Text Dependent Questions
As their name suggests, text-dependent questions are a type of question that can only be answered with evidence from the text. If students do not comprehend the text, they will be unable to answer text-dependent questions.
Text-dependent questions can range widely in scope and scale. They can be literal. . . OR involve deeper analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. They can be micro (focusing on a word, sentence, or paragraph). . . OR macro (focusing on larger themes, ideas, or events). And they can enhance students’ reading proficiency, by focusing on difficult portions of a text.
The chart below compares Text-Dependent and Non-Text-Dependent Questions based on a brief excerpt from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
Text-dependent questions can range widely in scope and scale. They can be literal. . . OR involve deeper analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. They can be micro (focusing on a word, sentence, or paragraph). . . OR macro (focusing on larger themes, ideas, or events). And they can enhance students’ reading proficiency, by focusing on difficult portions of a text.
The chart below compares Text-Dependent and Non-Text-Dependent Questions based on a brief excerpt from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
Non-Text-Dependent Questions |
Text-Dependent Questions |
Are books without pictures or conversations useful? |
What kinds of books does Alice find useful? |
How would you react if you saw a talking rabbit? |
How did Alice react when she saw a talking rabbit? |
Would Alice have followed the rabbit down the hole had she not seen it look at a watch? |
Why did Alice follow the rabbit down the rabbit hole? |
What do you know about Lewis Carroll, the author? |
What does the reader know about the rabbit? |
The questions in the Non-Text-Dependent column can be answered by anyone, even if he or she has not read or understood the text. The Text-Dependent questions on the right side, on the other hand, require the reader to refer directly to language in the text to develop his or her response.
In preparation for close reading lessons, teachers select an appropriate complex text; read, reread and think about the text challenges and related standards to identify specific learning goals; and identify several text-dependent questions related to those learning goals. Because the text will be read, reread, and analyzed in such depth, teachers need to carefully scrutinize short text pieces to determine whether or not the text is “worthy” of close reading instruction.
In preparation for close reading lessons, teachers select an appropriate complex text; read, reread and think about the text challenges and related standards to identify specific learning goals; and identify several text-dependent questions related to those learning goals. Because the text will be read, reread, and analyzed in such depth, teachers need to carefully scrutinize short text pieces to determine whether or not the text is “worthy” of close reading instruction.
