Laura Riemensnider's blog #5 Miller (2013), Section 2: Why Not? What Works? Why Independent Reading Matters and the Best Practices to Support It

Miller (2013), Section 2:  Why Not?  What Works?  Why Independent Reading Matters and the Best Practices to Support It

In Barbara Moss’s contribution to section 2 of No More Independent Reading Without Support, she poses the big question, “Does independent reading influence student achievement?” The big answer is yes, but it has to have the elements that make it effective. Throughout the section, she gives us some wonderful notes on the benefits of reading independently.  Another big question she asks is, “If we know independent reading is effective, why don't we do it?” This is my number one question. I've encountered many teachers who desperately want to find more time in their school day to make independent reading time longer or even possible at all. They are excited to learn about elements of independent reading that make it more effective. I have seen many of my school’s teachers trying out new or different strategies in independent reading.  Moss states that one of the biggest reasons, she feels that we did not have independent reading going on in all of our schools, is the fact that years ago the National Reading panel did not endorse independent reading because they did not have enough studies to say that it caused a success. However, Barbara goes on to write that there have been plenty of studies since then that do show this correlation. I am hoping that as we read, learn, and discuss more about independent reading, it will become more valued and widely used. One thing that stuck out to me, during reading section 2, is a small chart on page 16. This chart lists several things students need to grow as independent readers. Some of the things that are listed are eye opening in the amount of common sense they hold, such as access to texts, student choice, explicit instruction, and to talk about what students read. Many of these are things that I do personally as a reader. Looking back on my experience as a learner in elementary school, the freedom to choose what I want to read is just something I accepted as an adult privilege or a luxury at the public library. In school we read what the teacher gave us, and if we were lucky we had a librarian who let us check out a book of our choice. If independent reading were a part of my childhood I can’t imagine how much vocabulary I would have learned or how my grades would have improved from just my higher level of interest in the material. I think this is the reason that I am focusing on independent reading with my book club kids (my kidwatching focus group of fourth graders).

            Another big idea that Moss brings to the table is that students need to increase their reading volume. This is something that I am working to encourage at my school. We are using the Accelerated Reader program this year as a way to log student reading and see how they do on the AR quizzes. This project is being led by myself and our school librarian. We are using this system because it is in place, our teachers and students know how to use the program, and we can get data rather quickly without having to put the data gathering solely on the teacher’s shoulders. In the future we may have a different system. We have kicked the reading logging off with enthusiasm and a fun theme. I am hoping that we can see an increase in reading volume. However, logging reading can become a chore to the student and the teacher. This is why so many reading logs or programs use incentives to entice the teachers or students to report their progress. I feel that in future sessions of our Read to Succeed courses we will spend time investigating how information gathered from a reading log is very valuable. What we will need is plenty of discussion on what types and how much information we value, and how to have our students involved with their own logging, without it becoming a chore. Even with all this said about our way of logging the reading volume, how do we as teachers and school staff actually increase the volume of reading? Moss’s answer is time, access (variety and well stocked classroom libraries), interests, and teacher support (conferring and guidance).