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The Power of Reading in the Second Language

Cambridge University PressKari MillerMay 2011

There once was an English teacher,With one distinguishing feature.Whether young or old,All her students were told,They were good, and all did believe her!

Do you know what today is?

May 12th is (unofficial)Limerick Day!

Edward Lear

• Born May 12, 1812• Writer most well known for his nonsensical

poems and limericks• Helped popularize the limerick form

Fill in the blanks…

There was a strange man from PeruWho had the strange urge to “moo”.He pulled out his ___________,In a fit of despair,And created a crazy hair- ________.

Fill in the blanks…

There was a strange man from PeruWho had the strange urge to “moo”.He pulled out his ____ hair ____,In a fit of despair,And created a crazy hair- ___ do __.

In pairs, discuss features of this form.

Limericks: Features

• How many lines are in a limerick?• What is the standard rhythm?• What does the first line usually do?• Which lines rhyme?

Clap out the rhythm

There was a strange man from PeruWho had the strange urge to “moo”.He pulled out his hair,In a fit of despair,And created a crazy hair- do.

“English is a time-stressed language.”What does this mean?

Class activity using limerickswell I knittin’ sittin’ sigh Great Britain

There once was a man from ______________,

Who interrupted two girls at their ______________.

Said he with a ______________,

“That park bench, ______________,

Just painted it right where you’re ______________!”

Class activity using limerickswell I knittin’ sittin’ sigh Great Britain

There once was a man from Great Britain,

Who interrupted two girls at their knittin’.

Said he with a sigh,

“That park bench, well I,

Just painted it right where you’re sittin’!”

Variation

• Jumble the lines and students put them in the correct order.

man / was / an / in a / boat, / old / There afloat!‘ / said, / Who / afloat, / I'm / 'I'm they / you / ain't!‘ / said, / When /'No! was / He / to / ready / faint,into the / And / himself / moat! / threw / then

Variation

• There was an old man in a boat,Who said, 'I'm afloat, I'm afloat!'When they said, 'No! you ain't!'He was ready to faint,And then he threw himself into the moat!

On to you…

• There once was an old man from Ham…

Think of words that rhyme with “ham”:Spam, scam, ram, lamb, am, clam, cram, tram, Sam,

bam, gram, jam, ma’am, Pam, wham, swam, slam…

Can working with limericks in class be considered a reading activity?

Workshop Objectives• Learn about the strong links between SLA

(second language acquisition) and reading in L2.• Discuss solutions to problems that often occur in

the reading classroom.• Encourage the use of SSR (sustained silent

reading) in the English language classroom.• Find ways to get students interested in reading in

L2.• Find alternative ways to evaluate reading in the

classroom that won’t discourage students from reading.

Which areas / skills do students who read improve?

• Grammar (better control over syntax, exposure)• Vocabulary (collocations, idioms, expressions)• Writing (punctuation, spelling)• Speaking (expressions, fluency)• Reading skills (critical thinking, empathy)• Gain confidence• Learn about customs and cultures

Krashen and some background information

• Studies show that 93% of students who read on their own in L1 do better in class than those who are taught reading. Studies in L2 seem to show similar trends.

• Poverty is the biggest indicator of poor reading skills – lack of access to books.

• Reading for pleasure is the fastest (and easiest) way for students to develop their language skills. Research shows that it is at least as, if not more than, effective as other forms of instruction!

“When [second language learners] read for pleasure they can continue to improve in their second language without classes, without teachers, without study and even without people to converse with.” Krashen, The Power of Reading, p. 84

The virtuous cycle of reading

Successful reading makes successful readers

The more students read the better they get at it.

The better students get at reading, the more they read.

PASSES Project (Colin Davis, Singapore)

• 40 of the weakest secondary schools in the country incorporated 20 minutes of silent reading per day, plus one lesson a week for more reading and talking about books.

• After five years (1985-1990), these schools were re-evaluated and now had results above the national average!

“Pupils developed a wider active and passive vocabulary. They used more varied sentence structure, and were better at spotting and correcting grammatical mistakes in their writing and speaking. They showed overall improvement in writing skills and increased confidence and fluency in speaking.” (Davis 1995, p. 330)

Summary of research

• Extensive reading leads to improved SLA (second language acquisition)

• There is a proven link between reading and “noticing” and therefore students’ increased ability to improve their structure.

• There is a proven link to reading and vocabulary acquisition.

• There is a proven link that reading leads to improved skills, across the board!

By reading in L2, students improve in ALL academic

areas!!!!!

Do you like to read? Why or why not?

When do you read?How often do you read? For how long

do you read? What do you read?

Forced reading can cause…

• A feeling of failure• Boredom• A hatred of books and reading in general• Reading to seem like a chore• Stress over the “exam”• Students to feel coerced into something,

which generally results in a negative attitude towards it

Common misconceptions students (and teachers!) have about reading:

• Reading is serious business. Only “literature” is worth the time, and literature is difficult.

• Reading is a performance for the teacher.• Students aren’t smart or trustworthy enough to choose their

own texts.• Reading is followed by a test, and writing mostly serves to

test reading.• Reading involves drawing lines, filling in blanks, and circling.• Readers should break whole texts down into separate pieces

for analysis.• Reading is a solitary activity.

Reading for Pleasure (Extensive Reading)

• SSR / DEAR• Create an inviting environment.• Be a role model.• Always include pre-reading discussion.• Let students choose the book / level.• Help students create a class “library”.

“Only reading improves reading.”

How can we get students to read?

1. Focus on genre

• Brainstorm all the genres you can think of.• Discuss your favorite three.• Encourage students to choose books from

these three genres. If students aren’t sure which genre they might be interested in, have them use the book covers and backs to decide.

a) A Love for Lifeb) How I Met Myselfc) Double Crossd) Just Good

Friends

2. Raise interest and intrigue!

• Look at the cover and the blurb and write three Qs you want answered by reading the book.

Sam is like any other teenage girl except that she was born deaf. She meets Jim, falls in love and feels happier than ever before. Then one day Jim's jealous ex-girlfriend reveals a secret. Sam is left wondering if she really knows Jim at all. For their love to grow Jim must show her that their worlds are not too different.

Match the blurb to the book.

Chapter One: Don’t take mybaby!

What do you think the title of the book is?

a)Book Boyb)Dirty Moneyc)Let me out!

Use the chapter headings

• We love this house • I can leave now • We’re waiting for you• This is my house • Don’t take my baby!• Sammy is my baby • Fire! • Something’s happening!

Put the chapters in order for the book “The Girl at the Window”.

Use the chapter headings

• Don’t take my baby! • We love this house • This is my house • Something’s happening! • Sammy is my baby • Fire! • I can leave now • We’re waiting for you

Put the chapters in order for the book “The Girl at the Window”.

3. No dictionaries and no reading aloud!

• Dictionaries are used for intensive, not extensive, reading.

• Dictionary use during reading interrupts the flow and takes away from the reading for pleasure aspect.

• Most students do not enjoy reading aloud.• Poor readers often suffer the most when reading

aloud, and begin to hate reading in general.• No one listens to the reader when reading aloud.

(Everyone is preparing for their bit!)

4. Integrate the skills

• Spoken book / role plays• Sell your book!• Write a book review• Illustrate the story• Chain story (before reading)

– It’s 6:30 in the morning. Inspector Frank Williams of the Oxford police is in bed. He hears his phone and answers it.

5. Share experiences• Opinion slips at the back of the book

– Liked it or not– Easy or hard– Would read it again

• Book awards (Best thriller, Most exciting, Most interesting character, etc)

• Shared book experiences - Teacher reads aloud (Yes! Even to adults!)

• Informal discussions with prompts on the board– My book was about…– I really (dis)liked it because…– My favorite character was…

Comment cards at back of bookRating Your Comment and Your Name

5 I’m afraid earthquake happens to usSusy

5 Great! Gabriel is nice. He is cool.Jaime

4 “Who is really taking care of me?” I think after reading this book.Yolanda

3 I had a chance to think what’s the most important thing in my life.Hector

Cambridge Readers

Lots of teacher resources!• Lesson plans and teacher’s guides• Accompanying worksheets• CDs / audiobooks• Graded to level of student (placement test on

web site)• Certificate of accomplishment (on web site)

How should we evaluate students?

Case study in Japan

• Case – 18-19 year old English majors in Osaka, Japan, required to read (extensively) 2000 pages in two semesters.• Group 1 – wrote a short summary in Japanese • Group 2 – wrote a summary in English• Group 3 – wrote a summary in English, with feedback from

a teacher, then rewrote the summary.• Giving feedback about what was read made no

significant improvement in student’s English – group 1 had just as much improvement as group 3. Group 2 showed the least improvement over any of the groups.

Case study in Japan

• The research showed that reading itself (and not writing about the reading) was what made the improvements!

Evaluation

• Ask students how they would like to be evaluated.

• No long summaries• No comprehension questions• Students keep a reading diary (how long they

read, what they read – 1 sentence)• Book promotion team (posters, adverts,

presentation)

Common complaints

• “Reading is boring!”• “Reading is a waste of time.”• “Reading in English is too hard.”

Reflection

• Name two things you would like to change about the way you’ve been approaching reading in class.

Thank you! kari.miller@yahoo.com

BibliographyAnderson, Neil. Exploring Second Language Reading: Issues and

Strategies. Heinle & Heinle, 1999.Correia, Rosane. “Encouraging Critical Reading in the EFL Classroom.”

English Teaching Forum, Vol. 44, No. 1. 2006.Hinkel, Eli. “Current Perspectives on Teaching the Four Skills.” TESOL

Quarterly, Vol. 40, No. 1, March 2006.Prowse, Philip. “What is the secret of extensive reading?”

www.cambridge.org. Downloaded May 9, 2011.Villanueva de Debat, Elba. “Applying Current Approaches to the

Teaching of Reading.” English Teaching Forum, Vol. 44, No. 1, 2006.http://www.developingteachers.com/tips/currenttip.htm. Downloaded May 9,2011.

• http://caiutn.wordpress.com

• www.utn.edu.ec • Emails: eventscai@utn.edu.ec • racongo@utn.edu.ec • jgburgos@utn.edu.ec

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