The Overdue Reading Log
A teacher reviews a reading-comprehension unit for a group of 12 adult learners at CEFR A2. The unit's stated goal is "identify the main idea and two supporting details in a 150-word article." A learner, Marta, submits a reading log for a 300-word article on urban gardening. She correctly lists the main idea in one sentence and gives two details, but both details are minor (the color of a fence, the number of volunteers). Her summary also copies a full sentence verbatim from the article. In class she answered main-idea questions aloud correctly three times. The teacher must decide whether this log shows she met the goal, and how to give feedback that addresses both the detail selection and the copying.
1. Did Marta meet the unit goal? Justify using the evidence in the setup.
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Partly, with a caveat - she met the main-idea component but not the supporting-detail component, and the copying is a separate issue.
- Main idea: Met. She identified it in one sentence, and her oral answers (3/3 correct) corroborate comprehension rather than luck.
- Supporting details: Not met as stated. The goal asks for details that support the main idea. A fence color and a volunteer count are minor facts; they do not evidence the main claim. Selecting details is a distinct sub-skill from finding the main idea.
- Copying: Not the same as failing comprehension. A verbatim sentence may show she located relevant text but has not yet paraphrased.
So the fair judgement is: main idea achieved, detail selection emerging, paraphrase not yet demonstrated.
2. Write the feedback the teacher should give, keeping it concrete and actionable.
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Model feedback (A2-appropriate):
Marta - your main idea sentence is clear and correct. Good. Your two details are true, but they are small facts. A strong detail explains the main idea. Try this test: cover the main idea and ask "does this detail help prove it?" The fence color does not; a fact about how the garden reduces food costs would.
Also, you copied one sentence exactly. That is fine for notes, but in a log, write it in your own words. Example: instead of copying, write "The article says the garden gives families cheap vegetables." Try rewriting that one sentence and resubmit.
Why this works: it names what succeeded, gives a reusable test for selecting details, and makes the paraphrase task small and doable.
3. The teacher worries the 300-word text exceeded the unit's 150-word target. How should that affect the judgement?
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It should not change the verdict on Marta's comprehension, but it should change what the teacher claims the task measured.
The 150-word limit is a design parameter for the task, not a property of Marta's ability. A 300-word text with a correct main idea is, if anything, stronger evidence of main-idea skill. However, the teacher cannot use this log as evidence that Marta meets the goal as specified, because the goal's format was not followed.
Correct handling: record the main-idea success, note that the text length differed from the unit specification, and either (a) re-check detail selection with a 150-word text, or (b) revise the unit goal to allow longer texts. Do not silently treat a different task as equivalent.