The article I read discussed the increasingly disappointing reading scores of students across the nations, particularly at the middle-school and early high school levels. To me, the most important part of the article was its suggestions for improving reading levels with students. It began with a teacher explaining her personal technique of posing controversial questions to her students about the assigned texts in the hopes they will read it and thus be able to contribute to a debate. She says that students like to argue and so it is good motivation--and I agree. The most popular books among students that I know of are books like "1984," which is referenced in the article, and "Animal Farm," both of which seem to stir students. When a book has been banned, like "Catcher in the Rye," it is automatically more appealing to students. I feel like they would want to know why it was so hated. Sometimes, it is simply a matter of finding these controversies in literature.
And sometimes, it's redefining the word "literature."
In the English classroom, we understand "literature" to mean the classical and contemporary texts that are a standardized part of the curriculum and thus probably dubbed "boring." Yet this article suggests that teachers have their students study the popular texts of their own time and analyze them for literary meaning. This would include texts like Stephanie Myer's "Twilight" and J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter." Having read both of these texts, I can say confidently that the idea of teaching them as literature to students is a very smart idea.
At the risk of sounding overly eager (because who wouldn't want to read Harry Potter for homework), I think studying the popular texts of today would be a huge lure for students to increase their reading level. They would most definitely be more interested in the texts, seeing as the majority of them are already reading the worldwide bestsellers, and as to the legitimacy of such books as English books, I have no doubts. As Jennifer Schoaf says in the article, these students would start looking at the books as something that came from the author. ""In other words, they think about the choices the writer makes, the words he or she uses. It enhances their comprehension and appreciation for what they're reading." If a student is asked to identify the writing techniques used in Harry Potter, they may realize its organization and structure is similar to that of the essays they write. They may recognize how action is tagged onto a piece of dialogue in order to move the story along. They will be forced to slow down and appreciate that the dramatic, isolated, single sentence between paragraphs is a stylistic tool. There are so many possibilities to studying modern works like this. Besides the fact that the students will be interested in them, they will also perhaps learn a bit more about their own world, based on what they read between the lines of the book.
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I agree completely with Kristen and her comments on this article. I actually cited this article several times in my research paper. Students are tired of reading the same old books. Granted, they do form a canon that have been and will continue to be studied for several years to come, but getting students to read in the first place is the issue here.
In my research I found a quote from teacher Michael Milburn, stating that "Any schoolteacher will tell you that it’s not the prodigies you’re trying to reach – they’re already in your pocket – but the others, and you’ll do whatever it takes to hook them on your subject.” Students that are already hooked on reading can move on and analyze the classics, but some students need to start with something more on their level. I don't mean grade school books for high school students, just something of their own choosing that they'll actually enjoy reading. Once their skills have been expanded, they too can move on to the classics if necessary. I remember in high school all the shop kids did horribly in their English classes, but they had Chilton manuals memorized - because it was pertinent information that they used and enjoyed.
I also agree with Kristen's comments about the article that she read. In order to get students more involved in the classroom I feel it would be very beneficial to let the students choose a book that interests them. In doing this we allow the students to become more involved and comfortable in the English classroom. A great idea that a teacher could use would be to pick a variety of different books that might go along with the curriculum and lay them out on a table and to allow the students to chose one. This will not only engage them as readers but, also engage them to participate in the classroom.
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