1. The Brain is for Action
Psychology for Classroom Gains
Brock Dubbels
The Center for Cognitive Sciences
The University of Minnesota

2. Comprehension
What is it?
It must be guided with socio-cognitive experience.

3. IP & Working Memory
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1492194219761776
1492 1942 1976 1776

4. Clapping

5. Comprehension Analysis
Event Indexing Situation Model

6. Causal network analysis
Epaminondas Story Epaminondas Story
Van den Broek,P., Kendou, P., Kremer, K., Lynch, J.
Butler, J., White, M., and Pugzles Lorch, E. (2005,
p. 112-13)

7. How do we build a comprehension model?
Comprehension Model Literary Elements
• A spatial-temporal framework • Character/ Characterization
– spatial locations, time frames • diction
• Entities • Plot
– people, objects, ideas, • Setting
• Properties of entities • Point of View
– color, emotions, goals, shape, • Theme
etc.
• Tone
• Relational information
• Voice
– spatial, temporal, causal,
ownership, kinship, social, etc. • Word choice

8. Reading & Classroom
Assessment
1. Literacy Coaching
a) Use rubric and fluency scale for
literacy coaching.
2. Oral Interpretation
a) Use Girl Assignment

9. Comprehension measures for reflect aloud using the event indexing model --
Studen Boo Fl D Pro Sit Plo Set Char Them PO Tone W Voice/ Genr Autho
t k ec p t e V C Diction e r
o
d
e
Scoring 4 3 2 1 0
Defined Meaning in Mentioned Cued/ Cued/ Absent
context Explained Recognize Recognize
Detailed Term term
Description Explained

10. Modified fluency with play and agency
1 I have chosen a challenging book. I read with hesitation with emphasis on single words—I am trying to learn them
in isolation from one another. The "flow" in my reading is a little clunky like a telegraph with word-by-word
reading.
2 I just read with two to three word phrasing.
My reading seems very hesitant, like I might be unsure, with considerable pausing. I am blending and decoding the
words. I am naming the words rather than letting them flow.
3 I am pausing for ending punctuation, but am not making inflection changes from sentence to sentence. I read in
phrases but I am lacking in tone necessary in fluent understandable reading.
4 Most of the time, I have, "flow" and phrasing. It is like telling a story to my friends, with vocal intonation and prosody
that indicates awareness of punctuation for pausing and breath, and appropriate inflection (i.e., happy voice).
I should be doing Shakespeare! My performance is characterized by reading that generally "flows."My voice
5 changes to reflect meaning changes in the passage. My inflections are consistently appropriate, and my
reading is fluent and smooth, generally easy to listen to and understood.
Adapted from Table 1. from Marston, Mansfield, cited in (pg. 81
Heineman, in Fountas and Pinnell, 1996) by Dubbels (2005).

12. Characteristics of readers
L Low comp
High High comp
E
fluency High fluency
V
E
L
of
F
L
U
E
N
C Low comp High comp
Y Low fluency Low fluency
ability to comprehendin dialogic method /create a model

13. 40 38
Comparison of student 35
performance
The categories for 05-06 performance 30
was based upon the Minnesota Basic
Skills Test
25 24
The 06-07 scores were based upon the 21 Grade 7 (05-
MCA2 06)
20
16 Grade 8 (05-
All students were taught by one
15 06)
teacher each year.
Grade 8 (06-
I taught the 06-07 year using a much 10 07)
harder test with an emphasis on
games and play.
5
Specifically: Games unit, multimedia
units, sketch up, Etc.
0
Exceed Meets Partial Does
not

14. Research Questions
• Will a video game that emphasizes sensorimotor
experience provide greater recall and problem
solving as compared to viewing a video, or
reading a printed text?
• Will performance in the reading condition
improve if it follows the game or the viewing
condition?
• How does the identification of causation predict
building a mental representation and problem
solving?

15. Knowledge
Perceptual Conceptual

16. Mental Simulations
Modality-specific states are partially Simulations – Reenactments
captured in online experience underlie imagery

17. Texts and Multimodal Narratives
INSTRUCTION AND PURPOSE

18. Redescription the AAA Way
• Average
• 1 + 1 + 1 = 3/3= 1
• Mean
• Symbolic shorthand

19. The brain is for action
A successful theory of
cognition and its application
will require recognition of that
fact.
M. Montessori (1967),
Research on instruction that
emphasizes congruent
sensorimotor experience and
visualization has been found to
improve the ability to
comprehend, read fluently, and
solve problems.
(Glenberg, Brown & Levin, 2007;
Glenberg, Gutierrez, Levin, & Japuntich, 2004).

20. Embodiment &
Developmental
Research Suggests
Perceptual
knowledge is
transformed to
conceptual
knowledge and
schema construction
through identification
affordances of
action, and potential
action which we use
to construct situation
models to relate to
context, for, and
usage.

21. Research & Practice