The latest scores from the District of Columbia schools both charter and public reflect some small growth in reading proficiency, but the statistics I quoted in my post detailing the lack of reading post graduation from high school and college is chilling. Add that to the inability of the general public to respond to basic knowledge questions on late night television shows and you're left with a dismal view of the majority of our citizens' ability to retain basic concepts and keep up with important current events. So what tools, teaching methods and assessments can teachers use to give us confidence that students can read?
What we must give them are tools to last a lifetime that work in multiple settings. Before I go to the next paragraph - I do have to say that I communicated the following to my students: I had a contract with the school system which required that I teach specific concepts so that they scored well on any tests now and in the future. That requirement created boundaries that I respected and I expected them to respect them, too because life is not predictable. Young people may hate particular material and assignments and in retrospect see some value in them.
I also want to emphasize that I love learning, thought that I should be a role model of that love - I loved connecting pop culture, movies, fun books, plays and pretty much whatever it took to get students involved in class. Many students were so discouraged by the time they hit eighth grade they just didn't care - it took a lot to convince them that this class was about easily learning the rough stuff and finding the joy in what they could do - not their failures. Keeping that in mind - I do want you to visit this link because teachers must do both - keep learning accessible and meet standards - visit: http://www.cracked.com/blog/4-ways-high-school-makes-you-hate-reading/
I have a few ideas emphasizing practicality while teaching reading comprehension. One year, I bought a class set of speed reading books with short passages and only 10 multiple-choice comprehension questions at the end of each passage. The books were set up to be done independently and scores and timing kept by the students. The passages were high interest and most of my students wanted to increase their reading speed and accuracy. I could see this used in a competitive manner and in a centers approach. The drawback that I found with the series is that because the answer key was contained in the book, students could game the system, but most students wanted the challenge of increasing their speed and since I only took a participation grade - their score didn't enhance their grade. Still trying to find the book - no luck yet, but I will keep looking.
Many outstanding teachers have vocabulary systems and there are apps for that. I believe if the Great Books series is still available, that is an outstanding way to include volunteers in the classroom and because the rules are very clear, student discussions will naturally lead to an increased vocabulary - I'm not a fan of forced vocab lists. The Great Books series could also be used in a centers or small group approach. In today's overcrowded classroom, teachers have to find ways to create small group instruction time and keep using a pattern approach to specific areas of comprehension.
I would love to recommend using my old friend - the outline, but not a rigid version. My version is user friendly - done in a reading circle - you don't have to have an B if you have an A. Students (and you) only write out the main features of the piece of work you want to analyze.
You can use this outline on an overhead, as a handout, as a chart, have students work in pairs to fill it in for discussion so that it becomes natural for them to look for these components in a story. This also works with a film and hey - "Hunger Games" - a natural. Of course, with a novel - there may be multiple settings so you can divide the book into sections and have different student groups do the outline for those sections.
Don't let this become a thrill kill. It has to have some competitive feature - debates, panel discussions, open note tests, the foundation for a new version of the story and finding quotes to turn into poetry, art or graphic projects.
I. Setting
A. Place -
B. Time -
II. Characters (Protagonist/Antagonist)
A. Main/Dynamic (include traits - what they do, say and others say about them)
B. Minor/Flat/Foils -
III. Rising Action
A. Incident one -
B. Incident two -
IV. Climax
A. Internal conflict
B. External conflict
V. Symbolism
A. Positive
B. Negative
VI. Falling Action/Denouement/Conflict Resolution
A. Incident one-
B. Incident two -
VII. Theme/Author's Point of View
With some small changes - this same outline can be used on non-fiction pieces: Where; Who; Important Events/Facts/Statistics; Conflict; Outcomes and Opinions/Call to Action
If students see that the same elements repeatedly appear in an organized fashion in written and visual content, then they can use that pattern and graphic material to become exceptionally competent readers and media savvy. The other task teachers will have is teaching test taking skills which is why I bought a class set of speed reading books. Students need lots of practice with various aspects of the reading process and if you love reading and sharing a wide variety of genres, there is no better recipe for creating a classroom of readers.
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