Imagination as a Vehicle for Comprehension Instruction

Imagination has been described as a cognitive endeavor that serves as a catalyst for creative actions and aids in the development of comprehension skills. Studies show that incorporating imagination into classroom practice builds on children's lived experiences and encourages the creative reworking of elements that enable the generation of new understandings. Despite the benefits of imaginative engagement, multiple factors have contributed to its decline in the classroom.

The participant for this study was the teacher of a second/third grade newcomer classroom in a large public school district. The data set for this study included teacher logs, semistructured interviews, and artifacts relevant to the inquiry. To identify the codes, categories, and resulting themes that emerged from these data sources, this study used constant comparison analysis.

Findings from this study suggest that Sylvia understood imagination to be the ability to visualize. She used imagination as a scaffold for comprehension and integrated imagination and comprehension to support the active engagement of individuals, and to build a community of learners. Additionally, analysis indicated Sylvia engaged her students in practices and instruction that scaffolded comprehension, but did not involve imagination.

Based on the findings of this study, in-service teachers need to be informed of how to incorporate imagination into classroom activities and how imagination relates to comprehension. Teacher educators need to increase pre-service teachers' use of instructional practices that access imagination. Lastly, the findings of this study also point to the need for additional research pertaining to the convergence between imagination and comprehension.