1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,320 This is the reading instruction show. 2 00:00:02,320 --> 00:00:04,800 I'm your host is always Dr. Andy Johnson. 3 00:00:04,800 --> 00:00:14,560 The topic of today's podcast is this two causes of ineffective reading instruction. 4 00:00:14,560 --> 00:00:17,320 Now let's define our terms. 5 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:22,000 Ineffective reading instruction is instruction in which children a. 6 00:00:22,000 --> 00:00:26,520 Do not move forward in their ability to create meaning with print. 7 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:35,480 B. Learn to dislike reading and C. Do not engage in voluntary reading. 8 00:00:35,480 --> 00:00:42,040 Now nobody wants ineffective reading instruction even though it seems like some people like 9 00:00:42,040 --> 00:00:47,640 Emily Hanford and Louisa Mote's even though it seems like they get up every day and say 10 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:54,240 hmm how can we promote ineffective reading instruction. 11 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:59,760 But ineffective reading instruction seems to be rampant and we're going to look at 12 00:00:59,760 --> 00:01:04,160 just two causes of ineffective reading instruction. 13 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:09,120 Cause number one it's called the myth of standardization. 14 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:16,160 It is erroneously assumed that students are standardized products and that a standardized 15 00:01:16,160 --> 00:01:24,160 one size fits all program can be purchased and implemented with fidelity with great success. 16 00:01:24,160 --> 00:01:30,560 All we have to do is buy the right program and this is based on the crazy wacky nutty 17 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:38,480 idea that all struggling readers are the same and it's based on this inaccurate assumption 18 00:01:38,480 --> 00:01:45,800 that a struggling reader in black water Arizona needs the exact same program implemented in 19 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:53,160 exactly the same way as a struggling reader in a dynamic in a soda or new castle Australia 20 00:01:53,160 --> 00:01:59,400 or Mumbai India pardon me and Karachi Pakistan. 21 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:08,000 So schools buy expensive overly complex reading programs that don't work and then teachers 22 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:15,360 must struggle to make the child to fit the program instead of making the program fit 23 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:17,760 the child. 24 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:25,120 And when the expensive reading program doesn't work as is inevitably the case what do you 25 00:02:25,120 --> 00:02:27,160 think happens next. 26 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:33,360 Well, they force the child to do more of what isn't working so it won't work even more 27 00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:39,240 or they blame the teacher or they blame the parents or they look for another program to 28 00:02:39,240 --> 00:02:46,320 buy and groups like the science of reading these advocates are pressuring school districts 29 00:02:46,320 --> 00:02:54,120 to buy these very expensive one size fits all programs that have been approved by science 30 00:02:54,120 --> 00:03:02,000 of reading experts who in reality seem to know nothing about reading and even less about 31 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:04,560 reading science. 32 00:03:04,560 --> 00:03:11,280 Now wouldn't life be grand if good reading instruction was simply a matter of buying 33 00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:19,600 the right overly expensive reading program and implementing it with fidelity in our teacher 34 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:26,200 preparation programs we could strap all the child development classes and ed psychology 35 00:03:26,200 --> 00:03:32,600 classes and get rid of all the teaching methods courses think how much money we would save. 36 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:39,960 We could instead have only one or two program implemented courses where students would learn 37 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:47,520 to read and follow the directions with fidelity and the title of my next book would be by 38 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:51,600 the right overly expensive program. 39 00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:58,280 But children are not standardized products and what works with one person or group does 40 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:04,520 not always work with another and by the way reading programs don't teach children to 41 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:08,720 read there's not a program in the world teachers do. 42 00:04:08,720 --> 00:04:16,240 We must invest in teachers which means professional legitimate professional teacher professional 43 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:17,800 development. 44 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:24,400 The second cause of ineffective reading instruction is a lack of understanding related to the reading 45 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:33,400 process more specifically inaccurate information about how the brain creates meaning with print. 46 00:04:33,400 --> 00:04:40,320 So the idea is get in the way of new understandings and understandings also get in the way of new 47 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:42,040 understandings. 48 00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:51,080 Now let me explain the lack of success with struggling readers is connected with correlated 49 00:04:51,080 --> 00:04:58,320 with the simplistic understanding of reading that's prevalent within the radio documentary 50 00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:06,560 community that's prevalent outside the literacy experts community. 51 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:12,560 Based on the phonological processing model here reading is thought to be just sounding 52 00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:19,600 out words instruction based on this model consists of sounding out word instruction with the 53 00:05:19,600 --> 00:05:22,680 goal of creating good sound or outers. 54 00:05:22,680 --> 00:05:29,000 However, there's very little transfer of the sound or outer skills to authentic reading 55 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:36,520 situations and there's no significant improvement in reading comprehension. 56 00:05:36,520 --> 00:05:42,960 That's the phonological processing model that reading is simply sounding out words. 57 00:05:42,960 --> 00:05:49,280 Now the neurocognitive model that's in contrast this provides a more complete understanding 58 00:05:49,280 --> 00:05:55,440 of reading based on the latest research and cognitive science neuroscience eye movement 59 00:05:55,440 --> 00:06:03,880 and miscue analysis here reading is understood to be creating meaning with print instruction 60 00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:10,600 based on this model consists of multiple types of activities and experiences that are used 61 00:06:10,600 --> 00:06:18,840 to develop the cognitive processes necessary for students to create meaning with print. 62 00:06:18,840 --> 00:06:24,440 Reading is not sounding out words it's creating meaning with print. 63 00:06:24,440 --> 00:06:29,320 Now the neurocognitive model of reading is based on two theories the cognitive constructive 64 00:06:29,320 --> 00:06:34,440 learning theory and the interactive theory of reading. 65 00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:39,960 Now according to the interactive theory of reading reading is creating meaning with print 66 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:47,000 but during the active reading what's in the head interacts with what's on the page to 67 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:52,560 create meaning hence the name interactive theory. 68 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:58,320 And again reading is not simply sounding out words it's creating meaning with print we 69 00:06:58,320 --> 00:07:03,280 use what's in our head to make sense of what's on the page that's why when our head is full 70 00:07:03,280 --> 00:07:09,040 of stuff we can read more successfully and comprehend more about that stuff. 71 00:07:09,040 --> 00:07:13,560 I know a lot about reading instruction when I read books about reading instruction that 72 00:07:13,560 --> 00:07:19,200 interacts I read quickly I comprehend a lot when I read about financial planning there's 73 00:07:19,200 --> 00:07:25,680 nothing in the head I read slowly I comprehend little what's in the head interacts with 74 00:07:25,680 --> 00:07:28,000 what's on the page. 75 00:07:28,000 --> 00:07:33,040 Now let's take a look at the three queuing systems and I know Emily Hanford and Louisa 76 00:07:33,040 --> 00:07:39,400 Mott's and all you science of reading monkeys your little flags are going up but listen carefully 77 00:07:39,400 --> 00:07:45,520 as we are reading we use the knowledge stored in our cortex to constantly reach out and 78 00:07:45,520 --> 00:07:50,880 micro predict the words in the sentences as we're reading I movement research, miscue 79 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:59,480 analysis others show that this is called recognizing words different from identifying listen carefully 80 00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:06,360 these micro predictions enable our brain to work more efficiently our brain uses three 81 00:08:06,360 --> 00:08:13,280 queuing systems to make these micro predictions to recognize words during the act of reading 82 00:08:13,280 --> 00:08:19,040 these queuing systems are the semantic the syntactic and the graph of phonetic they're 83 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:25,240 called queuing systems because they cue the brain as to what the next word might possibly 84 00:08:25,240 --> 00:08:34,800 be they're called systems because they interconnect and interact with these other systems to work 85 00:08:34,800 --> 00:08:41,240 in conjunction they don't work separately they work together and I can hear the squeal 86 00:08:41,240 --> 00:08:47,160 of the phonics penguins right now they're saying teaching children to use queuing systems 87 00:08:47,160 --> 00:08:53,680 doesn't work doesn't work he's ruining America what about the children who protect the children 88 00:08:53,680 --> 00:08:59,160 mothers for liberty mothers for liberty to these penguins I would say take the fish out 89 00:08:59,160 --> 00:09:09,840 of your ears and listen we don't teach queuing systems that's not what it is if you're going 90 00:09:09,840 --> 00:09:17,360 to be against something for God's sakes at least understand what that something is to 91 00:09:17,360 --> 00:09:23,580 understand the three queuing systems you must first understand the difference between recognizing 92 00:09:23,580 --> 00:09:32,800 words and identifying words recognizing words is seen a word on the page and instantly knowing 93 00:09:32,800 --> 00:09:40,480 what that word is however when we encounter words on the page that are still in our lexicon 94 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:46,240 that's the dictionary in our head if they're in our lexicon we don't recognize them we 95 00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:55,240 must identify them identifying words as when you consciously employ some strategy to figure 96 00:09:55,240 --> 00:10:02,840 out what that word is hmm I don't recognize it I will use this strategy there are four 97 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:11,080 word identification strategies that we consciously employ morphemic analysis morpheme is the 98 00:10:11,080 --> 00:10:17,200 smallest unit of meaning looking at parts of the word we recognize analogy or large 99 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:23,720 unit phonics looking for letter patterns context clues or semantics and phonics yes 100 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:31,600 four and each of these word identification strategies should be taught using very direct 101 00:10:31,600 --> 00:10:40,280 and very explicit instruction we teach word identification strategies not just one is the 102 00:10:40,280 --> 00:10:48,520 science of reading people would have it but all four we don't teach queuing systems you 103 00:10:48,520 --> 00:10:56,040 include activities to develop them so that students are able to recognize words automatically 104 00:10:56,040 --> 00:11:04,440 or almost automatically using a minimum of cognitive space in short term memory the three 105 00:11:04,440 --> 00:11:11,320 queuing systems semantic this is the most efficient of the three in terms of space and 106 00:11:11,320 --> 00:11:18,720 speed required in our working memory semantics refers to meaning as you read you use context 107 00:11:18,720 --> 00:11:25,480 and background knowledge to recognize words and figure out what the next word might be 108 00:11:25,480 --> 00:11:31,320 the syntactic queuing system syntax has to do with grammar and the structure of the language 109 00:11:31,320 --> 00:11:38,560 as your brain reads you also use your knowledge of grammar set and structure word order tense 110 00:11:38,560 --> 00:11:45,880 plurality prefixes suffixes nouns and verbs and function words to recognize words this 111 00:11:45,880 --> 00:11:51,080 is the second most efficient queuing system but it works in conjunction with the other 112 00:11:51,080 --> 00:11:59,080 two the third one the phonetic or phonologic queuing systems uses letter sounds to predict 113 00:11:59,080 --> 00:12:05,040 what the next word might be we use minimal letter clues and of the three queuing systems 114 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:12,560 this is this one is least efficient in terms of cognitive space why because it focuses 115 00:12:12,560 --> 00:12:17,320 on individual letters and letter patterns instead of words and ideas doesn't mean we 116 00:12:17,320 --> 00:12:26,360 don't teach it no but know this working memory has a very limited capacity it can hold about 117 00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:32,480 seven bits of information seven plus or minus two for about 15 seconds before it begins 118 00:12:32,480 --> 00:12:41,160 to fade we can hold just a few letters or we could hold a few words or a few ideas and 119 00:12:41,160 --> 00:12:47,600 since ideas contain far more information than individual letters it's more efficient 120 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:56,040 to focus on ideas or meaning rather than individual letters this has been the reading instruction 121 00:12:56,040 --> 00:13:04,840 show I am your host as always Dr. Andy Johnson we have been talking about two causes of ineffective 122 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:09,160 reading instruction and I'll just share I have three more the third cause and I won't 123 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:18,760 go into it but its teachers have been disempowered the fourth cause classrooms have become overcrowded 124 00:13:18,760 --> 00:13:26,760 and underfunded and the fifth cause of ineffective reading instruction is testing madness. 125 00:13:26,760 --> 00:13:51,600 All right we'll talk about these other three in the next podcast.