WONDERFUL WAYS TO ENGLISH READING

WONDERFUL WAYS TO ENGLISH READING

(Written for a Ms. Jovy Estacio)

It pains me to see young learners reaching intermediate levels but still scramble to read English texts despite years of school exposure. Reading levels vary but it usually is expected that upon reaching the 4^th grade, pupils must show certain proficiency in reading, preparing them for a more advanced levels in the higher grades.

In most public schools, the main issue is the huge number of pupils per classroom that sometimes can be seen as a not-so-ideal setup. Compared to some private schools, a big discrepancy in number per class could actually spell the difference between reading success and failure. The bigger the number means the bigger responsibility for teachers to create the same impact on the reading capabilities as compared to those who have a lesser number of pupils.

I have been teaching English reading for quite a while now and since pupils’ levels in reading differ from person to person, there are certain common points to consider when trying to improve the reading skills of learners all across the public elementary levels.  I have identified some effective strategies in improving the reading skills of my learners that in no way tax me in my work.

Here are a few points that I use everyday to help my pupils progress in their reading levels. These are not extensive points but rather some helpful tips in order to put reading as a fun way of life rather than some strenuous works that learners may have to endure.

1.     TEACHER AS A READING ROLE MODEL. There’s a quote that says, “How can you give something you don’t have?” For the learners to love reading, we must show them that we, ourselves, do love reading. A few minutes of personal reading English literature inside the classroom could be enough to establish the point. Pupils tend to copy the ways of their teachers particularly when establishing themselves as role models.

2.      INCORPORATE LITERARY CHARACTERS DURING INSTRUCTIONS.  Not only that we show how we love reading but also we must, as teachers, tell our learners how much we love reading.  By including literary characters like Zeus, Poseidon and Hades of Greek mythology, J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley or Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson, Anabeth Chase and Grover in our daily instructions, we open a new world of wonders for our learners to imagine. Tell them stories of heroism, of successes over trials and even of tragedies. Some popular children’s literature like Exupery’s Little Prince or Trina Paulus Hope For the Flowers could double their interest to reading.

3.    MAKE SOME CLEAN AND FUNNY READING MATERIALS READILY AVAILABLE. In the old days, comics were considered as evil materials, but today is hardly the same. A few funny comic books for children inside the classroom could make wonders out of learners’ reading interests. By the way, to teach children to love reading is tantamount to having them enjoy the process. Also include some collection of clean jokes and informative magazines for your learners to read during break time.  Warning: Always check the contents first and make sure to be vigilant when it comes to content censorship.

4.    ENCOURAGE SHARED AND SUPPORT READING.  It takes two to tango. The same is true when it comes to developing reading in the classroom. A teacher may utilize those pupils with advanced level to share and encourage those who are in need of help. Peer to peer reading rapport could make wonders particularly for those who are working with their classmate-friend. They work with less pressure. But be wary of possible overbearing when you made some pairing issues. Make sure to match the pairs properly.

5.    TIME IS OF ESSENCE BUT MANAGE IT WISELY. For some, giving lengthy reading moments could improve reading skills dramatically. It is not. Short, interesting and funny –sometimes silly- reading moments are far better than long and boring reading times. A few minutes a day for reading inspiring stories is better than hours of reading uninteresting piece. It is good to schedule short moments for reading across the day and be observant with the time. Have your readers stop when it’s time to stop so they will feel wanting and look forward to the next reading time.

6.    STACK UP YOUR SHELVES. Readers have variety of interest and it is but fitting to pile up reading materials of different topics. From Science to History and from drama to melodrama. Let them explore the materials and never trade curiosity for orderliness. Allow them to survey the materials, open each books and read anything they want without limits during reading time.  Let the rearranging and cleaning after the day’s work. It is also the time to teach them proper discipline.

We all at one point may have struggled to read but since learning how to love reading, I was so keen on passing the same love to my pupils. The real point is, no matter how we try, improving reading skills is an arduous process when negotiating it with some erroneous techniques. The love of reading can be easily developed using the right strategies. Always remember that a happy reader is a good reader.

 

FATE IN THE HANDS OF THOSE WHO UPHOLD

By Jerwyn Villanueva Labagnoy
02-16-2015

On Tuesday last week, the second (and official?) leg of the Rizal district reading evaluation conducted by some of our school administrators left us, the Rizal Central School, with five (5) Non-readers and a good number of Poor readers currently scrambling to have themselves be included in the roster of names to wear togas soon. The program posed as an indication of somewhat pro-active approach to education by the district in a way that could pull our young learners away from ignorance and its ultimate effect to personal economics. On the outset, it appeared to have taken the road to redemption after failing to conduct an essential preparatory evaluation in the beginning of the school year hence the immediate idea to come up with instant results is needed.

I personally can see two categorical issues with this: One is the timing of the program and the other is the result.

As a teacher who had had a reading short-course and a few years ago had taken a reading evaluation training, I learned that timing for an actual evaluation is essentially the bread and butter for a successful reading program. As per the same classroom procedure, reading should first be evaluated during the start of the school year, preferably at the first two months. It is like conducting an actual scholastic pre-test with the goal of understanding the current state and capacity of the learners. There, the pertinent results are gathered and should underwent some profiling to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the readers thereby formulating the necessary individualized program to be schemed in the next six months.

Coming out from the individualized program should be an improved version of a reader like a 4.4 Kitkat upgraded from 2.3 Gingerbread (That's tech-speak for Android devices you probably carry inside your pockets right now). The discrepancy may not be too obvious but the actual difference under the hood could really be enormous. Here, six months of actual reading program can really spell the difference between life and death. Even the popular Kumon which utilizes standardized procedure takes time to make an appeal. How much more in our public school system? The results can then be extracted by applying the post reading evaluation to gauge the development the reader has scaled, comparing each and coming up with a detailed account of improvements. This post evaluation is supposed to be a couple of months before the school year ends.

Equally, from those two observations, I saw two loopholes: First is the failure to hold a properly-timed preparatory evaluation at the beginning of the school year. Second is the veracity of the results when failing to conduct the first criteria.

These two were never put into consideration in our recent reading evaluation. In our case at the Rizal Central School, the pre-evaluation was conducted first in February 2 by each classroom adviser and the post-evaluation immediately the next day by some school administrators. It was too bad to have it immediately cut short when the administrators were summoned by the district supervisor Plerida Payawal on the thick of the evaluation for reasons only them and a few others actually know. It was eventually resumed exactly a week after on February 10.

Questions now linger as to the conclusion of everything that has taken place since the actual evaluation date. With only a couple weeks left before we reach the penultimate and final stretch of March 2015, what fate lies ahead of our five Non-readers and a good number of Poor readers who were deprived of a chance to experience a realistic reading program? Will they be given a chance to march for graduation or not is a straight question that only the people behind the recent reading evaluation as well as those who have prior know-how of the event can uncompromisingly answer.