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QAR Core Categories

• In the Book
• In My Head

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In the Book
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In My Head
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Why Use QAR?

• A language for ALL to use in talking about
  strategies and their use in context
• A developmental progression that is visible to
  students and teachers across grade levels
• A logical way to organize comprehension
  strategies
• A valuable approach to test preparation

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Thus, QAR Provides a Common Language

• Within grade levels
• Across grade levels
• Across subject areas

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QAR

• A Developmental Progression Builds Coherence
  Across Grades

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QAR Across the Grades
In the Book
In My Head
Genre Analyses
School Subject Extensions
Text to World Connections
Text to Self Connections
Text to Theme Connections
How to Take Notes
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Beginning Focus

• Contrast Book / Head
• Consider how knowledge gets into our heads

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Individual Accountability and Reflection
Picture of Students Representations of In the
Book and In My Head QARs

• What do I know about sources of information?
• How can I represent this to someone else?

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Tools for Primary Grades

• Poster with definitions
• How to use post-its
• Flip Chart for every-pupil response

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Tools in Middle Grades

• Picture of Right There versus Think and Search
  definitions
• Picture of Comprehension Strategies for each QAR

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Links to Content Learning (e.g., science)

• Showing language connections
• Activating prior knowledge making observations
• Predicting Stating a hypothesis
• Taking notes Keeping data

Picture of Science Teachers Chart
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Getting Organized for Comprehension Instruction

• Staircase versus Christmas Tree

• Au, K. H. (in press). Multicultural issues and
  literacy achievement. Mahwah NJ Erlbaum.)
• Raphael, T. E., Au, K. H. (in press). The
  Standards-Based Change Process. The California
  Reader.

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Where Does QAR Fit?

• Identifying Important Information
• Summarizing
• Making Inferences
• Predicting
• Visualizing
• Questioning
• Monitoring
• Critique and Evaluation

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Introduce Students to the Reading Cycle and the
Role of QAR

• Before ? During ? After Reading

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Before Reading

• On My Own From the title or the topic, what do
  I already know that can connect me to the
  story/text?
• Author and Me From the topic, title,
  illustrations, and/or book cover, what might this
  story/text be about?

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DURING READING

• Author and Me
• What do I think will happen next?
• How would you describe the mood of the story and
  why is this important?
• Think and Search
• What is the problem and how is it resolved?
• What role do insert characters names play in
  the story?
• What are the important events? (literary,
  informational)
• Right There locate and recall details
• Who is the main character? (literary)
• Identify the topic sentence in this paragraph
  (informational)
• What are some words that describe the setting?
  (literary)

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AFTER READING

• Author and Me
• What is the authors message?
• What is the theme and how is it connected to the
  world beyond the story?
• How can I synthesize the information with what I
  know from other sources?
• How well does the author make his/her argument?
• How is the author using particular language to
  influence our beliefs?
• Think and Search
• Find evidence in the text to support an argument.

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Align Strategies to QAR Categories
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QAR and Comprehension Strategies Right There

• Scanning to locate information
• Note-taking strategies to support easier recall
  of key information
• Using context clues for creating definitions

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QAR and Comprehension Strategies Think Search

• Identifying important information
• Summarizing
• Using text organization to identify relevanat
  information
• Visualizing (e.g., setting, mood, procedures)
• Using context to describe symbols and figurative
  language
• Clarifying

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QAR and Comprehension Strategies Author Me

• Predicting
• Visualizing
• Making simple and complex inferences
• Distinguish fact and opinion
• Making text to self connections
• Making text to text connections

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QAR and Comprehension Strategies On My own

• Activating prior knowledge (about genre,
  experiences, authors, etc.)
• Connecting to the topic (self-to-text)

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Making QAR Part of the Fabric of the Classroom

• Embedding QAR Language in a Book Club Setting

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How Would You Respond?

• Dear Dr. Raphael,
• I would really appreciate your input for this
  scenario. It's a somewhat delicate situation
  because the child is a particularly bright third
  grader and a voracious reader, reading at least
  on a 6th to 7th grade level.
• The student described above didn't answer all of
  the QAR's correctly for the critical thinking
  assessment for Charlotte's Web and I'm
  concerned.  Does failure to "get the QAR's"
  necessarily reflect lack of critical thinking
  skills?  
• I asked him if he had heard of critical thinking
  and he replied, "No," but asked me if I meant
  "mean" or "smart". It's apparent from
  conversation that he makes original correct
  critical observations. i.e. If a tree falls in
  outer space it won't make noise because noise
  requires atmosphere to travel. He makes astute
  mature observations about an author's background,
  etc. But these contributions aren't captured in
  QAR's

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End-of-Presentation Goals

• I can describe to my colleagues a process of
  bringing coherence to our comprehension program.
• I can describe at least three ways that QAR can
  help improve my own and my schools comprehension
  instruction across grades and school subjects.
• I can make my literacy instructional goals more
  visible to my students and their families
• I can create instructional tools for improving
  comprehension instruction in my classroom or
  school.

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Related Resources
Raphael, T.E. Au, K. H. (in press). QAR
Enhancing Comprehension and Test-taking Across
Grades and Content Areas, The Reading
Teacher. Raphael, T. E. Au, K. H. Super QAR
for Testwise Students. Wright Group/McGraw-Hill
http//www.litd.psch.uic.edu/pr
taffy_at_uic.edu