Do you agree with Marilyn Adams (1990, p. 108) who argued that rather than relying on context, “Skillful readers of English thoroughly process the individual letters of words in their texts?” Why or why not?
I do not agree with this statement because I think there are a lot of factors that go in to reading proficiently. I think that eye-fixation and context are what make up the two major factors in our reading. I think that our eyes see every word on the page but we don't process every letter of every word. I find myself when I'm reading not skipping words but predicting the word before my eyes see it based on what the sentences is reading prior. Context to me is what makes the most influence on how well I read. If we read letter by letter we would make mistakes. As it was said throughout all of chapter five in our textbook, many readers don't even know the phonics rules and spellers who don't use phonics did better than computers that were programmed with phonics rules. There are so many exceptions and silent letters in the English Language that it would be impossible to read letter-by-letter. I found this quote on page 109, "Furthermore-an observation from everyday life-good readers do not read word-for-word or even line-by-line when they choose to read more rapidly than that, as many good readers do, especially when reading for their own pleasure and their own purposes-even when their purpose is to gain information." I find myself reading more rapidly and losing less focus on words when I'm reading my own personal interest books. I wouldn't call it skimming because I am fully comprehending what I am reading. I just think that my eyes move faster across the page and predict what is going to come next from the context because it is something I am interested in. I am able to get through pleasure books way faster than I am through textbooks or required reading. As we read in previous chapters, good readers make miscues as well because they aren't focusing as much on the word-by-word of the text. I think this reigns true through this chapter as well. You would assume that good readers are processing the individual letters of words in their text but I don't agree with this statement from Adams.
Lisa,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree about the importance of context. As a high school teacher, most of my students--even the ones who have more difficulties with reading--read on a middle school level. However, they still face challenges with our texts because they don't have (or don't know how to access) the prior knowledge that would help them establish a stronger context for the text. You also mention a good point about engagement: The more students are engaged in the text, the more meaning and connections they will pull from it. This is definitely evidence that we as teachers need to do our best to find texts that our kids can learn from but also appreciate and get excited about.
I agree there are many factors that go in to reading proficiently. Adams’ quote alone doesn’t support this. You made an interesting point about reading more fluently and losing less focus when reading something of personal interest. I guess most people do focus better, read more fluently, and have greater comprehension when reading about something they enjoy. I know when I’m reading about something unfamiliar or something I need to remember or fully understand I tend to read slower and more carefully in an attempt to really let the information sink in. Great points!
ReplyDeleteLisa,
ReplyDeleteI liked how you mentioned your ability to almost predict the next words that are coming, sometimes causing you to perhaps skip or ignore words. I think this realization explains why context is so valuable to a reader in enhancing their ability. If readers really did focus on every single word, they would not be able to make predictions or different understandings about a text. When a proficient reader is reading a text, especially a familiar text, their ability to read quickly while still engaging with the text but perhaps not focusing on every word makes it still okay because they have understood the meaning and learned from what they are reading. Lastly, I too agree with you that Adams statement is incorrect.
Lisa,
ReplyDeleteI also disagreed with Adams' statement. Many different components go into reading efficiently. Context is very important. Like you mentioned, often times when you read you predict what is going to happen before your eyes have read it because you are drawing from the context clues. I also like that you mentioned that there are many exceptions and silent letters in the English language. It would be impossible to read letter-by-letter with all of these exceptions. Being able to make predictions while you read is another key to reading in my opinion. Making predictions is using your previous knowledge and context clues to draw new conclusions and proficient readers are able to do so.