Learning to Read: A Call from Research to Action - Página 4

Deficits in Acquiring Reading Comprehension Strategies

Some children encounter obstacles in learning to read because they do not derive meaning from the material that they read. Deficits in reading comprehension are related to: (1) inadequate understanding of the words used in the text; (2) inadequate background knowledge about the context of the text; (3) a lack of familiarity with the semantic and syntactic structures that help predict the relationships between words; (4) a lack of knowledge about different writing conventions (humor, explanation, dialogue, etc.); (5) a deficit in the verbal reasoning ability which would enable the reader to "read between the lines"; and (6) a lack of the ability to remember verbal information.

If children are not provided early and consistent experiences that are explicitly designed to foster these skills, reading failure will occur no matter how well-developed word recognition skills are.

Our current understanding of how to develop many of these critical language and reasoning capabilities related to reading comprehension is not as well developed as the information related to phoneme awareness, phonics, and reading fluency. Our knowledge about the causes and consequences of deficits in syntactical development is sparse. A good deal of excellent research has been conducted on the application of reading comprehension strategies, but our knowledge of how to help children use these strategies in an independent manner and across contexts is just emerging.

Deficits in Developing and Maintaining the Motivation to Learn to Read

A major factor that limits the amount of improvement children may make in reading is related to motivation. Difficulties in learning to read are very demoralizing to children. In the primary grades, reading constitutes the major portion of academic activities undertaken in classrooms, and children who struggle with reading are quickly noticed by peers and teachers. Although most children enter formal schooling with positive attitudes and expectations for success, those who encounter difficulties learning to read attempt to avoid engaging in reading behavior as early as the middle of the first grade year. It is known that successful reading development is predicated on practice reading, and obviously, the less children practice, the less developed the various reading skills will become.

Deficits in Effectively Preparing Teachers

As evidence mounts that reading difficulties originate in large part from difficulties in developing phoneme awareness, phonics, spelling skills, reading fluency, and reading comprehension strategies, the need for informed instruction for the millions of children with insufficient reading skills is an increasingly urgent problem. Unfortunately, several recent studies and surveys of teacher knowledge about reading development and difficulties indicate that many teachers are underprepared to teach reading. Most teachers receive little formal instruction in reading development and disorders during either undergraduate and/or graduate studies, with the average teacher completing only two reading courses. Surveys of teachers taking these courses consistently show that very few have ever observed professors demonstrating instructional reading methods with children. They also report that their course work is largely unrelated to actual teaching practices, that the theories they learn are rarely linked to the actual instruction of children, and that the supervision of student teaching and practicum experiences is frequently lacking in consistency and depth.

At present, motivated teachers are often left on their own to obtain specific skills in teaching reading by seeking out workshops or specialized instructional manuals. Many teachers report that they are tied to "packaged" reading programs, regardless of the quality of the programs or their usefulness for all children, because they do not understand the reading process well enough to augment the programs or to select different instructional strategies for different children. As we survey teachers' perceptions of their preparation, we find consistently that they are "method-driven" rather than conceptually prepared to teach the range of skills required to learn to read.

Clearly, teachers of youngsters who display reading difficulties should be thoroughly trained to assess and identify problem readers at early ages and be well versed in understanding the conditions that must be present for these children to become efficient readers. Unfortunately, many teachers and administrators have been caught between conflicting schools of thought about how to teach reading and how to help students who are not progressing. They are limited by a "one size fits all" philosophy that emphasizes either a "whole language" or "phonics" orientation to instruction. This parochial type of preparation places many children at continued risk for reading failure since it is well established that no reading program should be without all the major components of reading instruction (phoneme awareness, phonics, spelling, fluency, and reading comprehension). The real question is, "which children need what, when, for how long, with what type of instruction, and in what type of setting?"

It is hard to find disagreement in the educational community that the direction and fabric of teacher education programs in language arts and reading must change. However, bringing about such change will be difficult. How teaching competencies and certification requirements are developed and implemented will have to become more thoughtful and systematic. In many states, the certification offices within state departments of education do not maintain formal and collaborative relationships with academic departments within colleges of education. Thus, the requirements that a student may be expected to satisfy for a college degree may bear little relationship to the requirements for a teaching certificate. Even more alarming, many of the requirements are not based upon the best research related to reading development and disorders. Fundamental changes must occur in the type and depth of knowledge that teachers have if we are to ensure literacy for all.

How Can We Help Children Learn To Read?

Learning to read is a lengthy and difficult process for many children, and success in learning to read is based in large part on developing language and literacy-related skills very early in life. A massive effort needs to be undertaken to inform parents, and the educational and medical communities, of the need to involve children in reading from the first days of life; to engage children in playing with language through nursery rhymes, storybooks, and writing activities; and, as early as possible, to bring to children experiences that help them understand the purposes of reading, and the wonder and joy that can be derived from it. Parents must become intimately aware of the importance of vocabulary development and the use of verbal interactions with their youngsters to enhance grammar, syntax, and verbal reasoning.

Young preschool children should be encouraged to learn the letters of the alphabet, to discriminate letters from one another, to print letters, and to attempt to spell words that they hear. By introducing young children to print, their exposure to the purposes of reading and writing will increase and their knowledge of the conventions of print and their awareness of print concepts will increase.

Reading out loud to children is a proven activity for developing vocabulary growth and language expansion, and plays a causal role in developing both receptive and expressive language capabilities. Reading out loud can also be used to enhance children's background knowledge of new concepts that may appear in both oral and written language. However, we must have a clear understanding that reading aloud to children is a necessary, but not sufficient means to teaching reading skills. Again, the ability to read requires a number of skills that, in most children, must be developed via direct and informed instruction provided by properly prepared teachers.

Kindergarten programs should be designed so that all children will develop the prerequisite phonological, vocabulary, and early reading skills necessary for success in the first grade. Children should acquire the ability to recognize and print both upper and lowercase letters with reasonable ease and accuracy, develop familiarity with the basic purposes and mechanisms of reading and writing, and develop age-appropriate language comprehension skills.

Beginning reading programs should allot sufficient instructional time to the teaching of phonemic awareness skills, phonics skills, the development of spelling and orthographic skills, the development of reading fluency and automaticity, and the development of reading comprehension strategies. All of these components of reading are necessary, but not sufficient, in, and of, themselves. For children demonstrating difficulty in learning to read, it is imperative that each of these components be taught in an integrated context and that ample practice in reading familiar material be afforded.

A major impediment to serving the needs of children demonstrating difficulties learning to read is current teacher preparation practices. Many teachers lack basic knowledge and understanding of reading development and the nature of reading difficulties. Major efforts should be undertaken to ensure that colleges of education possess the expertise and commitment to foster expertise in teachers at both pre-service and in-service levels. Strong competency-based training programs with formal board certification for teachers of reading should be developed.

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This article was adapted from statements made before the Committee on Education and the Workforce, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C., July 10, 1997.

G. Reid Lyon, Ph.D. is Chief, Child Development and Behavior Branch and Director, Research Programs in Learning Disabilities, Language Disorders, Disorders of Attention, and Developmental Neuroimaging, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health.