I wish I was a better reader in high school and still want to be a better reader now. I don't pick up books and read for fun often, but I'm always surprised how much I enjoy a book that I chose to read for fun. The same goes for articles on websites. If I find a long story that I want to read, I read it through the end and get a lot out of it, but if it is something I am asked to read its another story. I still use the "doctoral read" strategy with most things I am asked to read, whether a research article, a book, etc. Ironically, I gave a doctoral reading of a few articles about reading. I don't attribute this to laziness though, I attribute it to a bad habit that I learned in formal schooling.
The articles we read (skimmed, perused, etc) talked a lot about strategies for teaching reading. In Zemmlemen's article titled "Best Practices in Reading" he said "Choice is an integral part of literate behavior. Children should be permitted to choose reading materials, activities, and ways of demonstrating their understanding of the texts they have read." I couldn't agree more, but I think something also needs to be added. Having the choice of what I wanted to read in high school most certainly would have lead me away from textbooks and towards newspaper articles, novels, and graphic novels. But, I still probably would not have read those if I didn't have time set aside to do so. The way I see it, there are two essential elements to develop good reading habits: choice and time.
Leonard Sax argues that boys in particular are turned off reading at an early age because we are expected to start reading before it is developmentally appropriate. I both agree and disagree. My 21 month old son loves books. He can spend hours flipping through the pages. He of course does not know how to read yet, but so what? He is developing the habit of sitting patiently with a book and is in part willing to do so because I always let him pick the books he wants. Trust me, if he wants "Goodnight Moon" and you give him "Berenstain Bears: No Girls Allowed" he will not sit patiently and read.I want my son to associate positive thoughts with books, but I don't really care when he learns how to spell certain words or that his literacy skills develop right away, I want him to go at his pace and enjoy learning to read.I, and I would wager many other students (especially boys), are not allowed to go at our own pace. I am still a very slow reader. I like to read slowly, but if I want to keep up with readings in my classes or stay on pace with a book club I need to read faster. We ask our students to read things that they didn't choose and at times that may not be convenient for them then wonder why they didn't do it. The harm here is that every time they don't read they are developing a habit of avoiding reading. If the goal is to get more students reading I suggest we flip our entire paradigm when it comes to reading in schools. Lets forget about assigning readings from chosen materials that must be completed outside of school and instead just give students time in school to read whatever they want. Remember SSR? Why not have that but without the pressure to read the textbook for your next class or the book that you need to do a report on? Why not give students access to reading materials, a comfortable and quiet place to read, and time to do it? If students get in a good habit of reading in this manner, when they are infrequently asked to do a required reading, it is not a big deal. More importantly, after they are done with formal schooling they might leave with good memories about reading and be more likely to do it on their own throughout life.
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