Reading comprehension can be described as understanding a text that is read, or the process of constructing meaning from a text (National Reading Panel, p. 4-5). Why do those who have studied reading comprehension describe it as a process of "construction" or "making meaning?"

• First of all, reading comprehension involves all of the elements of the reading process described in other sections of this review, acting together. As comprehension takes place, words are decoded and associated with their meanings in the reader's memory, and phrases and sentences are processed rapidly or fluently enough so that the meanings derived from one word, phrase, or sentence are not lost before the next is processed.
• Second, the writer who composed the text being read put together a whole, hopefully coherent, network of thoughts for the reader. This more or less coherent whole is re-created as needed, piece-by-piece, in the reader's memory without the benefit of live conversation, relying only on what is derived from the text and the reader's own prior knowledge or past experiences, also stored in memory. This complex network of ideas that represents a text in memory is constantly modified as the reading progresses. Problems in creating this representation, or understanding a specific text, may be encountered as the text is processed. Recognizing these problems and reasoning through and resolving them is a part of the comprehension process. Comprehension is an active process and the reader must interact and be engaged with the text for it to work well.

A reader uses various strategies to interact with and comprehend a text. The National Reading Panel describes reading comprehension strategies as procedures (NRP, p. 4-40):

Strategies are procedures that guide students as they attempt to read and write. For example, a reader may be taught to generate questions about the text as it is read. These questions are of the why, what, how, when, or where variety; and by generating and trying to answer them, the reader processes the text more actively.

The Panel also describes how these strategies may be taught to students (NRP, p 4-40).

Typically, instruction of cognitive strategies employed during reading consists of:
1. The development of an awareness and understanding of the readers' own cognitive processes that are amenable to instruction and learning
2. A teacher guiding the reader or modeling for the reader the actions that the reader can take to enhance the comprehension processes used during reading
3. The reader practicing those strategies with the teacher assisting until the reader achieves a gradual internalization and independent mastery of those processes…

Comprehension is one of several components of reading instruction, along with alphabetics, fluency, and vocabulary. These are taught together and none, including comprehension, should be the sole focus for instruction.