Your Adolescent’s Struggles With Reading: A Guide to Understanding and Helping

1. Your Adolescent’s Struggles With Reading: A Guide to Understanding and Helping by Juliana Meehan This PowerPoint presentation must be viewed in “Slideshow” mode

2. Purpose This slide show is designed to help you: 1. Understand why some students struggle with reading and writing 2. Realize what classroom methods are being used to address these problems 3. Learn what you can do to help your struggling reader

3. How to Use This Presentation • Slides whose titles are numbered 1, 2, and 3 are the “basic” slides that give a general overview of each area • Each “basic” slide has a series of underlined terms that will take you to further information • Click on the underlined terms to learn more • When you’ve read the material, return to the “basic” slide by clicking on “Back to the previous slide” in the lower right-hand corner

4. How to Use This Presentation • In some cases, the information is several layers deep • Keep clicking on the underlined items to learn more • Then, to go back, keep clicking on “Back to Previous Slide” until that phrase no longer appears in the lower right-hand margin • You will end up at a “basic” slide and may continue as you would a regular PowerPoint presentation • In some cases, underlined items will take you to Internet sites; to return to the slideshow, you must exit the Internet window that opened for you (X-off in the upper right)

5. 1.Why Some Adolescents StruggleWith Reading and Writing There are two dimensions to this struggle: • Cognitive • Socio-emotional After you’ve explored the slides under these headings, click to the next slide in this series as you would for any PowerPoint presentation

6. 2. What the Teacher Is Doing • Determining your child’s needs through various ongoing assessments • Applying individualized reading strategies • Organizing students into various flexible groupings • Supporting and encouraging his/her progress After you’ve explored the slides under these headings, click to the next slide in this series as you would for any PowerPoint presentation

7. 3. What Families Can Do • Research confirms that the key to literacy success begins at home • Suggestions for supporting literacy for: • Infants • Toddlers • Preschoolers • Kindergartners • Elementary school children • Adolescents (middle and high school) After you’ve explored the slides under these headings, click to the next slide in this series as you would for any PowerPoint presentation

8. Resources • Family Literacy Programs/Resources • Head Start • International Reading Association • National Council of Teachers of English After you’ve explored the information above, click to the next slide in this series as you would for any PowerPoint presentation

9. References Aratani, L. (2006, July 13). Upper grades, lower reading skills. Washingtonpost.com. Retrieved November 28, 2006, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/srticle/2006/07/12/AR2006071201825 Bellon, J. J., Bellon, E. C., & Blank, M. A. (1992). Teaching from a research base. New York, NY: Macmillan. Budd Rowe, M. (1986). Wait time: Slowing down may be a way of speeding up! Journal of Teacher Education, (Jan.-Feb.), 43-49. Caldwell, J.S. & Leslie, L. (2005) Intervention strategies to follow informal reading inventory assessment: So what do I do now? New York: Pearson Education, Inc. Calkins, L., Hartman, A., & White, Z. (2005). One to one: The art of conferring with young writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Stubbs, M. (2002). Some basic sociolinguistic concepts. In L. Delpit & J. K. Dowdy (Eds.), The skin that we speak. (pp. 63-85). New York, NY: The New Press. Faust, M. (2004). Mixing memory and desire: A family literacy event. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 47(7), 564-572. Feldman, K. (2003, March 24). Reading problems in middle school and high school students. SchwabLearning.org. Retrieved November 28, 2006, from http://www.schwablearning.org/print_resources.asp?type=article&r=719&popref=http%3 Georgetown University. (n.d.). What is plagiarism? Retrieved November 29, 2006 from http://gervaseprograms.georgetown.edu/hc/plagiarism.html Institute for Education Reform. (n.d.). Building a powerful reading program: From research to practice. Retrieved November 30, 2007, from http://www.csus.edu/ier/reading.html Continued on Next Page

10. References, continued International Reading Association. (2001). Supporting young adolescents’ literacy learning: A joint position statement of the International Reading Association and the National Middle School Association. Retrieved November 28, 2006 from http://www.reading.org/resources/issues/positions_young_adolescents.html International Reading Association Family Literacy Committee. (n.d.). What is family literacy? Retrieved November 30, 2006 from http://www.reading.org/downloads/parents/pb1044_involved.pdf Kirk, L. R. (2001). Learning to read: Painful mystery or joyful success? Journal of Adolescent Literacy, 44, 420 – 431. Levy, B.A., Gong, Z., Hessels, S., Evans, M.A., & Jared, D. (2006). Understanding print: Early reading development and the contributions of home literacy programs. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 93, 63-93. Martens, P.A. (1999). “Mommy, how do you write ‘Sarah’?”: The role of name writing in one child’s literacy. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 14(1), 5-15. Olin and Uris Libraries, Cornell University. (1998). Five criteria for evaluating web pages. Retrieved December 1, 2006 from http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/webcrit.html Owocki, G., Goodman, Y. (2002). Kidwatching: Documenting children’s literacy development. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Sousa, D.A. (2007) How the Special Needs Brain Learns, Second Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Steinberg, A. (1992). When bright kids get bad grades. The Harvard Education Letter, III(6), 1-3. Walker, B.J. (2005, April). Thinking aloud: Struggling readers often require more than a model. The Reading Teacher, 58(7), 688–692. Wiggins, G.P. (1993). Assessing Student Performance. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, Inc. Zambo, D., & Brem, S. K. (2004). Emotion and cognition in students who struggle to read: New insights and ideas. Reading Psychology, 25, 189–204. Go to Next Page

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14. Flexible Groupings • “Children learn as a result of interacting socially and transforming the language and actions of their social experiences into tools for independent thinking” (Owocki) • Social interaction in learning is especially important for adolescents • Therefore, various student groupings are an integral part of a student-centered classroom: • Heterogeneous groupings • Homogeneous groupings • Random groupings • Non-random, teacher-chosen groupings Back to Previous Slide

15. Non-Random, Teacher-Chosen Groupings • Sometimes a teacher will choose reading buddies or writing buddies based on common student interests (rather than skill level) • This information is gotten through student questionnaires • Reading/writing buddies usually stay together the whole year unless a problem arises or a student leaves the class Back to previous page

16. Heterogeneous Groupings • By a teacher’s grouping students with different skill levels: • Advanced students can further master subject matter by re-teaching and/or reinforcing it with their less proficient peers • Students less proficient in the task at hand can learn from their peers Back to Previous Slide

17. Homogeneous Groupings • By a teacher’s grouping students with similar skill levels: • Students having difficulties in the same areas can receive direct instruction • Students who are proficient can receive advanced, enrichment instruction Back to Previous Slide

18. Random Groupings • It is important that students sometimes have choice in their group mates • The following activities work well with student-chosen partners: • Think-Pair-Share • Learning partners Back to Previous Slide

19. Think-Pair-Share • A three-step discussion strategy that promotes cooperation with a partner and encourages all students to actively participate in class: • Students listen while teacher poses a question • Students are given ample “wait time” so each one can think of an appropriate response • Students are cued to “pair with a neighbor” to discuss their response • Students are then invited to share their responses with the whole group Back to Previous Slide

20. Learning Partners • A cooperative strategy that is useful for quick, energizing reviews: • Students self-select a learning partner (partners remain together throughout the marking period) • Teacher announces a “learning partner time” and a focus question/problem is given • Learning partners get together and work for 2-4 minutes to answer the question/solve the problem • Students return to their seats and the lesson resumes, with students individually giving oral responses to the question/problem that was posed Back to Previous Slide

21. Wait Time • The amount of time a teacher pauses after asking a question • A wait time of five seconds or more is required for optimum results (Budd Rowe): • Better classroom climate • Increased level of higher-order thinking • Improved quality of classroom interactions • Increased level of academic achievement • Decrease in behavior problems Back to Previous Slide

22. Cognitive • Cognition refers to how our minds perceive, learn, and reason • Cognition with respect to literacy involves: • Word identification • Fluency • Comprehension

23. Word Identification • Some students fail to understand that letters represent sounds and that there are patterns to these sounds • These students struggle to decode words • They decode words at a very slow rate • They cannot decode longer words • So much effort is expended in trying to decode that comprehension suffers

24. Fluency • Fluency is that quality of written language that allows us to read with rapidly-executed skill and with almost effortless comprehension. • When students lack fluency it is largely due to poor “sight word” recognition

25. Sight Words • “Sight words” are those words that are recognized instantly, without the need for decoding • If students have only a few sight words at their disposal, their focus goes to decoding words rather than comprehending text meaning • This results in slow reading and poor comprehension Back to previous slide

26. Comprehension • Comprehension is the reader’s ability to understand and remember what is read • Struggling readers often exhibit poor comprehension, even though decoding and fluency skills may be intact • These readers lack comprehension strategies Back to previous slide

27. Comprehension Strategies • “Active reading” • How to carry on inner self-dialogue about the meaning of a text (Walker) • How to explain, analyze, and comprehend words in context (Artani) • How to adjust predictions in response to text and not ignore contradictory information (Walker) • How to deal with different types of text Back to previous slide

28. Socio-Emotional Literacy Struggles • Emotion and cognition are connected in literacy • Negative past experiences • Cultural differences • Lack of support at home • Individual attitude • Adolescent brain development

29. Adolescent Brain Development • The frontal area of the brain is responsible for higher-order thinking, problem solving, and regulating emotions • It does not mature until approximately age 24 (click here for diagram) • Adolescents’ ability to make rational decisions, understand the consequences of their actions, and curb emotional impulses is thus delayed • This must be factored in to expectations of students’ of performance in school

30. Frontal Lobe Maturation Age 5 Age 8 Maturation of the frontal lobe shown in light areas (Sousa, 2007) Age 12 Age 16 Age 20

31. Negative Past Experiences • Negative memories • Teacher critique • Peer judgement • Social promotion • Never learned reading strategies • Confusion builds and leads to more negative experiences and passivity Back to Previous Slide

32. Cultural Differences • Students come to school with experiences of literacy based on their home cultures (Delpit) • If a student’s home culture is very different from that of the school, students might lack the ability to make personal connections to literacy • They cannot bridge the gap between home and school culture without help Back to Previous Slide

33. Lack of Support at Home • No support framework • Parents lack the time to assist in their child’s literacy • Non-English-speaking parents often are willing but cannot assist • Low expectations: students have permission to fail Back to Previous Slide

34. Individual Attitude • Low self esteem • Lack of confidence • Passivity Back to Previous Slide

35. Emotions Influence Cognition • The brain structures associated with long-term memory, the hippocampus and the amygdala, are also highly involved with emotions (Sousa, 2007) • Effective learning experiences need to be associated with positive emotions • This is especially true for struggling readers, who experience a great deal of negative emotions about reading and create negative self-schemas to deal with them Back to Previous Slide

36. Struggling Readers and Self-Schemas • Self-schemas are ideas about our environment that contain thoughts and beliefs about ourselves • They influence children’s moods which, in turn, affects the memories they will choose to remember (Zambo) • Readers with negative self-schemas focus on short-term solutions rather than long-term goals Back to Previous Slide

37. Influence of Negative Self-schemas on Reading Back to Previous Slide Adapted from: Zambo, D., & Brem, S. K. (2004). Emotion and cognition in students who struggle to read: New insights and ideas. Reading Psychology, 25, 189–204

38. Short-Term Solutions • Struggling readers often develop a fight-or-flight reaction to reading (Zambo): • They avoid the reading situation by making various excuses • They may confront the reading situation with anger and defiance Back to Previous Slide

39. Low Self Esteem • Some students develop negative beliefs about their ability to comprehend and therefore adopt negative practices (Walker): • These students have low self-efficacy, i.e., little belief in their ability to succeed • They focus on lack of comprehension skills instead of the skills they already possess • They turn this sense of failure into a reason for quitting Back to Previous Slide

40. Lack of Confidence • Students who lack confidence decrease their efforts • They believe they will fail no matter how hard they try • This leads to a downward spiral of: • Less and less success • Less motivation, ambition, drive, and willingness to spend time working on challenge Back to Previous Slide

41. Passivity • Some students who have experienced failure find it hard to reward themselves for any progress in reading • Consistent failure causes these students to become passive readers Back to Previous Slide

42. Assessment • Students are given both formal and informal assessments • Formal assessments include: • Class-wide periodic quizzes and tests • State-mandated testing • One-on-one reading tests • Informal assessment includes: • Observation and note-taking • Individual conferencing Back to Previous Slide

43. Formal Assessment • Formal assessment is given to all students in the form of periodic tests and quizzes • Some assessment is given before lessons (pre-assessment) in order to see what students already know about a subject and what they need to know • Another type of formal assessment that gives much more individual data is the informal reading inventory Back to Previous Slide

44. Informal Assessment • One of the best ways to understand a child’s educational needs is by “kidwatching” • Conferencingallows one-on-one instruction on various tasks, particularly writing Back to Previous Slide

45. “Kidwatching”* • Gaining insight into children’s learning by: • Intensely observing and documenting what students know and can do • Documenting the ways they construct knowledge • Using this information to plan instruction and address individual needs (Owocki, 2002) *Owocki, G., Goodman, Y. (2002). Kidwatching: Documenting children’s literacy development. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Back to Previous Slide

46. Conferencing • Informal conversation between teacher and student in which the teacher observes a student at work and then guides next steps • During that conversation the teacher: • Observes and understands what the child is doing • Decides what can be offered in the form of instruction for this task • Teaches a skill to be immediately applied • Names what the child has done for reinforcement (Calkins, 2005) • Makes notes for follow-up instruction Back to Previous Slide

47. Tests and Quizzes • Teacher- and district-generated tests and quizzes that correspond to district and state curriculum standards • Standardized, state-mandated testing: • NJ Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (ASK) • High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) Back to Previous Slide

48. New Jersey ASK • A state assessment of student achievement in language arts, math, and science that was implemented in 2003 to meet the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act • Read more about the ASK Back to Previous Slide

49. New Jersey GEPA • Measures progress in mastering the knowledge and skills specified in the State Core Curriculum Content Standards and needed to pass the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) • A primary indicator for identifying eighth-grade students who may need instructional intervention in three content areas: language arts literacy, mathematics and science • Go to NJ Department of Education site Back to Previous Slide

50. Pre-assessment • By testing students on material before it has been taught, teachers are able to: • See what skills and knowledge students already possess in order to avoid re-teaching learned material • Correct misconceptions students may have • Focus on areas where students are most in need of instruction Back to Previous Slide