In a recent NCTE article titled "Taking teens back to basics of reading," Karen Rouse describes a situation that is a reality in many high schools and middle schools across the country: students are reading at half of the age level they should be at.
Teachers find that they have to "reteach" students to read at the high school level. The students' level of reading competency is so low that they cannot produce the assignments and expectations that teachers have for them coming into 9th grade.
What to do about the dilemma? Some suggestions are to be more open to reading at home and to have reading instruction in the classroom. Of course, this would take away from actual instruction on more critical skills, but these students cannot function on a higher level if they do not have the basics.
Some attribute the lack of high expectations in the past. Whereas today teachers have higher goals for the students, years ago students were flying through classes without the proper skills. Now we have to back-track.
I personally also feel that some technology could be the source of this illiterate dilemma. For example, so many teenagers are sucked into television and computers that they do not learn to master skills that will get them farther in life. While certain technology helps students, an overwhelming amount of it will not do the students any benefit when it comes to getting a good job and securing themselves as stable adults and productive citizens. Perhaps we need a better split between technology and nontechnology-based instruction. It seems to be that we have too much of an emphasis on technology. Perhaps we can even the unbalanced see-saw.
Source: http://www.denverpost.com/ci_5148780
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4 comments:
It seriously frightens me how far behind students are falling when it comes to literacy. I agree that the obsession of IMING, watching too much television and text messaging can be the cause of students no longer writing properly. Granted I use slang when I am online and texting, I would never let it slip up when I am writing a paper for class or posting on blogs. Although I have the knowledge to prevent that, most younger student don't. Slang is becoming their new language and we cannot let this continue because it is beyond incorrect!
What also frightens me is the fact that teachers are being blammed for the low scores that their students are receiving on tests when it is not always the teachers fault. I am so afraid of this happening to me when I become a teacher. I watch my mom who teaches special ed 3,4,5th grade, do everything and anything she can with her students to have them understand, be more literate, write proper, and be better test takers all year round. Yet she gets accussed of not doing her job in the classroom because of the grades that her students get on standardized tests.
Is anyone else afraid of this happening?
This goes back to what Stearns was saying last week about "WHy are kids not reading these days? Why are they not reading the texts we bring in to the classroom for the curriculum?"
I think it stems from the students not having a choice in the curriculum. THey are not motivated to learn because we are obviously not teaching them what they want to learn. We are teaching what we think they need to learn to become productive citizens in society. Who is to say what they need to learn? I say it is the students because that is the only way to instill the proper motivation and passion for learning--when it comes from the heartand is personally relevant to them. We do need to be firm though and encourage them to read but I also think we need to allow them free/private space IN school, during class hours for independent reading as Nancie Atwell recommends, and from there, they will learn appropriate writing and sentence structure through models that THEY find interesting. The best way to be a better writer is to read, read, and read, and the only way students are going to pick up a book and read is if it speaks to them from the heart in a personal way.
This really is frightening. I think that a lot of students aren't reading because of the material in the classes that teachers are asking students to read. In so many classes teacher just read to the student, which allows students with reading problems to hid in the classroom. I think that ocassionally teachers should make students read aloud. Then we could see what students are strong readers and what students need help.
I don't think that the internet is takign away from reading. I think that students can use internet texts to read. I think that students will find this interesting. They can use the internet,something they are used to, and search for articles and texts that are interesting to them. Also, book clubs could help students read. Students usually will take suggestions from peers, and we can have students share books.
Bridget
I agree with some of what all of you say here. Most of it actually.
I do think that we have backed off expecting that students will read--we do it for them. Or turn on the tape. English teachers' willingness to be enablers not motivators really disturbs me. I don't know how we think kids are going to be better readers when they don't have to read anything in school to pass. And not just to pass-to do quite well.
Then I do think that the easy availability of media has affected the amt. of time all of us spend reading.
I read more--painful confession--before I began to spend so much time on the computer. And I'm sure that's true of many of us.
Bridget's point is right of course. I'm still reading--just not reading as many "books."
I do find that disturbing.
So my life is changing because of technology yes--for good or for bad? Some of both...depending on what one values most.
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