Academic Reading in Social Studies
In the social studies subject area there is a wide range of text that students will be exposed to; everything from very old primary source documents to textbooks and even images. Often, primary source documents are very challenging for all students to read because, depending on the text you choose, they can be very dense and use irregular and unusual phrasing. This would be especially difficult for ELLs who are struggling with modern English techniques. Textbooks can be slightly less confusing as students are exposed to textbooks in a range of subjects and are likely to have had some experience reading them, certainly more than with primary documents. I think that the most interesting area in terms of ELLs would be ‘reading’ visuals. Visuals are a type of primary document that can be easily overlooked in the daily lessons, but they represent a potentially powerful alternative source of information.
Images, be they photos, videos, paintings or political cartoons, represent a very specialized form of reading which may be more easily accessible to ELL students if they are properly introduced to the techniques required. Certainly, they offer ELLs the opportunity to make use of skills that require less processing of confusing text, instead offering a more direct approach to learning about historical events and perspectives. Many of the skills needed to process primary source images are also required when considering primary text documents, and images can become an important stepping stone where students can learn the techniques they need before having to use them on more complex, confusing materials.