The Reading Wars and How I Got Caught Up In It

Let me share something frustrating with you.  The “reading wars” have been going on for ages.  Phonics versus whole-language.  Best practices in reading instruction have swung back and forth between the two for many years.  When I learned to be a teacher, the thing that made the most sense to me was phonics.  You know that saying, “When you give a man a fish, he eats for a day.  When you teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime?”  Well, when you teach a student how to use phonics to sound out a word, you’re teaching them to fish, as it were.  If a student knows how to use phonics, they can figure out a new word.  If a student does not know how to use phonics, all they can do is make educated guesses with no way to confirm whether or not they are correct without asking someone who knows. 

During the ten years I worked for a local school district, we taught phonics but we also taught students whole-language type cueing strategies — what sounds right, what looks right, what makes sense, what’s in the pictures?  Those sorts of things.  If you’re reading about a farm and there’s a picture of a horse, then the word you’re stuck on might very well be “horse.”  Unless it’s “pony.”  You might say, “Well yes, but “horse” starts with an h and “pony” starts with a p and those letters make different sounds so you wouldn’t guess “horse” for a word that starts with p.”  You might if you’re a kid who’s been taught to look at pictures and say a word that makes sense contextually and sounds right grammatically.  Especially if you’re a kid who has not been taught phonics and therefore does not know what sounds h and p make.  OK, I acknowledge that’s pretty extreme, as most students are at least taught the sounds of the individual letters of the alphabet.  But kids who are taught to look at the picture and say a word that would make sense are not attending to the letters, because looking at pictures is usually easier.

I digress.  My point is, during the time I worked for the school district, I allowed myself to be talked into teaching these whole-language based cueing strategies in order to be a team player, even though my little voice was telling me that teaching phonics was the right thing to do.  So I did both.  I taught phonics as well as these cueing strategies and I convinced myself that I was giving my students the best of both worlds.  But do you know what I was actually doing?  I was doing my students a disservice.  The time I spent teaching them cueing strategies was time that would have been better spent working on more phonics which, as it turns out, is what good readers do.  And, as it turns out, those cueing strategies are what not-so-good readers rely on.  

Enter The Science of Reading

The Science of Reading, in a nutshell, tells us that good readers rely on phonics and sounding out words while struggling readers typically rely on whole-language based cueing systems.  Struggling readers are literally doing their best with educated guesses.  In other words, my little voice was telling me the right thing all along and I should have listened.  This is frustrating and makes me really angry.  Honestly?  Mostly at myself.  I always tell my family, “Listen to your little voice.”  I constantly have to remind myself to do the same.  I am an educated, adult person with degrees in psychology and education.  I have twenty years of teaching experience.  I know what works and what doesn’t work.  Phonics works and, if / when the reading pendulum swings back to whole-language, I won’t be talked out of it again.  

So, if you ask me to work on reading with your student, you can expect structured literacy with strong phonics based instruction that is aligned with The Science of Reading research.  Structured literacy is a way of teaching that focuses on systematic, explicit, and direct instruction building a strong foundational base of reading and writing skills including the five pillars of reading:  phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, and vocabulary.  It is very helpful for students with dyslexia and processing challenges.  Is English a wacky, demanding language to learn to read?  To some degree, yes.  But the vast majority of words do, in fact, follow consistent rules or patterns which I will teach to your student.  Plus, and this is important, your student can do hard things.  I’ll help.

Goals

All of that said, as a private reading tutor, my goals are your goals.  My job is to support you and your student and to work toward whatever end result for which you are hoping.  Some parents ask me to help their student reach grade level, some want help increasing their student's self-esteem and confidence, some want their student to become life long readers.  Whatever goals you and your student set, I will help you work towards.  

I also have goals for your student.  I want your student to enjoy reading.  I want to help remove any obstacles with which they may be struggling.  Some students need practice with phonemic awareness, some need support with decoding words and reading fluently, others need practice with sight words, some need to learn more comprehension skills, and others need to expand their vocabulary.  I will address whatever literacy needs your student has and my hope is that eventually they want to reach for a book when they are bored or curious.  At very least, I hope they won't feel frustrated when they need to reach for a book.

Testing and Assessments

Some parents want their children to practice for standardized testing.  Other parents don’t want any testing at all.  The purpose of standardized testing in schools is to determine overall student achievement providing comparisons across classrooms, schools, and states.  The results provide data to administrators that influence a variety of things including curriculum modifications, teacher evaluations, and funding.  Standardized testing may or may not be a good indicator of your child’s skills or abilities.  Test taking skills and stress, as well as cultural and socioeconomic factors, can negatively affect a student’s outcome.  As the debate continues on, I encourage parents to have their students participate in standardized testing but not to spend time preparing for it outside of school.

For students utilizing my tutoring services, there is obviously no standardized testing.  I do, however, assess most students at regular intervals in order to inform my instruction and monitor progress.  All of my assessments are informal in nature and generally cause little to no stress because I present them as simply another reading activity.  (If they do appear to be causing stress, I will find another way to determine your student’s skills.)  Additionally, I constantly adjust my teaching to address areas of need I may notice as I am working with your student

What My Reading Sessions Look Like 

No one reading program works for every reader.  Therefore, I employ a variety of different methods and strategies when teaching reading and writing skills to my students.  Games are an excellent way to reinforce concepts and they're fun!  I also have fun activities and tricks to help students who are challenged by sitting still while learning and practicing reading skills.  I alternate between decodable readers, professionally leveled books, and trade books (books you find at a bookstore).  I also alternate between providing a book I think will be helpful because of the topic or the specific skill practice it provides and letting students choose the book they want to read from a set of options.  Choice can be a powerful motivator.

For students who are still working on the basics, I provide books, stories, and articles that are at their "just right" reading level.  Sometimes I stretch that level a little higher so we can work on new skills and sometimes I go a little lower so your child can practice and solidify skills already learned.  There is value in alternating between harder and easier texts.  Not only does this help solidify and practice skills already learned while working on newer, more challenging skills, it helps build confidence and bolster self-esteem.

For students who have achieved the basics (generally a second grade reading level), I provide books on grade level.  There is research suggesting that even struggling readers improve skills more quickly when they have support reading on grade level rather than at “just right” levels that are below their grade level.

Building Rapport and A Love of Reading

One of the lovely things about being a private tutor is the rapport I build with each of my students.  I will get to know your student — their strengths and challenges, their likes and dislikes, how they enjoy spending their time.  I use that knowledge to provide reading material and instruction that works for your student.  I often spend way more time than I should choosing books that your student will enjoy rather than simply working my way through a prescribed list.  One of my jobs as a private reading tutor is to build confidence and bolster self-esteem as much as teaching reading skills and I can do that by getting to know each of my students.

I also want to foster a love of reading.  We may love books that are a “correct” reading level for us, but we can also love books that are way too easy or way too hard.  And the reasons we love those books can be varied.  For example, I enjoy adult fiction and it is generally a “correct” reading level for me.  But I also enjoy children’s books.  Some children’s books I love because they remind me of how it felt to have my own children sit in my lap and listen.  Some children’s books I love because they are hilarious and I enjoy reading them to my students and listening to them giggle.  Some children’s books I love because I’ve had them since I was a child.  My husband loves to pour over the maps in our atlas.  My kids have read and re-read every Calvin and Hobbes book we own until the bindings cracked and the pages fell out.  One of my students devoured every book about cheetahs I put in her hands regardless of whether or not she could read the words on her own.  You get the idea.  Therefore, I welcome my students to share their favorites with me — ANY book they enjoy for ANY reason.

Finally, I value partnering with parents on their children's educational journey.  As I stated before, my goals are your goals and it is my privilege and joy to help you and your student achieve those goals.  Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do a job I would do for free if I could afford it.  I am forever grateful that parents continue to share their children with me.