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So far this month, for pleasure, I have read a novel (Await Your Reply), a book about cognitive psychology (Thinking, Fast and Slow), and a book of short stories (The Return of Sherlock Holmes). In addition, I have read several articles for work mostly about, not surprisingly, teaching and assessing reading. I like to read for pleasure before going to sleep because it relaxes me. In general, I love to read! My puzzle is: how can teachers inspire their students to love reading? For learning a second language, the research is clear: reading is key. However, here in El Salvador many students say that they do not like to read. They say that they do not grow up with a “culture of reading.” When I was a kid, I remember my mother reading aloud to me from the Choose Your Own Adventure series. Talk about entertainment! Those Choose Your Own Adventure stories were captivating because as the reader (or listener in my case), you had to make choices in the story. For example, at the end of one chapter, the characters would be faced with a decision, like first going into the basement of the old house, or going up to the attic. Depending on what you chose, that was the page you would turn to. In my opinion, one of the keys to inspiring students to love reading in real life follows the same principle: people need to have the freedom to choose something to read that is interesting and inspiring to them. The students majoring in English at my university here have to take an American Lit class and now they are reading Longfellow. No offense to Longfellow, but for English Language Learners in El Salvador, this is not very inspiring, to say the least. So what would inspire someone to read? Was there a book, or a teacher, that changed your attitude towards reading from something that you had to do for school, to something you chose to do for pleasure? What books have you loved? A few random links about/for reading: http://reading.berkeley.edu/ http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page http://www.goodreads.com/ 
9 Comments
Jose Humberto Lopez
8/20/2012 03:30:30 am
One thing is true about reading. Salvadoreans do not like reading at all. Is it an excuse for a student? absolutetly not. I think we as students as teacher have the power to decide what is good for me or what is going to help me as a future professional. When I was at high school I didn't like to read because my literature teacher prefered reading novels from unknown writers to us than reading novels from Salvadoran writers, this labeled me as a rebel. Now I enjoy reading what I like most and I think this is the point, reading what one likes make "reading" enjoyable.
Jeff
8/21/2012 11:56:58 pm
Hi Jose, thanks for your comments! I like your point about reading what one finds enjoyable. The question I have is how can students find something enjoyable if they have only had bad experiences with reading and believe that reading in general is boring?
Jose Humberto Lopez
1/17/2013 10:30:53 am
Hi, Jeff! long time no see, I hope you be fine. I consider that reading is a great challenge for teachers when they don't have the reading habits . So, one of the things I´ve done is to have ss read short articles, and make them paraphrase with the class. I know ít´s not enough but I have started doing my part. I hope ss like to read because they like or enjoy books, not because they´re pushed to read by the teacher.
SC
8/21/2012 12:25:47 pm
Having Ss who do not like to read is very common in El Salvador. Of course, there are many reasons/excuses Ss have for not reading, and I think maybe to some point it could be understandable, but they cannot use their excuses all the time and lose the opportunity of growing as professionals and as human beings. You know, my mother loves to read, and I grew up surrounded by hundreds of books, but I was never inspired to read. She used to buy me fairy tales books, but later when I started primary school, I just read books that teachers wanted us to read, and the same happened until I started the university. When I took English Didactics, I started to read books about teaching because the teacher asked us to write a weekly reaction paper. So, every week we would read a chapter and write a reaction paper. That means that I had to read at least two books during the semester; of course, I was not used to it, but I started to like it because I was not reading just for a test (as I had to in high school). The teacher gave us two or three questions, which we had to answer according to the reading and using our critical thinking. In other words, I had a purpose to read, and I liked the challenge of using my critical thinking. Then, reading became a habit as well because it was something I had to do every week, and it didn't feel like a burden because it was just a chapter, not a whole book. Eventually, the habit became a pleasure. So, I think this experience changed my mindset about reading, and it made me conscious about the importance of reading. And even though the books were the teacher’s choice, it was nice because the whole activity was interesting and challenging. Of course, there were still some classmates who would do a poor job in their reaction papers because they found reading boring, but they were the lazy ones. They just didn't care about learning but approving the subject (which is another problem teachers face in El Salvador). Well, to inspire lazy Ss to read, maybe it is required that they change their whole mindset first because for example, when my classmates and I took "Readings and Conversation," the teacher gave us the option to choose the topics we wanted to read about, but there were also the lazy Ss who wouldn't read even if they had also had the opportunity to choose the topics. Maybe there was also a problem with their intrinsic motivation. Anyway, it's certain that we have a "no-reading" culture, but I think there's still something to do about it. As you said, it requires inspiration from teachers, a purpose for reading, and also a change of mindset and willingness from Ss.
Jeff
8/22/2012 12:07:13 am
Hi SC, thanks for your comments. I was interested in what you said about how reading became a habit for you. Usually, we think that our habits and behaviors follow from our beliefs. For example, if I believe that eating healthy food is important, than I will be in the habit of avoiding junk food, and take actions that align with this believe. However, what you are describing is the opposite. In your case, your beliefs followed from your behaviors. In other words, your teacher required you to do reading activities (which were interesting and purposeful), and after some time you came to have the belief that reading was worthwhile. Of course, this doesn’t always work out! Nonetheless, I think the point is that teachers should consider how activities and assignments that require good behaviors can be used to help Ss foster and develop beliefs.
Beth
8/25/2012 02:02:18 pm
I agree that sometimes belief in reading can develop from the behavior of reading; in other words, the process of reading is what makes us appreciate it. One way I've tried to help students appreciate the process is (an idea from you, Jeff) through journals where students can give their personal responses as well as by focusing on the time spent reading rather than how much is covered. I think it's helped my students' motivation a little.
Jeff
8/27/2012 11:21:44 pm
Hi Beth, I'm glad to hear that the Reading Response Journals have been going well! I was regularly amazed and delighted by the comments that my students made in their journals; one drawback is the amount of time that it takes to read them and comment on--have you found any short-cuts? Lastly, I appreciate your insights about the two things that keep you going with reading in L2: length and opportunities for discussion. I'm sure many Ss feel the same way, definitely worth keeping in mind--thanks! Good luck with your reading in Spanish.
Pablo
8/25/2012 02:34:50 pm
Hello Sensei ¡!!! I was Reading your blog and let me say it’s amazing.
Jeff
8/27/2012 11:29:45 pm
Hi Pablo, thanks for commenting! What you say reminds me of the saying: the glass is half full vs. the glass is half empty. I think for me personally (and probably a lot of teachers), I tend to notice and think more about those 8 out of 15 Ss who are NOT reading. However, as you point out, 7 out of 15 Ss who are reading is indeed a "beautiful beginning!" Thanks for reminding us to look for the "bright spots" and to focus on the positive. The glass is half full! Leave a Reply. |
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