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I've heard it over and over and over. "My kid used to be an avid reader. He loved to read...until ____ grade. Then he absolutely hated it."
For over a decade now, well before Common Core or even NCLB, all of these conversations included one common denominator; Accelerated Reader, commonly referred to in most schools as AR. Commonly referred to in my mind as "How to Kill a Love of Reading."
Properly used, AR can be an awesome tool for teachers. Along with it's companion STAR testing, it can help kids and teachers in many ways. Before we get into that, let me give you a quick overview of how these two programs work. Well, at least how they are supposed to work.
First, the kids take a STAR test. This is a computer based test, made up of progressively harder multiple choice questions. Kids who get questions right keep getting more questions, in less time, until they can no longer answer correctly in the allotted time. Miss a few in a row or take too long to answer and the test ends. If you want to get more info on this, you can look it up here. Teachers generally give this test within the first few days of school, then depending on the school, again each quarter or semester, and once more at the very end of the year.
After the class tests, the teacher gets almost instant access to about a billion (or maybe more like 20) reports. She can find out a ton of data about the kids in her class. The report that I have seen most widely used is the ZPD, or as stated on the above linked website from the tests developer, the
Zone of Proximal Development: The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is the reading level range from which (the student) should be selecting books for optimal growth in reading. It spans reading levels that are appropriately challenging for reading practice. This range is approximate. Success at any reading level depends on your child’s interest and prior knowledge of a book’s content.
So far, so good. There is some good data there that good teachers can use to differentiate instruction and to quickly identify students who may struggle or excel. Teachers and kids can go into a library and easily find books that the students can read independently.
Now let's go back to the ZPD. Notice how it says, "This range is approximate. Success at any reading level depends on your child's interest and prior knowledge of a book's content." Yeah...that's the part teachers tend to forget about. Instead of using it as the guideline it was developed to be, they turn it into hard and fast rules that no one can get around, no matter what. I've known school librarians and teachers who would flat refuse to EVER let a kid check out or read a book in class that was outside of their ZPD.
Let me give you an example. The names are changed to protect the innocent but the stories are true.
Tom is in fourth grade. He reads really well, like his ZPD at the beginning of the year is 11.6-12.8. This means that as a nine year old, his reading level is equivalent to a junior or senior in high school. This does NOT mean that his maturity level is equivalent to a 17 or 18 year old. But his teacher doesn't care. Nope. That teacher says that he can ONLY read books in his ZPD. Unfortunately for him, his elementary school library doesn't carry many of those. Go figure. So he reads through the few books they do have, is bored to death, and then his teacher tells him he has to get books from the high school library. Because you know, fourth graders should be reading first hand accounts of the Bataan Death March, facts about abortion, fiction that depicts drug and alcohol abuse by minors and of course, sex. After all, if he can score that on one multiple choice test, he must be ready for all that entails. And if you've read any young adult fiction these days, you know that they are labeled that way because they are not for younger kids! So, all year long, Tom reads books he's not interested in. He wants to read the books the other kids are reading; Harry Potter, Bailey School, Shiloh...but no, those are below his ZPD, so he's not allowed. So Tom begins to hate reading. He doesn't get to read anything that he wants so reading is a chore that quickly becomes a bore as well. By fifth grade, Tom is no longer a reader. Mr. Smith and his unbending, set in concrete interpretation of the STAR test has killed Tom's interest in reading. Now a senior, Tom no longer reads for pleasure.
Kimmie is in first grade. She doesn't read very well yet because she's just getting started. So her ZPD is somewhere around 1.1-1.6. When she goes to the library to get books, the books on her level are short. They are mostly pictures and may only have a few words in them. AR tests have 5-10 questions on them. Because Kimmie's books are so simple, there sometimes aren't 5-10 things to ask on the quizzes. So the quiz authors ask things like "What color was the ball on page 3?" or "Does Jill have blue or green eyes?" Neither of which were at all relevant to the story. Kimmie has no idea and simply guesses at the answers. Her teacher uses AR as a big part of her grade, so Kimmie's report card stinks. Her parents are upset with her and Kimmie isn't able to put into words why she has done so poorly. She now thinks she's a horrible reader and doesn't want to pick up any more books.
Teachers, librarians, parents: listen up. STAR testing and AR were not meant to be used this way. They are not The Ten Commandments of Teaching Reading. ZPD is not set in stone. It is a guide, a tool. Use it as such. Don't suck the life out of young readers by making it more than it is.
I'm not saying you should abandon the test data altogether. Just don't make kids stick to them so strictly, especially the advanced readers. If you are teaching third grade and they score with a higher than that ZPD, make them read third grade and up books. Encourage them to choose some harder books but let them read the occasional picture book that their friends are all talking about. If a struggling reader really, really wants to read a book about baseball that is three grade levels above them, let them try it. Not every time, but sometimes. Chances are, if you give them the tools, they will, in time and with practice, learn to pick books they are ready for. Let them fail if need be but give them the chance to exceed expectation as well.
Now let me tell you another story. This one is also true but is about a little girl who has never taken a STAR or AR test in her life. She happens to be home educated but this could easily happen with a child in other types of schools as well if she had the right teacher.
Allie was at the end of second grade when her mom brought home a book for her older brother to read. It was a book about time travelers that had a grade level equivalent of 5.0. That means it should be good for middle fourth to middle fifth graders. Allie was not reading anywhere near that level at the time, nor had she ever read a book with 366 pages and no pictures. But she was interested. She wanted to read it. So her mom, who also happens to be her teacher, let her. Mom gently quizzed her to see that she was comprehending, which Allie was, so she continued. It took her almost two months to read the book. It was Book 1 in a series that currently has six installments. When she finished it, she practically ran to the library to get Book 2. It didn't take her as long to read that one. By November of third grade, Allie had read all six books and was eagerly awaiting Book 7. Book 6 she read in just over a week. She now frequently reads books that are written on fourth, fifth and sixth grade levels with ease. And guess what. She loves reading. By taking on a challenge and succeeding, she became a better reader. She even found a favorite author and is now inspired to become a better writer herself.
If you're a school librarian or a classroom teacher who uses STAR and AR, please, please, please take a few minutes to evaluate how you are using these tools. Are you building better readers or are you stifling them? Are you facilitating a love for storytelling or squashing all desire to read for pleasure? If you look honestly at your approach and realize it could be better, improve it. Don't let one more day go by that kills a love of reading. Don't let your class be the year that Tom starts hating books. Instead, make it the year that Allie discovers the joy of reading and decides to become a writer.
If you're a parent whose kid's school uses these tools, please take a minute to talk to your child's teacher about their philosophy on this. If you don't agree with her, make your case. Make it strongly but respectfully. Advocate for your kid. Don't let this year be the year he learns to hate reading.
Now let's go back to the ZPD. Notice how it says, "This range is approximate. Success at any reading level depends on your child's interest and prior knowledge of a book's content." Yeah...that's the part teachers tend to forget about. Instead of using it as the guideline it was developed to be, they turn it into hard and fast rules that no one can get around, no matter what. I've known school librarians and teachers who would flat refuse to EVER let a kid check out or read a book in class that was outside of their ZPD.
Let me give you an example. The names are changed to protect the innocent but the stories are true.
Tom is in fourth grade. He reads really well, like his ZPD at the beginning of the year is 11.6-12.8. This means that as a nine year old, his reading level is equivalent to a junior or senior in high school. This does NOT mean that his maturity level is equivalent to a 17 or 18 year old. But his teacher doesn't care. Nope. That teacher says that he can ONLY read books in his ZPD. Unfortunately for him, his elementary school library doesn't carry many of those. Go figure. So he reads through the few books they do have, is bored to death, and then his teacher tells him he has to get books from the high school library. Because you know, fourth graders should be reading first hand accounts of the Bataan Death March, facts about abortion, fiction that depicts drug and alcohol abuse by minors and of course, sex. After all, if he can score that on one multiple choice test, he must be ready for all that entails. And if you've read any young adult fiction these days, you know that they are labeled that way because they are not for younger kids! So, all year long, Tom reads books he's not interested in. He wants to read the books the other kids are reading; Harry Potter, Bailey School, Shiloh...but no, those are below his ZPD, so he's not allowed. So Tom begins to hate reading. He doesn't get to read anything that he wants so reading is a chore that quickly becomes a bore as well. By fifth grade, Tom is no longer a reader. Mr. Smith and his unbending, set in concrete interpretation of the STAR test has killed Tom's interest in reading. Now a senior, Tom no longer reads for pleasure.
Kimmie is in first grade. She doesn't read very well yet because she's just getting started. So her ZPD is somewhere around 1.1-1.6. When she goes to the library to get books, the books on her level are short. They are mostly pictures and may only have a few words in them. AR tests have 5-10 questions on them. Because Kimmie's books are so simple, there sometimes aren't 5-10 things to ask on the quizzes. So the quiz authors ask things like "What color was the ball on page 3?" or "Does Jill have blue or green eyes?" Neither of which were at all relevant to the story. Kimmie has no idea and simply guesses at the answers. Her teacher uses AR as a big part of her grade, so Kimmie's report card stinks. Her parents are upset with her and Kimmie isn't able to put into words why she has done so poorly. She now thinks she's a horrible reader and doesn't want to pick up any more books.
Teachers, librarians, parents: listen up. STAR testing and AR were not meant to be used this way. They are not The Ten Commandments of Teaching Reading. ZPD is not set in stone. It is a guide, a tool. Use it as such. Don't suck the life out of young readers by making it more than it is.
I'm not saying you should abandon the test data altogether. Just don't make kids stick to them so strictly, especially the advanced readers. If you are teaching third grade and they score with a higher than that ZPD, make them read third grade and up books. Encourage them to choose some harder books but let them read the occasional picture book that their friends are all talking about. If a struggling reader really, really wants to read a book about baseball that is three grade levels above them, let them try it. Not every time, but sometimes. Chances are, if you give them the tools, they will, in time and with practice, learn to pick books they are ready for. Let them fail if need be but give them the chance to exceed expectation as well.
Now let me tell you another story. This one is also true but is about a little girl who has never taken a STAR or AR test in her life. She happens to be home educated but this could easily happen with a child in other types of schools as well if she had the right teacher.
Allie was at the end of second grade when her mom brought home a book for her older brother to read. It was a book about time travelers that had a grade level equivalent of 5.0. That means it should be good for middle fourth to middle fifth graders. Allie was not reading anywhere near that level at the time, nor had she ever read a book with 366 pages and no pictures. But she was interested. She wanted to read it. So her mom, who also happens to be her teacher, let her. Mom gently quizzed her to see that she was comprehending, which Allie was, so she continued. It took her almost two months to read the book. It was Book 1 in a series that currently has six installments. When she finished it, she practically ran to the library to get Book 2. It didn't take her as long to read that one. By November of third grade, Allie had read all six books and was eagerly awaiting Book 7. Book 6 she read in just over a week. She now frequently reads books that are written on fourth, fifth and sixth grade levels with ease. And guess what. She loves reading. By taking on a challenge and succeeding, she became a better reader. She even found a favorite author and is now inspired to become a better writer herself.
If you're a school librarian or a classroom teacher who uses STAR and AR, please, please, please take a few minutes to evaluate how you are using these tools. Are you building better readers or are you stifling them? Are you facilitating a love for storytelling or squashing all desire to read for pleasure? If you look honestly at your approach and realize it could be better, improve it. Don't let one more day go by that kills a love of reading. Don't let your class be the year that Tom starts hating books. Instead, make it the year that Allie discovers the joy of reading and decides to become a writer.
If you're a parent whose kid's school uses these tools, please take a minute to talk to your child's teacher about their philosophy on this. If you don't agree with her, make your case. Make it strongly but respectfully. Advocate for your kid. Don't let this year be the year he learns to hate reading.
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