Student Perceptions Of Reading Reaction Journals

By Author: emaly su
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Several of the metacognitive strategies assisting comprehension as identified by Allen (op. cit.) are implicit in the students' responses; deciding important points, summarizing, filling in points not explicitly made, and making inferences.

Students identified a range of functions associated with their work in their RRJs, and most were able to identify at least two ways in which the journals were of use, suggesting that these functions were seen as connected, rather than discrete.

That two-thirds of students identified 'comprehension' as a function of the RRJ may be significant as it appears to support the notion that deeper cognitive processing of text is important for comprehension. It is also interesting to ...
... note that four students reported that the RRJ helped them with reading-to-write tasks, with comments such as, 'A rough ARP'.

One of my initial beliefs about the functions of the R R J is that they would not only assist comprehension of the set expository texts, but in addition, would also help students deal with reading-to-write tasks.

Thus, question two aimed to see if students were using the RRJs for such a purpose. (When the questionnaire was given, students in the study had not started their essays, and responses refer only to the use of RRJs when writing the ARPs.)

It may be significant that fifteen students reported that the R R J helped them with reading-to-write tasks. Typical examples include: Because in my journal there are many criticisms that can be used to write discussion part, (of the ARP) Journal has my comments and main points.

So, when I write ARP, I can develop some of my comments from journal. Yes, because I write comments in the journal and when I write the ARP, it reminds me of what I was thinking when I read the section.

Students who responded 'not sure' provided some interesting comments. One reported that the R R J did not help develop ideas and therefore, they had to reread the source text. This suggests that perhaps this student was not making adequate summary notes in the RRJ.

Similarly, another reported that s/he seldom used the journal as it was 'not useful yet'. Two students noted mixed feelings to the RRJ because their opinions changed:

Yes, but not too much. Because when writing an ARP, I expand my notes over again so I don't really go back to my journal 'cos journals are thoughts at that time, not now. Sometimes I come up with a reaction that I didn't write in the journal while writing ARP. These responses are particularly revealing as the students are reflecting upon their initial reactions.

Presumably, they are comparing their original thoughts as recorded in the RRJ with those held at the time of writing the ARPs, and finding their reactions have changed. Such appraisal of beliefs and reactions is crucial to critical inquiry and is to be encouraged and applauded. Thus, reactions noted in the RRJs should not be viewed by students as 'final' and should be open to reassessment, a point that needs to be made clearly in future classes.

E AP students face considerable challenges in reading, and reading-to-write. RRJs go beyond the conventional 'read, note, write up the notes', requiring that students engage with texts at deep cognitive levels, helping them to deal with some of the problems posed by expository texts.

The perceptions presented here of one group of L2 university students in a content-based course indicate that RRJs can be used as students activate metacognitive reading strategies necessary to begin successful reading comprehension, with particular reference to the structure of a text, and the relationship between the ideas presented in it.

Responses also indicate that the RRJ can help students to cross the reading-to-write interface when assigned texts are to be used in writing assignments. An important part of this process is the ability to think critically about the ideas presented (including reactions and questioning), a skill requiring nurture and practice.

The RRJ can help students to develop this skill in a less structured format than an ARP or essay, and at the same time, allows them to explore and use other learning styles, and provides an important basis of peer discussions.