In Catching Readers Before They Fall, Johnson and Keier explain that regardless of how reading is taught, some students still struggle. This, they reason, means that the basal readers, phonics software, or textbooks are not always to blame. The problem is that struggling readers have not been given the mental tools they need to succeed. Struggling readers do not think the way successful readers do. They lack a reading process system. I will admit that until now I thought it was completely understandable that teacher's blame their materials or their curriculum for lack of success with students.
A personal reading process system though, is necessary for anyone to make meaning from a text. Johnson and Keier explain that the process is the same for first graders as it is for college students. I agree, having fundamental skills to make meaning of any text is a vital tool in all stages of life. Inside the classroom, students must decode not only the literacy reader but science and math textbooks. These texts only get more complicated as school goes continues. Everyone needs to know how to use the same strategies; catching mistakes, knowing when what you've read doesn't sound right, thinking about the author's message, and reasoning through difficult or unknown words for example. I thought about the reading I do everyday, the reading required at our literacy dig and the strategies presented in these chapters fit those purposes. Reading signs and mail, understanding what your boss is implying in an email, or decoding new technical terms in an instruction manual are things just about anyone will need to do often.
Struggling readers either have not been exposed to these reading process ideas or have not learned to implement them in a helpful way. Johnson and Keier cite P. David Pearson who explains that is does not matter who is at fault for not preparing the struggling student with adequate reading tools. Blaming parents or previous teachers won't make reading easier for the student. Pearson says "Take the students in your class from where they are and move them forward from there." This point of view is a refreshing one. I understand now how many educators might fall into a problematic habit of assuming that the materials are what needs changing, not their perspectives.
Johnson and Keier tell us that it is ideal to start teaching students to use decoding strategies as they read as early as possible, but not every student gets the attention they need in those early years. So, what's to become of the fourth grader who can barely make it through Henry and Mudge? Johnson and Keier tell readers to maintain a safe environment where students know they can make mistakes, work with reading materials from real texts, and keep the student working at the edge of their abilities, later referred to as ZPD or zone of Zone of Proximal Development, coined by Leo Vygotsky. The ZDP is the level at which the student can work successfully with a teacher's help. Any lower and the student gets bored, higher and frustration can take over. I know I've experienced this in various aspects of life. The hardest part of striving to keep students in their ZPD must be knowing where it lies not only for reading, but for all classroom challenges. Again, paying close attention to students, not flaws in materials, is key.
It seems that using the comprehensive literacy framework described in Chapter Five of Catching Readers Before They Fall might be very helpful in this process. A comprehensive literacy framework has several components, each with less teacher support. It starts with reading aloud which allows the teacher to model genuine interest in books and stories. Next is shared reading. This is still a read-aloud but one in which the teacher models comprehension strategies for students. Guided reading is the next component. This allows a teacher to see exactly what a student is doing when presented with a certain text. Teachers can encourage and model specific strategies depending on what types of challenges the student faces while reading. Finally, students read independently. Of course, this allows students to use the strategies they have seen modeled with the fewest supports. By slowly eliminating supports, it can become clear where the student becomes overwhelmed. Furthermore, this is a great system for building confidence in struggling readers.
I see something similar in all of these strategies for helping struggling readers; struggling readers are all similar and different. While this may not initially seem like a helpful connection, stay with me. As a teacher, I believe it is my responsibility to know about how children develop and learn. Because of this, it is useful to know about common struggles for most readers and strategies that have been proven to help make meaning. However, it is also a teacher's responsibility to pay attention to each student as an individual. So, just because standards or past experience say that all first graders will be able to master a certain text the student who doesn't is not flawed, the materials might be fine, and the curriculum could be great. There will always be students who don't fit the mold. I am anxious to become a teacher to get to know which molds each of my students don't fit! Isn't that what keeps the job interesting?
A personal reading process system though, is necessary for anyone to make meaning from a text. Johnson and Keier explain that the process is the same for first graders as it is for college students. I agree, having fundamental skills to make meaning of any text is a vital tool in all stages of life. Inside the classroom, students must decode not only the literacy reader but science and math textbooks. These texts only get more complicated as school goes continues. Everyone needs to know how to use the same strategies; catching mistakes, knowing when what you've read doesn't sound right, thinking about the author's message, and reasoning through difficult or unknown words for example. I thought about the reading I do everyday, the reading required at our literacy dig and the strategies presented in these chapters fit those purposes. Reading signs and mail, understanding what your boss is implying in an email, or decoding new technical terms in an instruction manual are things just about anyone will need to do often.
Struggling readers either have not been exposed to these reading process ideas or have not learned to implement them in a helpful way. Johnson and Keier cite P. David Pearson who explains that is does not matter who is at fault for not preparing the struggling student with adequate reading tools. Blaming parents or previous teachers won't make reading easier for the student. Pearson says "Take the students in your class from where they are and move them forward from there." This point of view is a refreshing one. I understand now how many educators might fall into a problematic habit of assuming that the materials are what needs changing, not their perspectives.
Johnson and Keier tell us that it is ideal to start teaching students to use decoding strategies as they read as early as possible, but not every student gets the attention they need in those early years. So, what's to become of the fourth grader who can barely make it through Henry and Mudge? Johnson and Keier tell readers to maintain a safe environment where students know they can make mistakes, work with reading materials from real texts, and keep the student working at the edge of their abilities, later referred to as ZPD or zone of Zone of Proximal Development, coined by Leo Vygotsky. The ZDP is the level at which the student can work successfully with a teacher's help. Any lower and the student gets bored, higher and frustration can take over. I know I've experienced this in various aspects of life. The hardest part of striving to keep students in their ZPD must be knowing where it lies not only for reading, but for all classroom challenges. Again, paying close attention to students, not flaws in materials, is key.
It seems that using the comprehensive literacy framework described in Chapter Five of Catching Readers Before They Fall might be very helpful in this process. A comprehensive literacy framework has several components, each with less teacher support. It starts with reading aloud which allows the teacher to model genuine interest in books and stories. Next is shared reading. This is still a read-aloud but one in which the teacher models comprehension strategies for students. Guided reading is the next component. This allows a teacher to see exactly what a student is doing when presented with a certain text. Teachers can encourage and model specific strategies depending on what types of challenges the student faces while reading. Finally, students read independently. Of course, this allows students to use the strategies they have seen modeled with the fewest supports. By slowly eliminating supports, it can become clear where the student becomes overwhelmed. Furthermore, this is a great system for building confidence in struggling readers.
I see something similar in all of these strategies for helping struggling readers; struggling readers are all similar and different. While this may not initially seem like a helpful connection, stay with me. As a teacher, I believe it is my responsibility to know about how children develop and learn. Because of this, it is useful to know about common struggles for most readers and strategies that have been proven to help make meaning. However, it is also a teacher's responsibility to pay attention to each student as an individual. So, just because standards or past experience say that all first graders will be able to master a certain text the student who doesn't is not flawed, the materials might be fine, and the curriculum could be great. There will always be students who don't fit the mold. I am anxious to become a teacher to get to know which molds each of my students don't fit! Isn't that what keeps the job interesting?
I like your explanation of the reading process system and that you pointed out that it is the same for all ages. I also like the fact that you pointed out that teachers should not focus on playing the blame game as to why a student is struggling to read, but take a hands on approach to get them started at whatever point they are currently at. Creating a safe environment for students is also a concept that seems obvious but I believe is often not happening in classrooms today. Creating an place where mistakes are looked at as a learning tool and not as a negative seems to be a very important aspect in creating successful readers.
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