Prerequisite(s):  Grade of C or better in DEVR 0300 or one of the following scores:  Compass Reading Test of 50-67; CPT Reading Test of 39-57; or Asset Reading Test of 33-36.  Course Type:  (D)evelopmental.

*Students are required to read assigned materials and to complete all assignments as outlined in the course schedule and/or alternative assignments based on student need as determined by the instructor.  Scholastic dishonesty will not be tolerated.

**Required lab work will supplemental instruction.  

REQUIRED TEXT:  OPENING DOORS W/Connect Reading 6th ed (Cortina/Elder)

DEVR 0310 - Reading Skills Improvement is designed to help students improve their basic reading skills necessary for success in vocational, two-year, and transfer programs as well as improvement of comprehension skills, vocabulary, and rate of reading.

Students will understand and learn to apply the following concepts and/or strategies to help them become more efficient learners and more effective readers:

COURSE OBJECTIVES:  After completing this course, students will be able to understand and apply the following:

COMMON COURSE BELIEFS

• Value reading as a way to learn and study;
• Respect independent thinking, diversity, and the individual’s right to hold differing opinions and values;
• Appreciate critical reading as a means of maintaining a free society and will use reading as a tool for guarding their democratic rights;
• Use their reading skills to participate in academic debate on issues of importance to the society and the world at large;
• Exercise their critical reading skills to enhance their quality of life and to support their life-long learning.

OUTCOMES

After completing this course, students will:

• Connect readings to personal experience and prior knowledge;
• Monitor the effectiveness of vocabulary and comprehension strategies and adjust them as needed;
• Select and demonstrate study skills and methods that support reading to learn.

COGNITIVE OBJECTIVES

• Identify and comprehend the main idea and supporting details in a written work.
• Organize and summarize information for study.
• Recognize writer’s purpose, point of view, and tone.
• Interpret a writer’s meaning inferentially as well as literally.
• Separate their personal opinions from a writer’s opinions.
• Determine meaning of unfamiliar words by decoding, using contextual or structural analysis, or by using a dictionary.
• Use critical reasoning skills to evaluate written material.

***Students who fail to successfully complete the requirements may repeat the course up to nine (9) credit hours.