Motivating Boys’ Reading: Engaging the Disengaged Timothy Shanahan University of Illinois at Chicago www.shanahanonliteracy.com

Why motivation? It is easier to teach students who work towards you than who are resistant Literacy success requires practice, and kids will not read on their own enough if they do not like it We are doing more than teaching students to read; we are trying to create a literate society, in which the members value and depend upon text

Why boys? Because boys aren’t doing as well in reading as girls Because boys do not read as much as girls Because boys are more likely to get in trouble, to drop out, and to engage in harmful activities (Many of these points could also be made for girls, but not all of them)

What is motivational? Choice Control Competency Challenge Collaboration Character building Consequences

CHOICE in reading Boys need opportunities to choose: partly about control and partly about curiosity Interest, knowledge, and motivation are all related Classrooms (schools) need to be rich sources of books and other kinds of reading materials Not just books, but magazines, newspapers, how-to manuals, swap cards, computers, references, comics, etc.

CHOICE in reading (cont.) Not just one kind of narrative fiction (boys prefer action stories, heavy on plot, light on description and emotion) Not just narrative fiction, but informational text, too (especially) Boys tend to like humor, appeal to a sense of mischief; information on popular culture; science fiction;

CHOICE in reading (cont.) Boys like information that is edgy or controversial (gross/violent/silly = enjoyment for boys) Boys like exportable knowledge (jokes, factoids)

CHOICE in reading (cont.) Not just choices of pleasure reading, but choices within reading instruction too Building independence while allowing choice (balancing demands of core program and student self selection) Voices in choices (building the library collections) Choices in vocabulary learning

CONTROL in reading Boys want to feel like they can make decisions that matter in their own life Too often in school, boys are expected to just do what they are told hour after hour, day after day, year after year Classrooms can be organized so that boys learn to be in charge of their lives and learning

CONTROL in reading (cont.) Opportunities need to be created for boys to take responsibility Choosing partners, teammates, books Choosing how to sequence activities Choosing where to read Classroom jobs (complete with employment agency)

CONTROL in reading (cont.) Too much sitting around and boys feel out of control (they feel stifled) Divide work into bite-sized, time limited parts Fast paced presentation (not too talky) Build movement and variety into reading (and less sitting) Discussions, debates, research, drama, and investigation do not have to take place in seats; re-enactment and application have a place Review and reflection

COMPETENCY in reading Boys gravitate to what they are good at, and too often they are not good at reading U.S. boys level of reading engagement was 20th among 32 countries (PISA), and 24th as “readers of books” – not surprisingly, they came in 15th in reading ability (the lowest in all the English-speaking countries) If I read poorly, I may not choose to read at all and a lot of reading instruction makes boys feel stupid

COMPETENCY in reading (cont.) How do we teach vocabulary? (lists, dictionary copying, Friday tests, no review) How well does this kind of teaching work? What does work in vocabulary teaching: -- rich exploration of word meanings -- lots of connections among words -- use of the words across the modes -- review (of teaching and assessment)

COMPETENCY in reading (cont.) How do we teach fluency? (round robin reading, one time readings) How well does this kind of teaching work? What does work in fluency teaching: -- frequent, extensive oral reading -- individual feedback -- repetition -- keeping track of success

COMPETENCY in reading (cont.) How do we teach comprehension? (read story, answer teacher/text questions, random practice with strategies or skills) How well does this kind of teaching work? What does work in comprehension teaching: -- Extended strategy teaching -- Cooperative reading -- Gradual release of responsibility

COMPETENCY in reading (cont.) What works? Thorough teaching What works? Clear sense of accomplishment

CHALLENGE in reading Boys want to be competent (and seen as competent), but they want to be competent in work that is challenging Often schools protect boys from hard work (to motivate them) Boys make very little reading progress from Grade 8 to 12 (NAEP), but make greater progress after Grade 12 (NALS) Workplace reading is usually harder than the reading boys are asked to do in school

CHALLENGE in reading (cont.) “Instructional level” is a tricky concept (kids don’t want to be overwhelmed by difficulty, but they want to take on difficulty and succeed) High expectations matter Boys need opportunities to choose books across difficulty levels Fluency studies on practicing in harder materials (Morgan, et al.)

CHALLENGE in reading (cont.) Best of both worlds: Give students hard work. Make sure they know that you know that it is hard work. Make it possible for boys to succeed with the hard work. Celebrate their success.

CHALLENGE in reading (cont.) Teach boys how to do something hard that interests them Example: Dealing with the conflict in a narrative Map story from multiple perspectives Choose the perspective you like best, choose the perspective you think the author likes best, debate who is correct

COLLABORATION with other readers One reason boys don’t like to read is because they find it to be lonely Reading and writing should be activities that we do with others Cooperative learning activities improve reading achievement --shared goals --shared decision-making and doing

COLLABORATION with other readers Book club discussion groups After Lunch Bunch reading groups Parent-son book clubs Writing (conversations, correspondence) Competition (kills motivation early on, but as students move into early teens collaborative competition has a place)

building CHARACTER through reading As boys get older, reading becomes an issue of identity If reading is only for “girls, geeks, or gays” they are less likely to engage in it We develop identity through emulation of models and through the information about our world that we bring in (such as through reading) The issue should not just be reading comprehension, but comprehension towards what

building CHARACTER through reading (cont.) The issue should not just be reading comprehension and appropriate literary response, but comprehension towards what? Character identity centered questioning can be useful: In the story, Tony climbed the mountain. Would you want to do that and why? Do you think you could and if so, what would you need to do to be like him?

building CHARACTER through reading (cont.) Boys can develop identities through what they read: Boys are trying to figure out who they are or who they want to be; they want to read books that reflect their images of themselves and what they aspire to be and do Teachers need to know who they are teaching Boys are willing to be inspired; reading about potential “heroes” Boys are trying to define themselves: reading about “cultural heroes” (textual lineages) Boys want to know they are not alone

building CHARACTER through reading (cont.) Male characters Male readers Male mentors

CONSEQUENCES to my reading As students get older, doing something increases in importance (not activity, but accomplishment) Too often school reading is an end in itself, or the activities that come out of it are just other school activities (read this and answer these questions) Boys like to think their actions can have outcomes

CONSEQUENCES to my reading (cont.) Making powerpoint presentations Participating in debates Doing a self-selected report that helps them figuring out how to do things (like take a trip) Helping select/evaluate school materials Solving real problems (civic participation)

How do we motivate boys to read? Choice: Give boys a voice in what they read. Control: Allow boys self determination. Competency: Guide boys to reading success. Challenge: Help boys read what is hard. Collaboration: Get boys reading together. Character building: Give boys a chance to form their identify. Consequences: Boys need to read to do.

Some Useful Resources Barrs, M., & Pidgeon, S. (Eds.). (1999). Boys and reading. London: Centre for Language in Primary Education. Booth, David. (2002). Even hockey players read: Boys, literacy and learning. Markham, ON: Pembroke. Brozo, W. G. (2002). To be a boy, to be a reader: Engaging teen and preteen boys in active literacy. Newark, DE: International Reading Association. Millard, Elaine. (1997). Differently literate: Boys and girls and the schooling of literacy. London: Routledge and Farmer. Newkirk, T. (2002). Misreading masculinity. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Some Useful Resources Smith, M., & Wilhelm, J. (2002). Reading don’t fix no Chevys: Literacy in the lives of young men. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Tatum, A. (2005). Teaching reading to black adolescent males: Closing the achievement gap. Stenhouse. Tatum, A. (2009). Reading for their life: (Re)building the textual lineages of African American adolescent males. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Weinfeld, R., & Neu, T. W. Helping boys succeed in school. Prufrock Press Zambo, D., & Brozo, W. G. Bright beginnings for boys: Engaging young boys in active literacy. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Some Useful Resources http://www.gettingboystoread.com/ http://motivatingboywriters.blogspot.com/

Motivating Boys’ Reading: Engaging the Unengaged Timothy Shanahan University of Illinois at Chicago www.shanahanonliteracy.com