English Journal - Secondary Readers Reading Successfully, May 2004

Members of the Secondary Section Steering Committee comment on topics of importance to English language arts educators.

“Snapshots” offers insights about teaching and learning through teacher stories about a particular classroom event.

“Speaking My Mind” invites readers to speak out about controversial issues relevant to the teaching of English language arts.

“Teacher to Teacher” provides a forum for teachers to share ideas, materials, and activities.

Inspired by Nancie Atwell’s work, high school teacher Julie Lausé designed a curriculum that, in her words, “has transformed our students and our school.” Students’ reading speed, comprehension, and motivation increase as a result of this program that combines choice and challenge.

Challenged by a district mandate to teach AP concepts to all students, Vivian M. Jewell focused on teaching lyric poetry to ninth-grade students who read only for plot. The strategies she used helped students develop confidence in reading and analyzing poetry.

Understanding that graduating seniors will need a range of reading skills in college, Sherri Bell designs her senior English class to help students develop task commitment, comprehension, evaluation, fluency, and speed. Many students find that their enjoyment of reading grows along with their confidence “to tackle whatever reading may be in their future.”

Seeking to enhance students’ experiences with literature, a high school teacher and a university professor collaborated on implementing the study of literary theories in two sophomore English classes. Through analyzing a fairy tale, a short story, and a novel, high school students developed divergent and critical thinking about literature.

The power of community to increase literacy was highlighted in a statewide reading initiative where all residents of Rhode Island were invited to read David Baldacci’s Wish You Well. Anne J. Arvidson and Pamela Blanco explain how they created and implemented the program and used Baldacci’s book in their classrooms.

Students find books with multiple narrators or points of view difficult to follow, and this interferes with comprehension of literary themes. High school teacher Kathleen Cecil details the material, activities, and project that she uses to help urban students see connections between various texts on a topic or theme and create, ultimately, “a harmonious whole.”

Through an email exchange with university students about To Kill a Mockingbird, ninth graders increased their confidence in reading and discussing literature. Carlin Borsheim, their teacher, found that students thought more deeply and critically about what they read as a result of the conversations with their university partner.

Scripted reading programs promise much but, when they meet individual students and teachers in real classrooms, the one-size-fits-all approach may succeed for no one. Still, teachers are required to use programs that districts buy. Carol D. Wickstrom addresses this dilemma by describing the efforts of one ninth-grade teacher to negotiate the demands of the mandated program while meeting the needs of her students.

Creating a democratic classroom challenges teacher authority and power. Yet nothing is more important if students are to learn to think critically and act thoughtfully. Pearl Amelia McHaney employs focus essays as a tool for students to develop their thoughts and contribute to meaningful class discussions. When authority is distributed, teacher and students share a powerful, intellectually engaging relationship.

Drawing on experiences as an English language arts teacher and a special education teacher, respectively, Dauna Howerton and Cathy Thomas consider the needs of struggling high school readers and their teachers. They share activities to address common reading problems.

Annotating a text can be a powerful strategy to comprehend difficult material and encourage active reading. High school teacher Carol Porter-O’Donnell provides several activities and tools to help students learn to purposefully mark up what they read.

“Research Matters” provides teachers with review and application of research that illuminates the daily concerns and activities of English language arts teachers and classrooms.

“New Voices” raises questions, offers insights, and provides a forum for novice teachers to engage in the professional conversation surrounding the teaching of English.

“Teaching English in the World” examines the teaching of English in a global context.