When Professor Nicholas Danes of the University of Columbia was told by a student she was never required to read a book at her public high school, he told The Atlantic he was shocked. Now whether or not you have heard about the reading crisis in America, it is important to evaluate how such a crisis came to be, the harm it is causing and if there is something we can do to fix it.
So, let’s go all the way back to where it started, elementary school. This is the place we learned how to read, how to sound out words and enhance our reading comprehension level. Chances are, you probably do not remember the way or methods your teachers used to teach you how to read.
The Causes
One issue that might be causing our current crisis is how kids learn to read. The Reading Wars can be traced back to 1779 with German educator, Frederick Gedike and his essay “On The Study Of Reading”. Many other books and research papers followed, highlighting key findings and teaching methods. Gedike’s study introduced the debate between ‘whole language’ and ‘phonics’. Whole language is based on the philosophy that kids will learn to read naturally if you expose them to multiple books. Teachers devote instructional time to the ideas and stories that are in the books, rather than forcing kids to memorize the sounds that letters make. It also relies on a cueing system approach, in which students must use written cues to read unknown words. On the other hand the phonics method is straightforward, where students learn the sound of letters, then combine them to learn how to pronounce and read. Since the pandemic, the science of reading (phonics) has been on the rise, bringing awareness to the lack of studies and research backing up balanced literacy (whole literacy).
Not only are teaching methods like balanced literacy, the problem, but it may also be what the curriculum teaches. Most teachers teach for the test—we see that with excerpts that we use to practice for the EOC in English class—or how to best answer multiple choice questions on the SAT. With intense pressure on schools and teachers to score the best for funding, it makes sense. This is harming us more than helping, as our reading stamina is low and according to EducationWeek, stamina for grades 3-8 has decreased by 53% since 2019.
“Reading reinforcement should be done and encouraged at the elementary level and junior high level, so that by the time students are in high school, they have the independence and the discipline to do it themselves,” English IV teacher Heather Hale said. “If they don’t develop that skill in high school they’re going to have to do it in college, and by then, their habit patterns are a little late.”
English III teacher Ellen Ward said she noticed that phones are a big distraction and consumes a lot of time for her students. With the time that could be dedicated to reading now being dedicated to technology, it is easy to see why the reading levels have decreased.
“I think most of the decrease is probably due to phones,” Ward said. “Because of all the distractions a lot of students, especially ones who don’t like to read, struggle to read harder books that are longer and more complicated.”
Along with the distractions, English teachers have seen the desire to learn and read decrease as well.
“I’m not one that completely hates cell phones,” English teacher Lee Stafford said. “But I do think that they are just so entertaining that in most cases, people are going to choose to sit there and look at a screen rather than opening up a book and reading. I’ve definitely seen that the desire to read has decreased.”
The Effects
We see the effects of the issues with the decrease in literacy rate happening in America. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), ⅔ of American children are not meeting their proficient level of reading. This program provides insights into the reading abilities of students in the U.S. If these same ⅔ of children have the same level of reading coming into high school and are struggling, they will not be successful in school. This lessens the chances of them reading at home to reinforce their reading stamina. With the distraction of technology and phones, it adds on to the dilemma. That is why situations like Professor Danes and his college students exist. Adults do not escape this trouble because a look at the reading proficiency of an adult in America shows us that according to the National Literacy Institution, over half of adults (54%) read below a sixth-grade level.
How To Bring Change
How can students now increase their reading skills in the middle of this crisis? Examining your reading stamina and seeing what strengthens your stamina by reading books on your own time is important.
“As an English teacher, I wish everybody would read on their own,” Ward said. “I think it is a beneficial activity and taking a little bit of time, even if it’s an article it is good.”
Literature comprehension and enjoyment could increase for the better if it’s consistently practiced, building stamina.
“I think that early reading helps them,” Stafford said. “I think that certainly to keep that generational thing going, where you are reading to your babies and your kids and encouraging them to read and then continuing on the tradition.”
Finding time to put the phone down and start reading is important and exercising reading is crucial if we want to end this crisis.
“Before it was something that we did because there was nothing else to do,” Stafford said. “But now it has to be more international than it was before.”
