The aim of the present study is to explore the relation between the activated background knowledge and the mental representation of the text meaning in reading comprehension process based on Kintsch’s construction integration model (1988; 1998).
In order to build a situational representation of the reading content, students have to elaborate inferences about the implicit information by combining the text information with their own knowledge. The knowledge from the long term memory is automatically activated while the students read. Sometime these automatic thoughts can distort the meaning of the text and are hard to ignore. It is difficult for students to base their answers to comprehension questions exclusive on the text material.
We are planning to analyze what influences the selection of the background knowledge and how the teachers can help students to make this selection and to activate the appropriate knowledge needed in the comprehension process. Also we are interested in finding ways to increase students’ receptivity for the reading content.
To accomplish this goal, we developed several experiments with subjects from high-school and college where prior to the reading time we activated, through semantic priming a set of knowledge related to the text and checked if this activation had a significant influence in comprehending. We used as priming information short stories based on stereotypes related to central themes from the text or critical material regarding the text.