ERIC Number: ED051230
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1970-Nov
Pages: 11
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Reading Skills and the High School English Program.
Ross, Ramon Royal
It is questioned whether high school students need to be taught the reading skills that have been identified to be taught in high school. Students who have acquired the basic skills forge ahead on their own. If they don't know the basic skills, there's no guarantee that they'll be learned if taught. One study shows college students to be antagonistic toward the work they were doing, and this resulted in little or no skill acquirement. Yet, evidence shows that all high school students don't read with proficiency. Students should acquire reading skills through self-paced instruction, working only with those skills lacking. Packaged learning materials are useful for this purpose. A student is pretested until skills needed are identified. He then selects from suggested materials and activities in a learning package those which fit his unique style of learning. Behavioral objectives guide him as he learns. When he has achieved all the objectives in the package, he may proceed to the next skill. Reading skills necessary for high school students include: decoding, interpreting, and applying. For best possible results, teachers should teach indirectly. Students report liking school better when the teacher accepts student responses, asks questions, and is encouraging. In short, a curriculum change is needed in high school reading programs. (CK)
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Note: Speech given at the Annual Convention of the National Council of Teachers of English (60th, Atlanta, November 1970)