How many times can you use the word "text" in one sentence?

According to the Performance Level Descriptors for Grade 4 Reading, Connecticut Mastery Test (PDF file, Connecticut State Department of Education), the following is a characteristic of advanced 4th grade readers:

• Consistently discuss and respond to texts by making text-to-self, text-to-text and text-to-world connections that are supported by relevant information from the text

Beep, beep, beep. Text to self, text to self: incoming word, incoming word.

As far as text to world, isn't that Twitter?

Gads.

Comments

[Elaine Magliaro]

Susan,

Alert! Incoming text!

I just had to take a quick look at "performance descriptors" in math and reading. I guess a better question might be: How many times can you "thoroughly and effectively" use the word "text" in a sentence?

Ah...so glad I don't have to deal with this stuff anymore! There is life after teaching--a life free of educational jargon and terminology and teaching to the state-mandated tests.

[kelly]

I think it sounds silly. I also know that working with English Learners,this terminology is extremely confusing. That being said, my daughter learned this last year in 4th grade and uses it all the time. It makes a lot of sense to her and is helpful to her in learning. It just goes to show that wehave to try several different approaches when working with students to ensure that they will get it one way or another.

[Susan]

Elaine and Kelly, I'd gone looking for information on 4th grade writing and came across that "text" stuff in the reading section. I was like, "WHAT are they talking about?" I am serious when I say that I don't know what "text-to-text" connection even is!

[kelly]

Susan,
I asked my daughter to come down and help me out with this. She rolled her eyes as is to say "duh!" and then gave me the following:

Text to self: When are making a comparison from the text to yourself

Text to text: When you are making a comparison from one book to another.

Text to world: When you are making a comparison from the text to the world

Sabina would like to take credit for this but I think some has to go to her teachers as well! :-)

[Becky]

Gah.

Get those poor fourth graders a book -- a *good* book!

I have a feeling no-one at the Connecticut State Dept of Education has read "Deconstructing Penguins". But then it wouldn't be nearly as simple...

[Cindy T.]

Occasionally I have to interview professors and alumni from the very esteemed college of education at the university where I work. I can't understand a word they say. Truly. Here's a sample:
The basic RDG metric assumes that the FLS is consistent with the BAM-SMA.

Ok...I made that up. But it's close.

[Susan_Thomsen]

Kelly, I have to laugh. Thank goodness for fifth graders, right? Please tell your daughter thank you.

Becky, I know. I wish they'd just call a book a book. re, Deconstructing Penguins? I find its tone a bit high-horsey. I should take another look at it. The authors live here in town.

Cindy, I can imagine! One of my college chums actually works for that esteemed school of ed.--but she usually makes sense! (I remember the college of ed./Big U merger, by the way. Our dorm honored the occasion with a keg party.)

[Cindy T.]

You know, a lot of people are still really pissed off about that merger. Really. pissed. off.

[Casey]

Hee hee. Chris read this post aloud to me last night and I had a good laugh. But I was also scared.

[Susan_Thomsen]

Casey, yeah, me, too. My beef, and I do have one (to paraphrase Ellen Degeneres), is that this kind of language is not understandable, AND IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE.

What kind of sense are parents to make of it? The State of Connecticut is not being clear. We shouldn't have to speak some kind of lingo to figure out what's going on. Beep, beep.

[Mary Lee]

Don't even get me started...

[Susan]

Mary Lee, you must have to wade through this kind of junk all the time! My sympathies.