I thought I posted this almost 2 weeks ago but I guess I did something wrong so let's try again!
I would like to question something that Mr. Gallagher says on page 75. He poses the question of : "Isn't it our overall, long-term goal to produce graduates who become life-long readers? Isn't it paramount that students leave our schools seeing themselves as readers?" I am answering the question with a question. Is it?
Is that our paramount goal? I am not convinced. I, especially as an English major, see the huge merit in being a reader and in promoting reading for my students, but I am not sure that it is my ultimate goal. I do not believe that it is the ultimate "paramount" goal of any teacher whatever thier content is. Being able to read is of course a necessity, but being a "pleasure reader" doesn't mean you are any more likely to succeed as someone who never reads for pleasure. I am sure there are statistics somewhere that could try to prove me wrong, but I am living proof that it is not a necessity. There are others in the class who would agree. I LOVE to read for pleasure, but I haven't had the time to do so in many years. I am quasi successful, I am in a master's program.
From my perspective, my ultimate goal is to prepare my students for what they are going to need in life. If they need to know how to write a paper for the graduation writing test, that is my goal. If they need to know how to form a sentence for the CRCT, that is my goal. If they are going to college and need a broad vocabulary for the SAT, that is my goal. Reading can assist in all those things, but you can read a novel and it can be written in any vernacular known (and unknown) to man. My students need to know how to write essays that will get them through to the next grade or to graduate. There are huge benefits to leisure reading and there is a place for it in my classroom, but I cannot agree that it is my ultimate goal.
I agree with you on the paramount goal for our students. Yes, as educators it would be awesome for everyone to be lifelong readers. But in reality it's not possible. I am with you on preparing our students for life. There is a lot to learn to be successful at life and yes reading is one, but there is much more to focus on to be successful. Reading is a key component but cannot be our only focus. We as educators need to reach more students and motivate them to be lifelong readers as Gallagher states.
ReplyDeleteI love love that you said this! And with me being an English teacher as well you would think that I'd agree with Gallagher. However I dont think that you have to read for pleasure in order to be succesful. And then you'd have to debate what success is, it means different things for everyone. I am also an avid reader and while I believe that reading has increased my vocabulary and expanded my knowledge on certain things, I dont think it has made me anymore successful than the person who hates to pick up a book. My goal is to prepare my students for the world outside of school by arming them with the tools to navigate this life. Having a love for reading is not one of those tools. As long as they have the ability to read and understand what they read, the can still become a sucess in life.
ReplyDelete