Personal Conclusions from this Inquiry
When I began this project, I had already formed ideas in my mind about how I would implement sustained silent reading in my own classroom. I believed that students should read books - not magazines or newspapers - as the purpose of SSR, in my mind, was to instil a love for reading. However, I have changed my position on this; I don't think that reading refers only to novels. As Dr. Carl Leggo said to me about his own experience with sustained silent reading, "I invited students to read magazines, newspapers, comic books, etc. I would be happy if students read the cereal box!"
In a conversation with a fellow teacher candidate, with specialities in English and EAL, she argued that newspapers are an excellent reading resource for English Language Learners. They are written at a particular level of readability and they offer insight into the culture of the community. This is a valid and convincing argument for allowing newspapers in the classroom for sustained silent reading.
I also think that these alternate reading materials can provoke conversations between teacher and student or between students, in which they share newfound interests and recommend books that relate to those topics. Ultimately, SSR is meant to show students that reading can be enjoyable and I now believe that the form of reading does not affect a student's success in sustained silent reading.
This inquiry ultimately confirmed my belief that sustained silent reading programs do have value. I feel better equipped to implement SSR in my own classroom and will hopefully promote reading as an enjoyable activity, helping my students become life-long readers. In the future, determining which of the 8 factors seem to have the most effect on the my personal success with SSR in the classroom would be an interesting investigation.
In a conversation with a fellow teacher candidate, with specialities in English and EAL, she argued that newspapers are an excellent reading resource for English Language Learners. They are written at a particular level of readability and they offer insight into the culture of the community. This is a valid and convincing argument for allowing newspapers in the classroom for sustained silent reading.
I also think that these alternate reading materials can provoke conversations between teacher and student or between students, in which they share newfound interests and recommend books that relate to those topics. Ultimately, SSR is meant to show students that reading can be enjoyable and I now believe that the form of reading does not affect a student's success in sustained silent reading.
This inquiry ultimately confirmed my belief that sustained silent reading programs do have value. I feel better equipped to implement SSR in my own classroom and will hopefully promote reading as an enjoyable activity, helping my students become life-long readers. In the future, determining which of the 8 factors seem to have the most effect on the my personal success with SSR in the classroom would be an interesting investigation.