What Is Complex Text . . .

1.

Dense information

2.

Lack of words, sentences or paragraphs that review or pull things

together for the student

3.

Lengthy paragraphs

4.

Complex sentences

5.

Text structure that is less narrative and/or mixes structures

6.

Subtle and/or frequent transitions

7.

Multiple and/or subtle themes and purposes

8.

Uncommon vocabulary

9.

Unfamiliar settings, topics or events

10.

Lack of repetition, overlap, or similarity in words and sentences

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Which is more complex?

I think the reason dance has held
such an ageless magic for the
world is that it has been the
symbol of the performance of
living. Many times, I hear the
phrase, the dance of life. It is
close to me for a very simple
and understandable reason. The
instrument through which the
dance speaks is also the
instrument through which life is
lived: the human body.
From Martha Graham, An Athlete of God
(radio interview 2009)

Martha Graham was born in 1894

in the state of Pennsylvania.
Later her family moved to
California, where she saw a
dance being performed and
decided she wanted to be a
dancer. However, her parents did
not approve of her career choice.
But soon after her father died in
1914, she enrolled in a dance
school and stayed there until
1923, when she started her life as
a solo dancer.

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ACT Report (2006):

Reading Between the Lines
College readiness was defined as students who
equaled or exceeded the benchmark ACT reading
score
These students were found to have a high
probability of earning a C or better in a creditbearing 101 level course in U.S. history or
psychology.

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Students who can read literally, can

read inferentially.

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Students who can perform one

strategy can perform all strategies.

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Ability to read complex text

differentiates college-ready readers.

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Three Factors of Text

Complexity
Quantitative Scale: What a
computer can see and
measure
Qualitative Measures: Text
features best judged by
human evaluation (structure,
language and knowledge
demands, and purpose)
Professional Judgment: What
the instructor does with this
text to help students read and
understand it
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Quantitative

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Quantitative Scale

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Qualitative Measures

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Qualitative Measures

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Reader and Task

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Text Complexity Is Essential

Accessing complex ideas and
knowledge requires deciphering complex text.
Students wont be prepared for college and
careers by reading simplified texts that have
restricted, limited, and/or thin meaning.
There is no evidence that struggling readers
catch up by reading exclusively from simpler
texts.
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