Subtest I: Reading, Language Arts, and Literature Study Guide for the CSET Multiple Subjects Test

Reading Informational Text

Informational texts are generally written to inform or persuade the reader of something. When reading informational texts, it is important to be able to identify its purpose, main idea, and supporting details.

Informational Texts

We come into contact with informational texts on a regular basis. From how to assemble your newest piece of furniture to an article about glacial melt in the polar regions to reference texts used to support research into a topic, we interact with and analyze informational texts almost daily. Even all those textbooks for the content areas are mainly informational texts. The CSET will measure your ability to analyze the following information with regard to informational texts.

Structure— Informational texts present factual information to the audience. As a result, its structure is carefully considered by the writer so that the audience can follow the writer’s train of thought and reach a particular conclusion. Information must be presented in a logical, organized way, using effective examples and transitions to move the audience through the information but be presented as a unified, effective whole. The writer must consider the types of evidence to use to support the claim or explain the topic to the reader.

Organization— The organization of an informational text can vary somewhat, but generally begins with an introduction paragraph that contains an introduction to the topic, any necessary background information the audience might need to have going in, and a thesis statement that either implicitly or explicitly states the main idea and the writer’s position or claim with regard to that main idea. From there, the writer might organize the information in any number of ways. Here are the most common organizational structures for informational texts.

Cause and effect: The writer presents several effects put in motion by a particular cause or offers several causes to explain a particular effect.

Chronological or sequential order: Ideas are organized by order of importance, as determined by the writer, chronologically by time, or by steps, as in a process.

Compare/contrast: The writer presents two or more ideas and shows the similarities and/or differences between them.

Problem/solution: The writer presents a problem or issue and then presents potential solutions to that problem, supported with evidence and explanation.

Spatial order: Points are presented based on location or direction. For example, an informational text about an art museum may describe the museum’s collections based on where they are located within the building.

Before ending an informational text, the writer will include a conclusion paragraph that wraps up any loose ends, reviews the main ideas that were presented, and leaves the reader with something to think about.

Purpose— The purpose of an informational text is to inform the audience about a topic. The message that the writer is trying to convey may become lost or muddled if the organization or structure is weak. When analyzing the purpose of an informative text, the reader should be able to identify the writer’s main idea and understand his or her purpose in writing. Beyond the obvious “to inform,” what is the writer trying to inform the audience of? What does he or she want the reader to do at the conclusion of the text?

Textual Evidence

In an informational text, the audience will want to know from where the writer got his or her information. Does the writer use credible sources? Does he or she analyze the information in a logical way? When it comes to evidence, both quantity and quality matter. Textual evidence must be used effectively for an informational text to be meaningful to the audience.

Explicit— Explicit textual evidence is information that can be found directly in the text. In other words, the writer comes straight out and makes the connection he or she wants the reader or audience to make by telling them directly, “this is evidence of that.”

Implicit— Implicit textual evidence is evidence that is provided by the writer, but the connections are not made outright or explicitly. Instead, the writer may hint at or imply the information, but it’s up to the reader or audience to “connect the dots” and apply its meaning.

Central Idea

The central or main idea of a text is usually presented in the first paragraph and subsequent paragraphs work to support, prove, or explain that central idea. A text’s central idea is what drives the rest of the text, and it is developed throughout the text. It may be explicitly stated or implicitly suggested by the writer. The central idea is supported, proven, or explained using supporting details or supporting ideas.

Supporting ideas— Supporting ideas should be evaluated and analyzed based on their level of support of the main idea of a text. Their purpose is to prove, support, or explain the central idea. Sometimes, writers include extra, unnecessary ideas in a text, so when evaluating the supporting ideas, you are looking to determine how well they do their job and connect back to the main idea. If it doesn’t support or explain the main idea, it doesn’t belong in the text.

Objective Summary

A summary is a condensed overview of the main points or ideas presented. An objective summary is a summary that does not include any personal opinions or irrelevant details. It is objective in nature. Because there is no personal opinion in an objective summary, it should never be written using first person pronouns (“I”).

Academic language— The occasion for which one writes often determines the language that should be used. When you write a text to your friends, you are likely to use a different language than that in an email to your boss. Academic language should be used for academic and formal writing occasions. It is the language that students are expected to learn and use in school and generally includes using subject-specific vocabulary and applying consistent grammar and punctuation rules.

Technical Words and Phrases

Some words are only appropriate to use in certain contexts and may only be understood by a select audience. For example, technical words and phrases, like those used in specific fields of study or within particular areas of expertise, may not be accessible to people who have not studied that field or do not share in that expertise. In order to avoid alienating the audience, most writers will not use technical words or phrases without providing some context clues or actual definitions of the terms within the text or as a glossary appendix. When reading informational texts, be prepared to use context clues to help determine the meaning of technical words or phrases with which you might not be familiar.

Word Choice

Word choice is intentional. Writers know that words carry weight and they select their words carefully and with much consideration.

Meaning and tone— Words have a certain meaning and carry a certain tone. Writers use a variety of words to produce a text that conveys a particular meaning and has a certain tone. When reading an informational text, the meaning and tone should be evident through the writer’s word choice. If the meaning is unclear or the tone shifts unexpectedly or awkwardly, the writer may not have selected the right words for the job.

Analogies— Analogies compare two seemingly unlike things to show the similarity or relationship that exists between them. Analogies are used to make connections for the reader between something they likely know and are familiar with and something that may be new or unknown to them. Writers may use analogies to help the reader understand a concept they are trying to convey by comparing it to something with which they are familiar.

Allusions— Writers may also choose the use allusions to help the reader make a connection with an idea being presented. Allusions are references to someone or something well-known or famous. For example, when talking about the love two people share, a writer may allude to Romeo and Juliet and their classic love story. Most people are familiar with Romeo and Juliet, so the reference would help the reader understand the love being described by the writer.

Structure of Informational Texts

The structure of informational text tends to be straightforward and logical. Because the purpose is to inform the audience about a subject, ideas must be presented in a logical way that allows the audience to follow the writer’s progression. Within the text, key concepts and ideas are presented and supported with evidence and explanation.

Popular print— Print resources such as books, magazines, newspapers, and instruction manuals are a popular source of informational texts. In each of these types of print, the structure is generally the same: an introduction paragraph where the topic and background is introduced, body paragraphs that explain or inform about the topic, and a conclusion paragraph to wrap everything up.

Digital media— In today’s digital age, informational texts are available worldwide to a global audience. The structure of informational texts in digital format tends to be the same as in print: introduction, body, and conclusion. Digital media formatting often condenses things a little more than a print source might (compare a history textbook, for example, to a history website), but the structure is generally the same.

Text Features

Informational texts are unique in that their textual features tend to set them apart from other genres, like narratives. Text features of informational texts may include bolded words, a glossary, or a table of contents. These are some of the text features that you should be able to identify and analyze in an informational text.

Graphics— Because they are informative in nature, informational texts may include images, illustrations, or photographs to help provide readers with a visual related to the topic. Graphics may also include charts or graphs that show particular data.

Headings— To help organize the text, informational pieces may include headings. These headings act as a kind of subtitle and help the reader identify the main idea for that section of text.

Captions— Captions are the explanations, usually just a sentence or two, located near photos or other visuals in a text. Captions briefly explain what the reader is looking at in the visual and may connect it back to the main idea presented in the text.

Author’s Point(s) of View and Purpose(s)

Although informational texts are not necessarily persuasive or argumentative in nature, the author’s point of view and purpose still come through and the reader must consider that when evaluating the text. The author may insert some personal bias or position into an informational text and include conflicting evidence or differing viewpoints on a subject.

Evidence— It is not enough for an author to make a claim in a text and then leave it and assume the reader will accept it without question. The author must provide evidence and support for his or her point of view. The reader can then decide if that evidence is adequate to consider the claim made by the author.

Sources

When providing evidence, the author’s credibility increases if he or she uses multiple sources to provide support. A variety of sources shows the reader that the conclusion or claim made by the author isn’t just a fluke. It is the conclusion or claim made by multiple people in a variety of ways. Here are some source types with which you should be familiar and able to analyze and evaluate.

Media— Media is the general term that refers to mass communication outlets like TV and radio broadcasting, publishing, and online communication sources. Evaluating media means being critical of what and how they present information. Whose stories are they sharing? From what point of view or perspective? Media can be a powerful tool for disseminating information, but it is also easily manipulated and can present information with a level of bias.

Print/Text— Print or text sources like textbooks and newspapers are another source of information that can be used in informative texts as evidence to support or explain an idea. Print and text sources may be accessed in a variety of ways, including online. Just as with media sources, it is important to analyze and evaluate the source—just because something appears in print does not make it true. One must use common sense, experience, and prior knowledge to evaluate the statements made in any source.

Bias— Although it has a negative connotation, bias is a natural and ever-present element in communication, whether written or non-written. Bias means a partiality or favoritism toward something or someone, a preference. It becomes negative, however, when the favoritism is displayed as prejudice or unfairness to other sides or positions.

When evaluating a source, it is critical to analyze the bias that is present. Are both sides of the situation presented equally? Does the author seem to favor one side over the other? Does the bias get in the way of factual representation of the claim? These types of critical questions should allow you to weigh the bias in a source and determine if it helps or harms when used as a source in an informational text.

Stereotyping— Stereotyping is another thing to be cautious of when evaluating sources. Stereotypes occur when an over-generalized or oversimplified belief about a group of people is applied to everyone in that group. While certain qualities or characteristics may be common within a group of people, to assume that all people in that group share the quality or characteristic is stereotyping. Stereotyping often has a negative connotation as people look for elements of difference to create divisiveness and divide among different groups. When evaluating sources for use as evidence in an informational text, be sure that stereotypes are not used.

Visual Text Features

Informational texts may include visual text features to enhance, support, clarify, or explain what the text says. These visual text features can and should also be analyzed and evaluated for their effectiveness in supporting the text.

Graphics— Graphics are any sort of visual design or representation. Graphics can include images, pictures, photographs, charts, timelines, etc. The purpose of a graphic is to give the reader a visual representation of an element related to the text so they can “see” it and make the connection to what is being explained in the text.

Illustrations— Illustrations are drawings, sketches, or paintings used to illustrate what something or someone looks like. When illustrations are included in informational texts, the reader can see what the text is talking about through the illustration. Illustrations may also be created with computer-aided technology.

Data— Data is a collection of facts and statistics. Often represented numerically, data may be presented in a variety of formats, including charts or graphs. Data presented visually in an informative text, in the form of a pie chart or line graph, for example, helps the reader see the data in a different way. Reading lists of numbers and statistics can be confusing, so organizing the data and presenting it visually can be a clearer way to show what the text is talking about.

Maps— Maps show the location of an area. If a reader is unfamiliar with the place or places referenced in the text, a map can help the reader visualize the place being written about.

Text Complexity

Different texts provide different levels of complexity for readers. Text complexity refers to the challenge level posed by a text, as measured by its qualitative and quantitative features and reader factors, including fluency, motivation levels, and support for reading outside of the classroom. To determine appropriate level texts for students, teachers must assess each text’s complexity and determine whether or not it is suitable for students’ reading levels.

Tools and Measures

Measuring text complexity is not as challenging as it sounds. It is important for teachers to mindfully select classroom texts and one of the ways to do that is to measure the text complexity. Although there should be a wide range of texts available to students, classroom texts that are too challenging or too easy will not help build students’ reading skills. To predict student reading success, consider these measures.

Quantitative— Measuring the quantity and types of words used in a text is the quantitative measure. The total number of words and the complexity of those words in terms of the number of syllables and the spelling difficulty of each are all considerations when selecting classroom texts. Are the words easily decodable by students at this age? Are there recognizable sight words? Are the** sentence length and variety** appropriate for students at this level? These are all questions to ask when evaluating potential classroom texts in a quantitative way.

Qualitative— The qualitative measurement approach takes into account students’ age and maturity level. Is the material age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate? Do students have the required background knowledge or experience to be able to understand the subject? Is the author’s use of language appropriate for this level of student? Qualitative measurements look at the qualities of the text being considered in terms of structure and subject.

Appropriate Texts

Selecting appropriate texts for student engagement and learning is critical to building reading skills. Text complexity should provide a challenge to encourage growth, but not be so challenging as to be inaccessible to students. Consider text complexity, student interests, student motivation for reading, and home support of reading when selecting classroom texts.

Student learning goals— Student learning goals can be a powerful tool in the learning process. When students set learning goals for themselves, with the guidance of teachers, they have a tangible sense of what and why they are learning. Setting learning goals engages students with their educational choices and helps them see the progress they are making. As students set learning goals, teachers can assess those goals and determine what kind of scaffolding or support may be needed to assist students in achieving their goals. Teachers can provide support and strategies to help students access and make meaning of challenging texts.

Reader Variables

Different readers come at the task of reading with different skill levels and mindsets. Some students will be enthusiastic learners, up for the challenge of figuring out a text. Others may be more reluctant learners who, when faced with a challenging text, shut down or give up. When pairing readers with a text and a task, it is important to take these variables into consideration.

Language— A student’s level of language acquisition may affect his or her ability to access a text. Both native speakers and English learners may struggle with understanding vocabulary or technical terms used in a text. In this case, front-loading students with important vocabulary before they start reading a text, reading the text aloud, and stopping to discuss what is happening are all support activities that can help students overcome language barriers in a text.

Culture— Cultural backgrounds can be another reader variable to consider. Students who have reading support at home, who come from a culture of readers and have reading modeled for them outside of school may be more enthusiastic about reading and have higher levels of reading skills than students whose families don’t read often at home or who do not stress the value of reading. Students without reading support at home may struggle with reading independently and not feel they have the level of understanding necessary to navigate through a text without support.

Motivation— Some students are readers and some students are not. Motivation for reading, whether intrinsic or extrinsic, comes at different levels for different students. It is important to tap into a student’s motivation and work to make learning and reading fun and rewarding so that their motivation remains high. For less motivated readers, finding texts that appeal to their interests and providing extrinsic rewards for reading may help increase motivation.

Background knowledge— Another reader variable to consider when selecting appropriate texts is a student’s background knowledge. The experience and understanding that students bring to a text will affect how well they interact with that text. Consider student experiences, age, and maturity when selecting what to read in the classroom.

Skill level— How well students read is a variable that teachers must take into consideration when selecting texts. Students’ fluency, decoding, and vocabulary skills should all be taken into account to determine appropriate texts. Those that are too challenging won’t be understood and those that are too easy may not keep students engaged. Understanding the skill levels students are working with is imperative, as is regular assessment to see how those levels change.

Experiences— As with background knowledge, the experiences that students bring to the reading of a text can affect how they interact with and respond to a text. Students who have experienced trauma or loss may have a very different response to a text than a student who has not yet had that experience. Being mindful of student experiences is a variable that should be considered when selecting appropriate texts.

Task Variables

Texts and students aren’t the only variables to consider when selecting appropriate readings. What you ask students to do with the text may also vary depending on the text. The task variables would be what the teacher is asking students to do with the text before, during, or after reading it. Here are some task variables to keep in mind.

Purpose— What is the purpose in having students read a particular text? Once they read it, what do they need to do with it? Determining the tasks associated with the text and the purpose for completing those tasks ahead of time will help students read with a focused purpose. If their purpose in reading is to be able to answer questions about what they just read, they will read with that purpose in mind. If they are going to be asked to compare this reading with another text they have read, they will be looking for similarities and differences as they read. It is important for students to understand their purpose in reading a text before they begin so they know how to read it.

Complexity— Task complexity is the level of difficulty associated with the task. Different student levels may render the same task to have different levels of complexity, so teachers need to be cognizant of student ability levels and ensure that the task complexity is challenging without being seemingly impossible. Students may be asked to complete different tasks, allowing for different complexity levels to be assigned based on skills and abilities.

Answering Constructed Response Questions

We only provide multiple-choice questions in our practice test, but you will encounter constructed response questions in the actual test. So you’ll be prepared for these, here is a bit of information about them.

What are the questions like?

The constructed response questions are meant to gauge your level of knowledge about the subject matter. Your writing ability, although important, is not the main focus of these questions.

How should you prepare your answer?

Answers should be given in the form of written response consisting of 100–200 words for each assignment presented. Your response should be written clearly and thoroughly enough for your knowledge and skills of the content matter to be apparent and scored properly. While writing your response, you should consider that your target audience is a reader with a background in education. Remember to have a plan and organize your thoughts before you begin writing your final response.

How will these be scored?

Constructed responses are scored using three main components. The components scores include purpose, subject matter knowledge, and support. Each component is defined as followed:

• Purpose consists of your ability to completely answer the writing assignment.

• Subject matter knowledge is the use of correct content matter and information.

• Support is the use of relevant and applicable supporting evidence to your claim or response.