It is likely that no one knows the answer. But now, schools are emphasizing test scores and reading comprehension more and more because of 2001's No Child Left Behind Act passed by former President George W. Bush. As scores are being emphasized, true and intrinsic learning is being more and more forgotten. Because of state requirements, schools must meet certain criteria in testing, so local principals are forcing teachers to strain and drain their students to get good scores.
Although President Bush certainly intended well, the true joy of reading has been pushed aside in classrooms to prepare for reading comprehension tests. Where is the joy in that? Children are reading short essays to prepare for standardized tests like the MEAP and forgetting all about real literature.
What's the answer? Where's the balance between learning for intrinsic purposes and doing well on tests? No one can force kids to love reading - not parents and not teachers. And certainly not standardized tests.
I agree that the No Child Left Behind Legislation takes away from students' enjoyment of reading because students have less time to read books of their choosing and must read literature that will prepare them for standardized tests. The emphasis on standardized testing also takes away from other areas of education. Teachers must teach to not only a specific curriculum but also how to take a standardized test. Teachers do not have time to teach off topic at all and hardly have any leeway as to how long to spend on each topic. The emphasis on standardized testing is harming the students in more ways than one.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this as well. It seems as if the state testing is stressed as the priority in the classroom. Because it is the priority many teachers are pressured to present the information in a dull, fast paced way to ensure that they get through it all. Unfortunately reading has taken the biggest hot on this because it is viewed as a lesser importance. Students are often forced to read books they do not enjoy or want to read for leisure. This takes away from their will to read because the students begin to see it as a burden and something they don't want to do.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about this exact same thing as I read Ch. 14 of Joy of Children's Lit about independent reading. If we force kids to do independent reading as a part of the curriculum, is it really "independent?" Sure, they're reading alone, but they're not independently choosing to do so--they're being made to do so. Like you said, I think this takes a lot of the "joy" out of reading (ironic, considering the title of our textbook!).
ReplyDeleteI think the balance is understanding that teaching to the test and taking the interest and fun out of learning doesn't always produce better test scores. In fact, I think teachers who inspire their kids to incorporate learning into multiple aspects of their lives and create interested, engaged, critical-thinking students will be more successful on those tests in the end.