In our Secondary Connect, we were very lucky to have Associate Professor Aaron Wilson with us from The University of Auckland talk about how we can develop T-Shaped literacy across our secondary school subjects. Here are some of the key takeaways for me.
It's important that students are able to understand the purpose of texts and importantly how authors have framed texts. Encouraging students to determine who an authors' intended audience might be, helps readers connect with the purpose of specific.
Students need to understand the purpose of reading specific texts, not only for their own understanding but also to elucidate an author's perspective. Knowing the purpose of a text is very closely linked to motivation and necessary for high-level thinking
The kinds of questions we could be prompting students with include
- What's the viewpoint of the writer?
- What ideas is the author trying to convey?
