Module 7

 Michelle Suggs

April 11. 2022
Module 7

I can use my professional judgment and practical knowledge to determine what reading instruction is needed for all students. However, the problem is that when students enter the middle school, and possibly even the elementary school, it is expected that they can already read, and the curriculum does not afford enough time to go back and teach early literacy skills. I typically do not think of phonics instructions or even basic reading instruction as lessons for older grades. The other problem is that many students are not fluent readers, which does affect comprehension. I have had some students who could read fluently but had a difficult time actually comprehending what they read, but that is not the norm. Generally, students have a difficult time reading because they do not know so many of the words or they just have such difficulty connecting the words with a natural flow. This is an issue across all subjects. Math even has a great deal of reading and understanding.

I think that many students struggle because they did not get the early literacy practice that they needed even before entering formal schooling. Many students come to school without the prerequisite skills they need to be successful, and if they do not catch up quickly, they become more and more behind with each year. According to Effective Instruction for Adolescent Struggling Readers, there are certain characteristics of successful readers and struggling readers. Successful readers do the following: • Read multisyllabic words and use strategies to figure out unknown words. • Make connections between letter patterns and sounds and use this understanding to read words. • Break unknown words into syllables during reading. • Use word analysis strategies to break difficult or long words into meaningful parts such as inflectional endings, prefixes, suffixes, and roots. However, struggling readers are characterized by the following: • May read single-syllable words effortlessly but have difficulty decoding longer multisyllabic words. • May lack knowledge of the ways in which sounds map to print. • Have difficulty breaking words into syllables. • Often do not use word analysis strategies to break words into syllables. Just because you read fluently does not guarantee effective comprehension, but lack of fluency almost always indicates lack of comprehension.

According to The Importance of Reading to Your Children, there are 7 benefits of reading to your children: 1- Supported cognitive development; 2- Improved language skills; 3- Preparation for academic success; 4- Developing a special bond with your child; 5- Increased concentration and discipline; 6- Improved imagination and creativity; and 7- Cultivating a lifelong love of reading. Unfortunately, technology is not always a good thing. Many parents have replaced interaction with technology, and it has not served children well. Many parents also think that lessons on a smart phone or tablet are a good substitute for one on one reading, but it simply is not. We are raising a generation on technology, and in the past that was determined to be the main factor for poverty-stricken children being behind academically, but they are not becoming stronger readers.

Just a personal note- I am against children and technology. I do not believe that they need technology to be successful in school. I do not believe that technology makes them any smarter or makes school any easier for them. I think it actually creates all types of social and emotional issues. My daughter is 13. She has never owned a phone or tablet or any type of technology. The only technology in my home is my cell phone. We do not have Internet. We do not have any sort of cable television. We do have some select VHSs and DVDs, and I am very particular about those. My daughter is not behind at all; she is at the top of her class. She is not socially awkward; she gets along very well with her peers and adults. She has no problems with technology. They use Chromebooks in class, and she is very fluent with the school copier/printer, and she regularly helps her teachers out with whatever they need copied or printed. It just seems that we jump thru all these hoops and are always adding the next best program or thing, but students seem to be falling more and more behind. I think we need to go back to the basics, and I certainly think that parents need to understand their responsibilities at home.