Reading in academic context: the process of constructing meaning by first semester undergraduate students in modern languages

Abstract

Reading in academic context has been a challenge for students starting undergraduate courses, for the process of constructing meaning requires dealing with unfamiliar theoretical concepts and complex linguistic-textual relations. This article aims to investigate how reading in academic context is characterized, having as its theoretical framework the conception of language as dialogic and of reading as a social practice. The data under analysis derives from an interactive verbal protocol task in reading performed by first year undergraduate students in Modern Languages. The results suggest that the subject-reader, when confronted with difficulties in reading, try to relate the text read to knowledge acquired in previous experiences.