[CALIBK12] More on reading

Wed Dec 17 13:58:47 PST 2008

I have been following this thread with interest, and MaryAnn's comments prompted other thoughts that connect with the entire debate about AR.

MaryAnn said, "if there is pleasure in the information, does there have to be pleasure in the medium?  And how much do we approach the concept of people not finding reading pleasurable because of how we define reading early on?  For instance - as someone mentioned previously they enjoy audio books which is technically listening, but which may cause the same affective reaction that reading does."

I think there is a natural tendency among educators-myself included-- to substitute other means of communication in place of reading to help low readers master content. While this may help students with that particular content, it works against the goal of creating lifelong readers. While using a variety of formats and media works well to supplement text, in K-12 I think it's often a bad idea to use other media as a substitute. If students cannot read our content, we need to help them learn how to read the content.

Students approach digital content differently than they do print. In fact, many students will not read more than a paragraph of text before they've hyperlinked elsewhere. I know that's not earth-shattering news, but what are the implications? 

This is where Dr. Krashen's mantra, "Amount counts," comes into play.  Results of SSR studies are mixed, but the data on a few elements are pretty clear: SSR changes attitudes and behaviors. Because students have regular practice sitting still and reading long passages of text--text they have chosen to read by themselves--they develop positive attitudes toward this activity and the behavior becomes acceptable or even habitual. To me, these are paramount goals. I can see how AR might accomplish these, but as Dr. Krashen has stated, no study has broken out the testing component of that program to evaluate its impact on reading comprehension. Given the kinds of questions on the AR tests, I'm skeptical they're of any value in this regard. I would much rather spend that money to buy more high-interest materials for students in support of a school-wide SSR program. 

Teacher-librarians are uniquely positioned at school sites to observe literacy behaviors, raise questions, and lead staff toward effective strategies and approaches that make our students better readers in all formats. What are you doing at your site in this regard? 

Add your story about building literacy to the California School Libraries Work! site. Help strengthen the case that our school libraries make a difference. Go to http://caschoollibraries.pbwiki.com <http://caschoollibraries.pbwiki.com/>  , request access to the wiki, and tell your story.

Doug Achterman
San Benito High School
1220 Monterey St.
Hollister, CA  95023
dachterman at sbhsd.k12.ca.us
http://www.sbhsd.k12.ca.us/sbhslib/library.htm

________________________________

From: calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu on behalf of Mary Ann Harlan
Sent: Wed 12/17/2008 11:02 AM
To: mhofwriter at aol.com; Calibk12
Subject: [CALIBK12] More on reading

I was going to merely respond to Mary's last post directly to her but I had some other things to comment on so if the first paragraph is confusing go back to her response to me.
I've been thinking about this quite a bit, and I agree that it is semantics, and that semantics are important.  I find this type of conversation frustrating on a list serv because I am quite interested in it, but it lacks fluidity however that is beside the point.  So here is the question - if there is pleasure in the information, does there have to be pleasure in the medium?  And how much do we approach the concept of people not finding reading pleasurable because of how we define reading early on?  For instance - as someone mentioned previously they enjoy audio books which is technically listening, but which may cause the same affective reaction that reading does.  I think one of my earlier points was that in my anecdotal experiences students who say they hate reading often do so because of their semantic interpretation of reading, which is not mine. That being said, reading for pleasure in any form is not for everyone. (Gasp!  I know) I have never had a 100% success rate in turning reluctant, aliterate teens into avid readers.  Although I have success stories that warm my heart, and that surprise me, and that keep me active in trying to find that one right book that will turn that reader on.
Which brings me to another point - which is to second Joy's recommendation of Quick Picks.  As a former committee member what struck me most about promoting QPs to my students is that I would begin the year with a cadre of strong reluctant readers who would say - I haven't finished a book since elementary school, I hate reading, etc.  By the end of the school year I would have to find new reluctant readers because the majority of the students I worked with were now "actually reading" - their term.  They were more avid readers, reading on their own nor for class, and searching for books for me to nominate for QPs.  It was a transformational experience in my understanding of teen's reading habits. QPs is constantly searching out high interest non-fiction, and not all of it is narrative.  We talked a lot about caption literacy, visual elements, and gateway books.  

-- 
Mary Ann Harlan
maryann.harlan at gmail.com

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