High School English I: Reading Study Guide for the STAAR test

Passage Type 3: Reading Informational Texts

About one-quarter of the STAAR® English I Reading test requires you to answer questions about informational texts. Informational texts are nonfiction texts written to inform an audience about a specific topic. Informational texts can include: biographies, autobiographies, texts on historical events or people, science, social studies, the arts, and technical texts like how-to books or manuals. While the skills assessed are the same for informational texts (analyze, make inferences, draw conclusions, etc.), here are some terms unique to, or emphasized when, analyzing informational texts.

Analysis

When you provide an analysis of a text, it just means that you are carefully examining the structure of that text and the elements that you see at work. While literary texts may have you analyzing the author’s use of imagery or the organizational structure of the story, informational texts can also be analyzed for structure and elements. Here are some of the terms often associated with the analysis of this type of text.

Controlling Idea

The controlling idea in a text is the main idea presented. It is the idea that “controls” or guides the writing, and it is the anchor that everything else is built around in the text. The controlling idea is the point or position that the author wants the reader to remember long after the reader walks away from the text.

Specific Purpose

Every author writes with a specific purpose in mind. Sometimes, there are multiple purposes in writing a text, but never is there no purpose for a piece of writing. When asked to analyze the specific purpose of a text, you need to figure out why you think the author wrote it—what was his or her reason for writing this piece, at this time, in this way? What are you, as a reader, supposed to gain from it? When you can identify the author’s purpose, then you can be critical of the author’s approach—is the information given fair and balanced or is there bias? Has the author included all of the facts about a topic, or is there information purposely left out? Generally speaking, an author’s purpose is to persuade, inform, or entertain (PIE). There may be multiple purposes at work (entertain and inform an audience), including simply to express their ideas, but determining the purpose can provide clarity to the message and help you critique the text more appropriately.

Details

Just as you do when you write essays, authors must also back up their claims with evidence. This evidence is found in the details of the text. Not every sentence is important or critical to understanding the topic or the purpose of a text. This is why it is important to be able to distinguish the more important details from the less important ones. Important details are the ones that link directly back to the controlling idea, help the author make his or her point, or support the purpose of writing the text. Less important details might contain interesting tidbits, but they are not critical to understanding a text’s topic or purpose.

Text Types

Three types of informational texts are presented on the STAAR® test. You should be familiar with each type, its purpose, and the elements associated with it so you can identify it when you see it.

Expository

An expository text’s purpose is to educate the reader about a particular subject or explain a particular topic. Expository texts get to the point quickly and efficiently and are direct in their message to the reader. Because there is an element of teaching the reader something, the author must set up a sense of authority (what right do they have to speak on this topic?) if their text is going to be accepted by the reader. Expository texts may include an author’s opinion, but it is presented to the reader as one option, and there is no sense that the reader must accept or agree with the author.

Summary vs. Critique—Sometimes, these words are used interchangeably, but they are actually two very different things. A summary is a condensed version of the main points of a text. It is completely objective and is always shorter than the original text as it highlights the big ideas and does not include the details. In a critique, however, the author takes a position and expresses an opinion about the topic or subject of a text. A critique may point the reader back to some of the main points presented but will do so with an opinion about those points. Critiques are very subjective in nature and include opinions others may or may not agree with.

Opinions: Substantiated vs. Unsubstantiated— Opinions are personal judgments or viewpoints or beliefs and they are great things to have, but it is important to be aware of how those opinions are formed and whether they are substantiated or unsubstantiated. Sometimes, texts present opinions that sound like facts and, as a critical reader, you must put them to the test to see if they are substantiated or not. A substantiated opinion is an opinion that can be supported or backed up by some sort of credible evidence or proof. An unsubstantiated opinion is one that is made without anything substantial or trustworthy, in terms of evidence, to back it up. For example:

The American diet, high in saturated fats, sodium, and sugar, is causing an increase in preventable disease.

This is a claim that is an opinion. The question is, can this opinion be proven or supported by fact? The answer is, yes. One could do the research to find studies and reports about the effects of what Americans eat on their overall health, so this is considered a substantiated opinion. An unsubstantiated opinion would be something like:

Hamburgers are the most unhealthy type of fast-food consumed by Americans.

This claim will be difficult to prove or “substantiate.”

Organizational Patterns—Expository writing has a predictable structure. Generally, the organizational pattern of an expository text will be one of the following:

• cause-effect
• comparison-contrast
• definition-example
• problem-solution
• description
• chronological

In each of these patterns, there is a distinct structure that can either be applied to the text as a whole or pertains to each individual paragraph.

Persuasive

Whereas expository writing may present a controversial topic or idea, its purpose is just in putting it out there, not convincing the reader to believe it. That’s the job of persuasive writing. Persuasive texts try to persuade or convince the reader to believe, accept, or do what the author suggests. Rather than just presenting the idea as an option, persuasive writing wants the reader to “buy it”—believe it and accept the idea. Using facts (or opinions disguised as “facts”), persuasive writing aims to argue the author’s point of view and perspective in such a way that the reader will be convinced to agree.

Judging the Evidence—One of the most important things about persuasive writing is being able to recognize it for what it is: an author’s attempt to convince you of “facts.” This is why it is essential that you be a critical reader and really put the evidence to the test to determine its credibility and reliability. In a persuasive text, when the author provides support for his or her position, you must judge the evidence for yourself.

• How relevant is the “evidence” to the argument?
• Does it come from a credible, noteworthy source?
• Is that source named?
• Is there any bias present in the evidence?
• Is it used to support or oppose the argument?
• What effect will the evidence have on the intended audience?

Sometimes, evidence can come across sounding very official and trustworthy, but really be nothing more than the author’s opinion. So be critical of what evidence is used and how it is delivered to the audience.

Famous Speech Analysis—Speeches are a common form of persuasive writing. In a speech, the speaker generally tries to convince the audience of something. Politicians are trying to convince the voting public to vote for them or to support an initiative they back, nations’ leaders are trying to convince their citizens that they are doing the best they can for the country, and activists are trying to drum up support for their cause. So be ready to analyze famous speeches for rhetorical structures and devices used to convince the audience of the speaker or author’s position. When you do, don’t forget to consider the time and place of the speech in analyzing it, as those elements influence the speech’s structure and delivery.

Procedural Texts

Procedural texts, or writing that explains a procedure or policy (things like instruction manuals, warranties, how-to books, etc.), are another form of informational text that you may encounter on the STAAR® test. When you do and you are asked to analyze it, keep in mind these elements specific to procedural (and other) texts.

Clarity—When an author is writing a procedural text, clarity is key! Can you imagine trying to assemble a product without clear directions or steps that follow a logical order? When reading procedural texts, consider how easy and clear they are to understand. Are there steps that are missing? Does the information provided help the reader draw a logical conclusion, or is it a bit of a stretch? Assessing the clarity of procedural texts includes determining their effectiveness for the audience.

Use of Graphics—Sometimes, there is no “text” in a procedural text and it’s all pictures or graphics. In that case, are the images clear and the steps easy to follow? If the graphics are used to enhance a text (provide visual examples), are the graphics easy to read and decipher? Do they relate to what the text says? Can the reader tell what things are or is the graphic confusing? If used with text, to what extent does the graphic help to support or explain the text? The use of graphics in procedural texts is common, yet at the same time, it’s most helpful when the graphics used are clear and relevant to the subject.

Presentation

The importance of being media literate in our increasingly technical world is growing. It is not enough to be able to read, comprehend, and analyze text, but in the digital age one must also be able to evaluate the presentation of material in a variety of formats. The STAAR® test assesses your ability to understand and analyze how words, images, graphics, and sounds work together in the presentation of material to impact the audience. This includes comparing and contrasting the effectiveness of presenting events and information by visual and non-visual texts and evaluating the effect each format has on the formality and tone.

Visual Images vs. Non-Visual Text

When events or information are presented using visual images like graphic art, illustrations, photographs, etc., the way it is processed by the audience may change. Being able to “see” things that the text alone doesn’t show or can’t capture in the same way makes the use of visual images a powerful device. Non-visual texts, or those that do not include visual images to help the audience gain a mental picture, require a different responsibility on the part of the audience and the author. The author has to provide adequate and descriptive details for the audience to be able to create a mental picture, and the audience has to put forth the effort to do that.

Formality and Tone

Formality and tone can change and should change depending on the audience and the author’s purpose. It would not be “appropriate” for an author to discuss details of the effects of drug addiction on children’s cognitive behavior to a group of kindergarteners. But the same information presented to a group of medical professionals would be perfectly appropriate. Awareness of the intended audience and matching the formality and tone of the material being presented to that audience is critical for the message to be effectively received by the audience.

Metacognitive Skills

As discussed earlier, considering how you think about your thinking and your reading will help you be successful when you evaluate and assess informational texts, too. Having a flexible range of metacognitive skills and understanding when and how to apply them to what you are reading to determine the author’s message is the sign of a strong reader.