THREE PRINCIPLES OF SUCCESSFUL READING IN YOUR CLASSROOM

1. WHAT YOU DO BEFORE AND DURING READING IS WAY MORE IMPORTANT THAN WHAT YOU DO AFTER READING WHY? BECAUSE COMPREHENSION DEPENDS ON PRIOR KNOWLEDGE AND IS A PROCESS THAT OCCURS DURING READING, NOT AFTER THE FACT.

2. READING WITH STUDENTS MODELS THE READING PROCESS. READING TO STUDENTS OR USING “ROUND- ROBIN” STRATEGIES IS A WASTE OF TIME WHY? STUDENTS TURN OFF WHEN THEY ARE TALKED AT AND DO NOT ENGAGE.

3. WHEN TEACHING VOCABULARY, DO MORE WITH FEWER WORDS WHY? BECAUSE OUR BRAINS ARE NOT FILING CABINETS. THEY ARE WEBS OF NEURONS THAT WORK THROUGH ASSOCIATIVE EXPERIENCES.

IN OTHER WORDS, ALMOST EVERY TRADITIONAL APPROACH TO READING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS TODAY IS A DISASTER. TRADITIONAL PRACTICE 1.Ask “comprehension questions” after reading. 2.Use Round-Robin and other coercive approaches to “cover” a text. 3.Give long lists of vocabulary words with definitions to be memorized. CONSEQUENCE 1.Reading comp. is assessed but not taught. 2.Students don’t follow along or pay attention and so reading is a waste of time. 3.Students are frustrated, bored, and forget everything after the test.

SO, YOU ASK… IF THIS IS THE CASE, WHY DO THESE PRACTICES PERSIST?