Kids Need Reading Stamina

“ Kids need reading stamina” Developing a reading culture at Nicholas Chamberlaine Technology College

Why read ? Why books ?

"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body." Richard Steele

The ability to read is one of the strongest predictors of future success. Although reading can be taught in a classroom, it must be practised . This slide and next: Are librarians really worth it? Available online at: http://www.ccsd.net/schools/watson/libraryresearch.html

When students voluntarily read, they practise and enforce what is taught in the classroom. Michael Jordan can teach you to how to throw the perfect foul line shot, but if you don't ever practise the skill, his instruction is worthless.

OECD “Reading for Change” 2002 found that “ Being more enthusiastic about reading and a frequent reader was more of an advantage, on its own, than having well-educated parents in good jobs”

“ Finding ways to engage students in reading may be one of the most effective ways to leverage social change." OECD (2002). Reading For Change: Results from PISA 2000, published by the Organisation For Economic Co-operation and Development.

Creativity and imagination Cultural heritage Language development Emotional development Increased self-esteem Sustained concentration Reading for pleasure =

“ There is a strong association between the amount of reading for pleasure children reported and their reading achievement.” Twist, L., Schagen, I. and Hodgson, C. (2007). Readers and Reading: National Report for England 2006 . Slough: NFER

… doesn’t always have to be from books Reading….

MSN Bebo and Facebook Websites Magazines and comics Newspapers E-books TXT messages … are all forms of reading!

Why books ?

“ Books rule! You don’t have pictures to tell you how to imagine something, you can do it yourself! Books can do what no machines can, and probably never will. For example, time travel and they can take you to other dimensions! They are somewhere to go when you just want to escape the real world!” Dani, 13

"You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them." Ray Bradbury

The Rights of the Reader by Daniel Pennac

The right not to read

The right to skip

The right not to finish a book

The right to read it again

The right to read anything

The right to mistake a book for real life

The right to read anywhere

The right to dip in

The right to read out loud

The right to be quiet

Challenges at NCTC

Research skills lesson with Year 9…

The teacher said, “If you don’t behave I won’t let you use the computers. You will have to use the books instead”.

“ A significant number of boys would rather chew off their own right leg than confess to enjoying reading and writing.” Alan Gibbons

Lack of a reading culture amongst some of our intake Declining book issues from KS3 to KS5 Reluctance to reading, bordering on hostility Time pressures: personal, pastoral and curricular

What does this mean? Impact on all subjects and exam courses Problems with concentration and attention span Lack of engagement with culture Stalling of reading & literacy development

Lack of imagination and ideas

Year 7 Reading Profile 2005-2006 25 Other: 20% 55 18% 26 23% 29 Important 38% 102 41% 58 34% 44 Better things to do 17% 46 15% 21 20% 25 Slow 31% 83 27% 38 35% 45 Interesting 35% 95 38% 54 32% 41 Boring 7% 20 8% 11 7% 9 Hard work 20% 53 10% 15 30% 38 Love it 39% 105 38% 54 40% 51 Easy What do you think about reading? Q1 % Totals % Boys % Girls All Class:

Q2. What do you choose to read by yourself? 10% said “Nothing”

Q5. Why do you read? 46% gave a negative answer

Q6. Do you have your own books or magazines at home? 7% said “No”

Year 7 Reading Profile 2005-2006

Students 2007-2008

Year 7 in September:

4 with a reading age below 6 years

14 from 6 years to 6 years 11 months

73 had a reading age of below 11 years

Year 11 in September:

9 below 9 years 11 months

50 had a reading age of below 14 years

“ My general experience of dyslexic students who have difficulty reading is that the more they read the better they get. … Clearly once a dyslexic always a dyslexic, but practise makes (closer to) perfect. So the more practise of reading for pleasure the better.” Martin Truckle, NCTC SENCO

We want to raise achievement at NCTC

“ The research evidence suggests that encouraging reading for pleasure could be a way of contributing towards raising educational standards and combating social exclusion .” Clark, C and Akerman, R (2006). Social inclusion and reading: an exploration. National Literacy Trust

“ Boys need to be led towards reflecting on what they have just learnt. Reticence to reflect is a fundamental gap in boys’ learning processes. Whole school support for reading initiatives (fiction) can significantly aid this process.”

Raising Boys' Achievement in Literacy Gary Wilson, Raising boys' achievement co-ordinator

So what could we do?

… about reading and children’s literature. Students need to be surrounded by books… … with staff who are enthusiastic and knowledgeable …

Extra- curricular activities Pastoral time Yr 7 Reading Programme Atmosphere Staff knowledge & expertise High quality resources LRC support for reading

Special Reading Initiatives 07/08

Boys into Books 

Booked Up 

NCTC Book Week 

Shadowing events ?

National Year of Reading ?

Suggestions for NCTC

“ Intervention” sessions - Year 7 X5 & Y6

Reading mentors – 6 th Form, other years

Positive attitude to books from staff

Role models with reading

Reading initiatives throughout the college as well as the LRC

National activities e.g. NYR 2008

We need time for reading…

“… time spent reading independently interacts with students’ reading ability and has a positive impact on certain components of reading achievement.” Samuels, S and Wu, Y (2003). How the amount of time spent on independent reading affects reading achievement: A response to the national reading panel

“ Sustained reading to my mind is essential for developing a world they would want to live in. The reading does not need to be fiction but I do believe that kids need reading stamina. Just like you have to stick at anything and practice etc surely you need to do the same with reading.” Ingrid Hopson SLYA 2007