Ohio Assessment for Educators (OAE) Assessment of Professional Knowledge: Primary Education (PK–5) (OAE 057) Practice Exam

How does breaking complex texts into smaller chunks benefit students' reading comprehension?

1. Modifying concepts in a text according to the student's cognitive level.

2. Connecting background knowledge of a topic to the text.

3. Making more efficient use of short-term memory to process information.

4. Ensuring content is relevant and meaningful to students' own lives.

The correct answer is: Making more efficient use of short-term memory to process information.

Breaking complex texts into smaller chunks helps enhance students' reading comprehension by making more efficient use of short-term memory to process information. When students encounter long or complex passages, they may struggle to retain all the information being presented, as their short-term memory has limited capacity. By segmenting the text, students can focus on one smaller part at a time, allowing them to better understand and retain the information before moving on to the next chunk. This method also aids in reducing cognitive overload, as students are less likely to feel overwhelmed by the amount of content they need to process at once. The approach promotes better comprehension since students can pause to reflect, ask questions, or summarize what they've read before progressing. This practice encourages active engagement with the text and reinforces understanding, leading to improved retention of the material. In contrast, options that focus on modifying concepts, connecting background knowledge, or ensuring relevance address important aspects of reading comprehension, but they do not specifically highlight the immediate cognitive benefits that come from chunking text into manageable pieces. The emphasis on short-term memory efficiency directly ties to how students process and comprehend reading material, making option C particularly relevant.