At my metropolitan high school, the English department rewrote curriculum during the 2017-2018 school year. The district purchased new textbooks and novels to be used. As a result, pacing plans, priority standards, and assessments were being developed and tested. Although the basic curricular goals were outlined, students and teachers alike were overwhelmed by the new curricular demands. Students were increasingly expected to comprehend texts independently and engage in difficult, abstract thinking. Additionally, because of the quick pace, students were required to read extensively outside of class. During the term, I taught three sections of English 2.
For many of my students in English 2, the curricular demands appeared to be outside of their reach. My courses, although described as on-level by school curriculum, were largely comprised of struggling readers. Students who are on- or above-level are almost always tracked into advanced (AR) courses. Many of my students were low-level readers who became discouraged when they could not decipher the literal meaning of a text. When analyzing my students' preliminary MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) results, more than half of my students were low to low-average in locating the main idea of a text. Resultantly, when asked to read outside of class, most of my students did not complete the task or did not retain main ideas. I noticed that there were typically three types of students who did not complete their reading assignments. First, I had students who did not attempt the assignment because they did not believe they had the comprehension skills necessary to read difficult texts on their own. Second, I had students who attempted to read, but did not understand what they were reading. And third, I had students who simply had no motivation to read or pass.
Altogether, I had too many students who were not completing their reading assignments. Thus, many students were not actively improving their comprehension skills and were unprepared for classroom activities. Rather than seeing improvements in their comprehension abilities, my students stagnated. However, it is absolutely integral that students be able to independently construct meaning. When students are not reading at grade level and are not practicing comprehension strategies in their English class, how can they be expected to comprehend reading in other technical disciplines? My students, many of whom want to excel in college or demanding careers, did not recognize how integral the reading skills we were practicing were to their future lives. Reading is perhaps the one discipline that permeates all others. Engaged and strategic readers have the skills to critically and creatively interact with texts to derive meaning. Without this skill, my students would be ill-prepared for their futures.
For many of my students in English 2, the curricular demands appeared to be outside of their reach. My courses, although described as on-level by school curriculum, were largely comprised of struggling readers. Students who are on- or above-level are almost always tracked into advanced (AR) courses. Many of my students were low-level readers who became discouraged when they could not decipher the literal meaning of a text. When analyzing my students' preliminary MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) results, more than half of my students were low to low-average in locating the main idea of a text. Resultantly, when asked to read outside of class, most of my students did not complete the task or did not retain main ideas. I noticed that there were typically three types of students who did not complete their reading assignments. First, I had students who did not attempt the assignment because they did not believe they had the comprehension skills necessary to read difficult texts on their own. Second, I had students who attempted to read, but did not understand what they were reading. And third, I had students who simply had no motivation to read or pass.
Altogether, I had too many students who were not completing their reading assignments. Thus, many students were not actively improving their comprehension skills and were unprepared for classroom activities. Rather than seeing improvements in their comprehension abilities, my students stagnated. However, it is absolutely integral that students be able to independently construct meaning. When students are not reading at grade level and are not practicing comprehension strategies in their English class, how can they be expected to comprehend reading in other technical disciplines? My students, many of whom want to excel in college or demanding careers, did not recognize how integral the reading skills we were practicing were to their future lives. Reading is perhaps the one discipline that permeates all others. Engaged and strategic readers have the skills to critically and creatively interact with texts to derive meaning. Without this skill, my students would be ill-prepared for their futures.