My Child Can Read a Level
From the desk of Carol C…
My child is reading above grade level.
My child is reading at level J.
My child is struggling with reading.
How could all of these statements be said about the same child? Do they not contradict each other? The answers depend on the definition of the word “reading” you are using. Well, that’s confusing right there, so let’s take a closer look at what the word “reading” should mean.
Often reading is thought of as two separate skills. One skill deals with decoding words…being able to recognize and pronounce words in a text. The other is comprehending or understanding what you read.
Try this: “I am working on the lineshape function in Doppler-free spectroscopy at low pressures, and my next seminar talk will be about magnetic monopoles in Yang-Mills theories.” (Larry Weaver, Ph.D.)
Chances are you were able to read all of the words in the highlighted sentence. Although “spectroscopy” may have thrown you at first, close inspection of it reveals it can be decoded without too much effort. I’m able to read this sentence without missing any words. So, am I ready to sit in Dr. Weaver’s college physics lecture? In one word…NO!
Looking back at the quote ask yourself how much of it you could explain to someone else. I can understand some of it, but as for explaining it to someone else, I couldn’t do it. For me to fully comprehend this sentence I would have to have lots of support from someone who understands the vocabulary, a physics dictionary, or a physics text on the subject. That’s the least I would need. Lineshape function? Doppler-free spectroscopy? Monopoles? Yang-Mills theories?
I could stand up, read or recite the sentence, and convince any audience this is the subject of my next lecture. I could that is until someone asked me one question about the topic or one of the words I listed above. I would be caught! It would be evident I hadn’t a clue about what I had just read.
This dilemma illustrates the often overlooked reading skill of comprehension. If my reading level in college level physics was being assessed on what words I could read, I could read on the same level as the professor. But I can’t. I can call the words, but reading level means that point where you understand what you read. I don’t understand what the sentence means well enough to explain it to someone else. I don’t have enough background knowledge to put together meaning from those words.
Now let’s use a first grader, Hal, as an example. Hal’s parents report he is reading Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White. They listen to him read from this novel each night, and Hal only misses one to two words per page. This is a good rule of thumb for judging the difficulty of text, but this is just the first step. The next is to see how much Hal, or any other reader, can explain what he has read. Does he understand why Fern’s family wants to kill the pig? Why they don’t want Fern to name him? What Charlotte is really trying to help Wilbur accept? If the answers are yes, then Hal is able to READ Charlotte’s Web successfully. If, however, he cannot explain what he has read then he is able to word call but NOT read the book.
Hal is able to read (pronounce) difficult words. This is an important and much needed skill when reading. However, he cannot comprehend at the same high level he can pronounce the words. Therefore, Hal is not reading Charlotte’s Web. He’s calling the words in it and may have some understanding of what he has read, but it is limited.
What should Hal’s parents do in this case? One idea would be to read the book with him and discuss the story as it progresses. Hal may need a little or a lot of explanation to truly understand the story. Another idea would be to help Hal choose a book he is able to understand on his own with about 95% accuracy. Part of this process is simply “choose and try” the text.
Just make sure you know what definition of reading you are using!