| Show Reading Deficiency Caused from of Problems T Teacher Says By Amelia Hanker Manker Rm Remedial lial Reading Re-ading Teacher Ashley Valley Junior High This This is the in a series on the special services and special programs of Uin tah School DistrIct Children differ in their po po- po or learning just justas justas as they in physical ap ap- ap appearance and the achieve achieve- achievement achievement ment of any individual should be judged in relation to his I learning arning capacity This will make clear the reason for limiting the state remedial program to pupils of at least normal intelli- intelli gene for n a major factor in determining learning capacity is the childs child's general intelli- intelli OTHER FACTORS which should be taken into account are his background of experience in lan Ian language ence ence his achievement guage arts other than read read- reading ing his physical and emotion emotion- emotional al condition and his motivation tion or lack of motivation to read Contrary to the expressed beliefs of many retarded readers on the Ule junior high school level were seldom made only by a teacher who failed ail d to emphasize phonics in the tho second or some other grade As the science of remedial reading has developed durin during the last l few W years ways of identifying diagnosing and treating pupils with reading have been develop develop- developed ed WE KNOW THAT reading among students of average or above average ability may stern stem from physical cal dis diseases ases or defects lan Inn language guage handicaps emotional disturbances lack of an ade ade- ade adequate quate backgrounds of enee ence or lack of literary inter inter- interests ests in the home All this is in addition to a possible instructional lapse along llong the way It is not unusual to find n a student with reading defiel- defiel w who o has an adequate and occasionally exceptional knowledge of phonetic prin- prin principles ON THE OTHER hand it is extremely rare for a junior high pupil with a reading disability to be acquainted with the tho children literature and poetry which over the years have been associated with oral reading In the home or 01 to think of newspapers pers and magazines as an im- im important im part of home me life It is obvious that th the entire area of reading is for many students complicated and be be- be beset sot set with problems The pupil with a reading disability is caught in a vie vic bus cycle Because had unpleasant experiences in rending reading he avoids it if he can Because he avoids it ho he achieves minimal improve improve- improvement improvement ment at the same time the abilities of his friends in In- In Increase crease DR ALBERT J Harris an outstanding authority in the reading field says saS that The poor reader feels his inadequacy Inadequacy not only in reading les les- les lessons sons but also in all other phases es of school work in which reading is done One can accept a limited type of failure such as being unable to sing in tune or be be- be being ing unable to write very leg leg- legibly legibly without being hurt too deeply or having ones one's self self- estimate too badly impaired The stress which is placed on on reading as a criterion of general competence in school causes the child who reo regards gards himself as a poor reader to feel that he is an intellectual pauper Being a poor reader is far I worse than being an inaccurate ate speller or a clumsy gym gym- gymnast nast or an incompetent artist because the poor reader so often orten concludes that he must be generally stupid BY THE TIME a student with a reading disability rea rea- rea reaches ches the junior high school he heh h has s had six years in which his difficulties have become a ap apart p part rt of his personality He frequently has develop develop- developed developed ed patterns of behavior both bothin bothin in the reading skills and in his attitudes toward school inI I society and himself that are most undesirable The remedial reading class then is concerned not only with the mechanics of read read- reading ing but with such things as improved habits of study and increased pride in work well done It Is concerned also for the students student's concept of himself as asa asa a person and as a reader How the junior high student re- re regards re- re regards gards himself as he enters a remedial class and the chang chang- changes es that occur while he is in it whether they are dIrect out out- outcomes comes of the instruction or not are important EVIDENCE of increasing independence as he works in other classes as he expresses preferences and as he makes criticism are all useful signs of an improving self Image If the pupil with reading disabilities is to overcome them It is most important that he start his program of If recovery at the point where he feels secure even though this might be at the second or third grade level Jevel The junior high remedial pupils usually fall into rough rough- roughly ly 11 three groups those whose sight vocabulary is very limo lim- limited and who understands lit tie tle of methods of attacking new words those who have a aCair fair Cair vocabulary and ade- ade word attack skills but who do not understand what they read and those whose comprehension is at the upper elementary or secondary school level but who have dif dif- difficulty difficulty in word recognition because of carelessness and inaccuracy EACH OF THESE groups requires nn an emphasis in in in- in instruction different from the others but the final objective is the same for the all establishment of a skill which will enable them to learn and to carry out the routines of a aI I normal life and job and from which which they will achieve en en- en enjoyment The first of these three general groups must first learn to read They learn a sight vocabulary the lea les of phonetics and how to use them and the methods of analyzing words by their con structure They then follow the steps of the second those group who know the words but do donot donot not understand their theil meaning They They must m be taught that reading Is just written talk It is not merely a jumble of words bearing no relationship to each other IT IS AT TillS THIS stage that a meager background of ex ex- ex experience proves detrimental to the student for Cor while read read- reading ing is a process that must be learned it is also a process of relating symbols in this case words to the readers reader's fund of experience In achieving this relation ship he must interpret what the author has to say in the light of his own experience and then make the transition to the authors author's viewpoint The emphasis with the third those group who com com- comprehension is good but who have difficulty because of carelessness is in accuracy and study habits AT ALL TIMES and with all three groups the various and the rules of syllabication on and the theother theother other methods of structural analysis are emphasized for forthe forthe the ability to unlock new words independently is basic to good reading To qu quote te again Dr Harris Without the will to learn the child in need of help in reading rarely accomplishes very much The term reme dial teaching has tended to concentrate attention mainly on what the teacher does docs It is time that we talk more about remedial learn learn- learnIng learning Ing since the heart of the problem is not what the teach teach- teacher teacher er does but what the learner does The teachers teacher's main task is isto isto to arouse within the learner the motivation to do the nee necessary essary but not alwayS easy or interesting jobs that must be accomplished in becoming a competent reader and to guide the learning situation in such a way that the motivation tion is sustained RUTH STRANG and Dor Dorothy othy Bracken have in their book Read Read- Readers Making Better ers a section called A Word to the Wise Parent in which they say Parents need to build up a resistance to the plausible advocates of phon phon- phonics ics as the cure all of reading difficulty They need to be convinced that 1 1 There is no one cause of rending reading difficulty 2 Inability to identify words may not be the cause of their childs child's reading dif difficulty it may be only a symptom 3 Drill on phonics alone will not make their child an independent effective reader 4 There are other ways than phonics of identifying unfamiliar words and the good reader uses a variety of methods instead of giving up after tryIng a single method 5 Reading for meaning reo re- requires quires many more skills than merely identifying words wOlds 6 to sound round rounding in ing out words will make a achild achild child a slow reader 7 to sound sound- sounding ing out words takes the joy und and adventure out of read ing IN CONCLUSION I should like to quote again from the same authors To develop reading profi- profi proficiency children need a val var- variety of experiences They need to listen to stories of a higher interest level than they can at the time read for Through es-Through es Through listening to an adult read children will glim the delight that lies be- be between be tween the covers of books They will become more famil- famil familiar with the language patterns of books They will learn to listen and use ideas gained in this way The They gain many types of information and may de de- develop new interests In the discussion sion of books read they will practice effective speak speak- speaking I ing |
