Readicide

Schools are killing the want to read in students in a thing called Readicide. Schools are so focused on teaching to the test, making sure students score high on the test, and get rid of parts of the curriculum to prepare students for the test that important reading is lost on students. Reading the statistics of students that stopped reading or didn't know how to read was shocking and knowing that schools are not attempting to fix these issues was insane. Schools focus too much on multiple-choice testing which focuses heavily on shallow answers and prevents struggling students to learn and stop struggling. This book suggests changing the system and getting students to love reading, even if the reading isn't something they love, and making sure that they are prepared for reading in their life past your classroom.

But, this is no easy task. It needs to start with the faculty and getting them to accept that there is an issue that needs to be fixed before anything will actually get done. As a student teacher, I can see the problems that Gallagher brings up and want to try some of his strategies, but it isn't my place and the school needs to start making changes before real changes can be made in more than just one classroom. Students need to be exposed to more reading not only as a class but on their own. I remember in elementary school the trips down to the library every week or so to get a new book, look at all the books, and the time spent in class to read our own books. I remember my English teacher in 7th grade that, at the beginning of every week, would have three books that the students would vote on that she would read from for 10 minutes at the beginning of class each day. This made students interested in those books and made us want to read them. I also remember the small amount of time I spent in the library at high school and that I don't think I checked out more than 5 books in the 4 years that I was there. The more exposed students are to reading, the more they will read. Gallagher says that the three things needed to create a reader is to have them be interested in books, be given the time to read, and have a place for them to read their books.

But, it doesn't just stop at giving the students personal reading time. Students are also struggling reading their assigned readings for class, and it goes beyond the obvious reasons of why they aren't reading and understanding. They need to know the value of reading academic texts first and foremost. Also, something that the book focuses on is that students do not have enough background knowledge to understand everything they read. More exposure will help this, but framing the books you teach will help this more as well. Give the students the background knowledge they need to understand, don't just throw them in blindly. It is hard to find the "sweet spot" of not over-teaching a book, but not teaching a book enough to lose comprehension. I can remember how frustrating it was to read books that the teacher would chop up too much and I would lose interest because we weren't able to just read the books, I will definitely have to use the big chunk to little chunks method in my teaching when I can. That method being that you have the students read big chunks of the book on their own, and then go back to a class to focus on small chunks that they have read to analyze it more and let them get more from the book.

I agree with the 50/50 approach that the students should only analyze and work through their academic texts but be allowed to freely read their own books they are reading. You want students to enjoy reading and not feel like it is always a school assignment. I grew up in a school where Accelerated Reader was used and I was the top AR reader in the school for 4 of the 5 years that I was at that school. I contribute Accelerated Reader to why I still love reading so much and why reading is a big part of my life. I do understand the point of not making the books about points or assignments and just have them enjoy reading. The more they read for fun the better they will do on their testing as well. I just have a special place in my heart for AR I suppose. What is important is that we get students reading more for enjoyment and understanding than just to take a multiple choice test. Having good grades and doing better in school will follow with the more the students are exposed to some good reading.

*Looking through Appendix A I saw the book I am the Messenger which is crazy because I read that book years ago when I randomly picked it out of a shelf at Barnes & Noble because of the cover and the blurb. It was just happenstance that I found that book and thought nobody else had heard of it and I read that book numerous times. And apparently it is a popular book and people know about it. I am going to have to read it again now. And people who haven't read it should read it too.