AcAdemic
Reading
CirCles

As an international student whose first language is not English I consider that sometimes learning this language can be overwhelming. That is the reason why it is really important to use an effective and entertaining method that allows the student to be completely involved with an English reading or text. In this context, the reading circle is an activity that accurately accomplishes this mission because it guarantees that the student deeply examines and understands the text. Consequently, after doing reading circles I have noticed that my abilities to both read and understand an English text have considerably improved.

As a reading and writing instructor who has used the ARCs for the first time recently, I can state that it is an effective way to have students engage with any sort of text, academic or otherwise. Due to the different roles that each member has to fulfill in the group reading of the text, it instills in students the idea that comprehensively reading a text involves the interaction of different skills and sets of knowledge (including context, vocabulary, connections to themselves and outside the class, visual conceptualizations of ideas in the text, and simply comprehending the main ideas in the text). I think this was the most important lesson that students took away from the ARCs, in fact. While there was a bit of a learning curve in the beginning, once students understood both their roles and how it fits within the bigger picture, the ball started rolling. In the end, it was an effective and very explicit way of breaking down the process of reading for learners. As for the students themselves, I can attest that they enjoyed the peer-to-peer discussions and wished for more time in class for more ARCs!

If you don’t have Academic Reading Circles already, WHY NOT!!??! It’s a comprehensive, highly usable teaching resource. I implemented ARC with a couple groups this very semester. Went down well, despite having reduced time. Clear structure – and instructions – really helps. Got them discussing the article (I used Tyson’s Jarvis Street article as a first practice text) in an informed way. Then when I ran it again with an article that was more relevant to their subject, they were able to pick up from last time and work with the roles confidently. Next, we want to run the process with video material.

ARCs are something I have been interested in for some time. They provide a solid approach for tackling potentially difficult texts in a university classroom. ARCs engage learners and are far more motivating and educational than just reading at home and then doing some comprehension questions in class. Tyson Seburn has done an excellent job of writing an ebook for both people new to ARCs and us fans. Tyson covers the essential aspects of setting and running ARCs in academic lessons. He starts off by providing us with a very good checklist of how to choose texts and also links for where to find them. Some of us already know the ARC roles but before reading this ebook, I now know that I wasn’t doing them justice. Through the use of an example text, Tyson outlines each ARC role and their responsibilities in a VERY detailed way. Of the many things I learned are that leaders should provide academic references and conceptual and discussion questions. … If you work with academic texts in class and REALLY want to do ARC properly, this is the book for you. ARCs are not just simple reading circles and this ebook will help you learn how to get the most out of them.