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Berg, Paul C., Ed.; George, John E., Ed.Junior College Reading Programs. Highlights of the1967 Pre-Convention Institutes.International Reading Association, Newark, Del.6838p.International Reading Association, 6 Tyre Avenue,Newark, Del. 19711 ($1.75 non-member, $1.50member)

EDRS PRICE MF-50.65 HC -$3.29DESCRIPTORS *Critical Reading; Evaluation; *Junior Colleges;

Reading Diagnosis; Reading Materials; *ReadingPrograms; Reading Skills; *Teacher Qualifications

ABSTRACT

Important considerations in planning a junior collegereading program are presented. The need for a flexible readingprogram to meet the varied reading abilities of junior collegestudents is emphasized, and the selection of an experienced,well-prepared reading instructor is seen as being vital to a soundprogram. Extensive study in the psychology of reading, diagnosis andremediation, counseling, testing and evaluation; practical experienceteaching reading; and knowledge of reading research are listed asbasic requirements for a junior college reading instructor. Anabundance of materials designed to meet individual. needs is also abadic necessity..Critical.reading and teaching strategies areoutlined and discussed. Flexible reading skills, vocabularyimprovement, and directed reading lessons are seen as contributing toreading comprehension. References are included. (This documentpreviously announced as ED 027 160.) (RT)

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,EDUCATION & WELFAREOFFICE OF EDUt...:TIDN

THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRO.DUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROMC:1 THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIG.0 HIGHLIGHTS MATING IT POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS STATED DO NOT NECESSARILYC) REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EDU

OF THE CATION POSITION OR POLICY

t--c, 1967 PRE-CONVENTION INSTITUTEStmw

Paul C. Bergand

John E. GeorgeEditors

JUNIOR COLLEGE READING PROGRAMS

Horst G. TaschowChairman of the Institute

INTERNATIONAL READING ASSOCIATION

Newark, Delaware

INTERNATIONAL READING ASSOCIATION

OFFICERS

1967-1968

President: H. ALAN ROBINSON, Hofstra University, Old Westbury, New YorkPresident-elect: LEO FAY, Indiana University, Bloomington, IndianaPast President: MILDRED A. DAwsoN, Sacramento State College, California

Executive Secretary-Treasurer: RALPH C. STAIGER, University of Delaware,Newark, Delaware

Assistant Executive Secretary: RONALD W. MITCHELL, International ReadingAssociation, Newark, Delaware

DIRECTORSTerm expi-ing June 1968

Althea Beery, Cincinnati Public Schools, Cincinnati, OhioBrother Leonard Courtney, FSC, The Christian Brothers, St. Paul, MinnesotaGrace McClellan, Child Guidance Clinic of Greater Winnipeg, Manitoba

Term expiring June 1969

Margaret J. Early, Syracuse University, Syracuse, Nev YorkTheodore Harris, Washington State University, Pullman, WashingtonEve Malmquist, National School for Educational Research, Linkoping,

Sweden

Term expiring June 1970

Millard H. Black, Los Angeles City School Districts, CaliforniaAmelia Melnik, University of Arizona, Tucson, ArizonaVirginia D. Yates, Prairie District Schools, Prairie Village, Kansas

Publications Coordinator: Faye R. Branca, International Reading Association,Newark, Delaware

PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS COPRIGHTED MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTEBYInternational

Copyright 1968 by theReading Association

International Reading Association, Inc. TO ERIC AND ORGANIZATIONS OPERATINUNDER AGREEMENTS WITH THE US OFF!!OF EDUCATION FURTHER REPRDDUCTICOUTSIDE THE ERIC SYSTEM REQUIRES PEMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNER

FOREWORD

The Twelfth Annual Convention of the InternationalReading Association met in Seattle, Washington, May 2-6,1967. The first two days were devoted to a series ofinstitutes dealing with specific areas in the field ofreading.

The following Institutes were held:

I. Bold Action Programs for the Disadvantaged:Elementary Reading

Chairman: Gertrude WhippleDetroit Public Schools

II. Current Administrative Problems in Reading

Chairman: Thorsten R. CarlsonSonoma Park College

III. Reading and Concept AttainmentChairman: Russell G. Stauffer

University of Delaware

IV. Junior College Reading ProgramsChairman: Horst G. Taschow

Central Oregon College

V. Interdisciplinary Approach to Reading DisabilitiesChairman: Gilbert Schiffman

Maryland Public Schools

VI. In-Service Programs in ReadingChairman: Dwane Russell

East Texas Center for EducationalServices

The sessions represented by these papers attempted toexamine in depth the thought and practice that currentlyprevails in these specialized areas. It is hoped that thereader will gain at least in small measure some of the in-spiration and motivation that were produced by the sessionsthemselves.

Paul Conrad BergGeneral Chairman

iii

The International Reading Association attempts,through its publications, to provide a forumfor a wide spectrum of opinion on reading.This policy permits divergent viewpoints with-out assuming the endorsement of the Association.

r

Foreword

CONTENTS

Paul Conrad BergUniversity of South Carolina

Teacher Preparation of the Junior College ReadingTeacher

Uberto Price and Kay WolfeAppalachian State Teachers College

Planning a Junior College Reading ProgramNed D. MarksheffelOregon State University

Promoting Critical Reading at the Junior CollegeLevel

Jordan UtseyUniversity of Oregon

A Junior College Reading Program in ActionHorst G. TaschowCentral Oregon College

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TEACHER PREPARATION OF THEJUNIOR COLLEGE READING TEACHER

Uberto Priceand

Kay Wolfe

Appalachian State Teachers College

THE NEED for reading instruction at the college level hasreceived increasing attention curing the past few years.Among other skills, college students must possess skills inreading which enable them to work effectively individuallyand independently or semi-independently. The material en-countered in textbooks is more difficult and more variedthan that found in high school books. Also, the body ofknowledge in almost every area is increasing at an astound-ing rate. For the student to work successfully with thismaterial, he must not only hr-7e developed the ability tocomprehend, organize, and evaluate but he must extend theseskills; and the degree to which he will work successfullywill, to a large extent, be determined by the functionallevel of these and other reading abilities. It is ratheruniversally recognized that students learn more quickly andmore effectively under direct guidance. For these and otherreasons, reading instruction is no longer considered to beexclusively within the domain of the elementary and highschools. It is also becoming more accepted that the collegereading program should include developmental as well asremedial reading courses. Old demands in reading havelingered while new challenges in reading have been imposedon college pupils.

In recent years, the demands or requests from juniorcollege administrators for reading teachers have increasedmanyfold indicating increased sensitiveness to the acute-ness of this need. Thus the responsibility for teacher pre-paration in this field has been placed on institutions ofhigher learning which have facilities and staff for the pre-paration of junior college personnel.

This need for reading teachers has existed Por some timebut has increased considerably because gradual changes havetaken place in the junior colleges. First, the number ofjunior colleges has increased. According to the 1966 JuniorCollege , over one-hundred public junior collegeshave been established since 1958. Secondly, the number ofpexlsons attending institutions of higher learning has in-creased. The crowded conditions of senior colleges and uni-versities have forced these institutions to adopt more

selective admission policies. Thus, the junior college hasbecome one of the favored routes of entrance to the seniorcolleges and universities. Junior colleges are now servingapproximately 1.3 million students. The third change inthe junior college is that the "open door" policy is be-coming more prevalent. This plan offers educational oppor-tunities to an individual according to his needs and abili-ties. The curriculums are varied and may include, amongothers, college parallel, vocational training, technicaltraining, and adult education. Such a program will attracta student body with a wide range of aspirations, capabilities,and achievement. The junior college has realized the impor-tance of meeting as many of the varied needs of as large anumber of these students as possible, including needs inreading. Finally, the demands for junior college readingteachers have increased because it has become more acceptedthat student success is closely related to efficient reading.

These changes in the junior colleges indicate that thecolleges have an obligation to the good, the average, and-the poor reader. The reading needs of pupils may at leastin part be reflected by institutional admission requirements,philosophy, policy, and objectives. For example, those in-stitutions with an "open door" policy may have a greater needfor 1:medial courses than will those with highly selectiveadmission policies. The difference between the demands on ahigh school student and the demands made by the college isstrong support for developmental reading in the junior college.

The reading teacher must be able to cope with the diverseneeds of these students. The teaching of reading in thejunior college requires a great deal of versatility on thepart of the teacher. This versatility can be best and mosteffectively achieved through specific preparation in teachingreading at the college level.

The Present Situation

At the present time, based on needs and demands, collegesand universitites are preparing an insignificant number ofpersons to teach reading at the junior college level. In aquestionnaire sent to thirty-eight institutions offering thedoctorates in education, only two institutions answered thatthey had a program designed specifically to prepare juniorcollege teachers of reading.

These meager opportunities for preparation in this fieldare not meeting the demands for college teachers of reading.A questionnaire was sent to 396 junior colleges throughoutthe country to determine the types of reading programs inthese colleges. The responses of 111 public and privatejunior colleges which do not have reading programs indicatethat a lack of qualified personnel to teach courses is a

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najor reason that reading is not taught. About half of these.nstitutions have plans to offer reading courses to theirstudents. Of the 110 junior colleges responding that theydo offer reading courses, only five percent felt that thereading program would not warrant hiring a teacher especiallyprepared to teach reading in the junior college.

These junior colleges are being forced to recruit teachersfrom the elementary and secondary schools. At AppalachianState Teachers College, the requests for junior college tea-chers of reading increased thirty percent from 1964-65 to1965-66. Sometimes a college, not being fortunate enough toget a teacher with any professional preparation in readingis required to obtain teachers from other disciplines toassume the responsibility for the reading program. Therehave also been situations in which persons outside the teach-ing profession have been hired to teach reading courses.

A Proposal

Urgency and demand for reading personnel should not weakenthe thoroughness end care in the selection of the prospectiveteachers. The selection of junior college reading teachersshould be made with great care and early in the college lifeof the students so that carefUl attention can be given toplanning and developing a program for them. Among the manyqualities, four personal ones should be considered: 1) theprospective reading teacher must display personal attributeswhich contribute to the making of a "good teacher"; 2) it isalmost superfluous to say that he must have a genuine regardfor students; 3) since the reading teacher will encounterstudents with a wide range of abilities and achievement, hemust be flexible and creative; and 4) the reading teacherwill be involved with administration and faculty go he shouldpossess qualities of leadership and be able to work well withpeople.

At this screening level, the intelligence and scholarlyqualities of the individual should be considered. He must becapable of mastery and application of the skills and tech-niques presented on a graduate level. The prospective teachershould have a strong desire for professional growth in thefield of reading. Because new materials, machines, and teach-ing methods are introduced so frequently, he must realize thata good reading teacher never stops learning.

Finally, the junior college reading teacher must be a goodreader. He should possess a reasonable command of all theskills which he expects to teach to his students. Not onlyshould he be a good reader but he should be an extensivereader.

The reading teacher's general education should be broad in

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scope, representing a variety of fields. This curriculumshould include literature, social studies, sciences, and thearts. As a part of his general preparation, the teachershould be well informed about and have an abiding interestin current events. This is not an inferior education; itis a broad education. Such a curriculum acquaints the in-dividual'With general areas of knowledge and helps him be-come a more interesting person. It provides a backgroundfor the versatility which will be so valuable and needed inthe junior college reading situation.

As the individual moves to more advanced work, he shouldbecome familiar with the junior college as an institution.His course work should include study of the nature and phi-losophy of the junior college. He should be aware of thepurposes and objectives of junior colleges as well as thenature of the students so that his specific training inreading can be oriented toward this particular type of in-stitution.

The prospective teacher should receive training in psy-chology, guidance, and testing and measurement. Thesecourses should enable him to administer instruments of mea-surement, interpret test results, and understand and engagein experimental research.

The junior college teacher of reading should have knowledgeof the nature of the reading process and the teaching of read-ing at all levels with intensive preparation in the teachingof reading at the junior college level. He should have basicknowledge and understandings in the foundations of readingand the psychology of reading. When the specific readingpreparation is begun, the individual should become familiarwith source books, journals, and yearbooks available inreading, and he should begin to make extensive use of thesematerials.

Specific reading preparation should include not only astudy of basic skills but also higher level reading skills.Among others, this preparation should involve developingstudy skills, including specific study methods such as 3Q3Rand note-taking techniques.

The junior college reading teacher should have instructionin reading in the content areas, a course designed specificallyfor the junior college level. Since many students in thejunior college may be on vocational or technical curriculums,the teacher must be familiar with these areas. To some,this requirement may seem to be an overwhelming undertaking,but these vocational students may be the ones who require agreat deal of help in reading. They need not only generalreading instruction but also specific help in reading tech-nical materials.

The teacher preparation program should include trainingin the diagnosis of reading problems and the remediation ofthese difficulties. This work involves a knowledge of dia-nostic and achievement tests in reading as well as remedialapproaches and techniques. The good reader, however, shouldnot be ignored. Attention should be given to developing andextending the skills of this group of students.

A wide variety of materials should be available for studyand evaluation. First, the teachers should be familiar withmaterials used in the content areas, that is, the textbooks;manuals, and related materials. Teachers should be able touse specific reading materials, including commercially pre-pared aids, textbooks, and workbooks, and must have a know-ledge of mechanical devices in order to make a criticaljudgment as to the merit and nurpose of a particular machine.An area not to be overlooked is that of teacher-preparedmaterials. Instruction and practice should be given indesigning materials for specific purposes.

Since many junior college reading teachers will be re-sponsible for organizing the reading program, the graduatecurriculum should include training in this area. Some ofthe characteristics of a good junior college reading programare 1) provisions are made to develop and extend the basicskills; 2) it provides for teaching skills in the specificcontent areas; 3) it provides instruction for the good,average, and poor reader; and 4) the program is continuouslyevaluated.

The prospective teacher should be able to incorporate allfacets of a well-balanced reading program into a workableplan for a junior college.

How can this program of study be most effective? Durrellstates that the essential principles of education need to betaught at the time the problems arise. Learn first; applylater. Approach has little or no place in teacher preparation.It is proposed, therefora, that during the graduate training,the prospective teachers become gradually involved with stu-dents.

Thus every teacher-preparing institution must have facili-ties for this involvement. There should be a laboratory oncampus where graduate students can observe and get earlyexperience in teaching reading. The facilities of a juniorcollege should be easily accessible to provide opportunitiesfor teaching reading at that level.

The graduate training should begin with study and observa-tion. The prospective teacher has the opportunity to observean experienced teacher, to ask questions, and to have thosequestions answered or at least discussed. Later the _ lividualbegins to participate in the classroom situation. The involve-

5

ment is steadily increased until at the end of the secondyear of graduate training the divisions may be approximatelyone-half time given to study and one-half time, to super-vised practice.

This laboratory approach should include lesson planning,discussions, conferences, and seminars involving the pro-spective teachers and their supervisors. There should beopportunity for students and faculty to discuss ideas theyhave encountered in professional literature or in practice.

This proposal is really characteristic of any good programof preparation for reading teachers. The only di'ference isthat it is aimed toward preparing teachers for a specificsituation--the teaching of reading in the junior collev.

Summary

The suggestions presented in this paper are based on thefollowing premises:

1. Poor readers can profit from instruction, andeven the best readers can become more efficientreaders.

2. There is a need for college teachers of reading.

3. These teachers of reading need specific prep-aration including extensive study in the psychologyof reading, diagnosis and remediation of readingdisabilities, counseling, testing and evaluation,familiarity with materials, basic principlesunderlying a sound, coordinated reading program,a knowledge of research, and supervised practice.

4. There needs to be a period of preparation of noless than five years and preferably six. Theprospective teacher should gradually becomeinvolved with students until, at the end of thesecond year, approximately one-half time isgiven to study and one-half time, to supervisedpractice.

These suggestions present two challen3es. First, there isa challenge to teacher-preparing institutions to give atten-tion to the preparation of junior college teachers of reading.The second challenge is to junior colleges to seek well-pre-pared teachers of reading.

References

1. Braam, Leonard S. "Professional Needs of the ReadingTeacher," in J. Allen Figarel (Ed.), Reading As An Intel-lectual Activity, Proceedings of the International ReadingAssociation, 81, 1963, 85-87.

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2. Durrell, Donald D. "Training Teachers for Today'sReading Program,"in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.), Reading AsAn Intellectual Activity, Proceedirgs of the InternationalReading Association, S, 1963, 87-90.

3. Kinne, Ernest W. "Training Inexperienced Graduate Stu-dents as Instructors in a Reading Program," in Alton J.Raygor (Ed.), College and Adult Reading, First AnnualYearbook of the North Central Reading Association,Minneapolis, 1962, 97-103.

4. Maxwell, Martha J. "Training College Reading Specialists,"Journal of Reading, lot, 1966, 147-152.

5. Maxwell, Martha J., 'and Margaret M. Bott. "One ThingAbout Tape-Recorders--They Don't Yawn," The Personneland Guidance Journal, 43 1965, 820-821.

6. Maxwell, Martha J., and Magoon. "Self-Help vs. Tradi-tional Educational Skills Programs: A Descriptive andComparative Evaluation," Journal College Student Personnel,4,.1962, 86-89.

7. Schick, George B. "Progress and Poverty in College andAdult Reading Programs," in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.),Challenge and Experiment in Reading, Proceedings of theInternational Reading Association, 7, 1962, 55-59.

8. Shaw, Phillip. "College Reading Improvement Programs'4' the Future," in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.), Changing

Concepts of Reading Instruction, Proceedings of theInternational Reading Association, 6, 1961, 48-51.

9. Smith, Henry P. "Innovations in College Reading Programs,"in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.), Reading and Inquiry, Proceedingsof the International Reading Association, 10 1965, 232-235.

10. Staiger, Ralph C. "Initiating the College or Adult ReadingProgram," in Oscar S. Causey and Emery P. Bliesmer (Eds.),Research and Evaluation in College Reading, Ninth Yearbookof the National Reading Conference, 1960, 120-124.

11. Strang, Ruth. "Preparation of Teachers of Reading," Journalof Developmental Reading, 1960, 53-57.

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PLANNING A JUNIOR COLLEGE READING PROGRAM

Ned D. MhrksheffelOregon State University

A DISCUSSION of reading programs for junior colleges at thistime is both opportune and necessary. Junior college admin-istrators and instructors are recognizing that most of theirstudents are sorely in need of reading instruction. Accordingto different surveys, those schools which do not have readingprograms are contemplating developing such.

Some few junior colleges, however, have abandoned theirreading programs because "the students did not benefit fromthe instruction." Some of the so-called reading programsconducted during the past year testify that such action prob-ably was justified. Those junior colleges that abandonedtheir programs might better have considered reorganizing orsupplementing their programs with realistic, workable readingprograms.

One might ask, "Why were the programs discontinued? Whydidn't they produce results?" No doubt there are numerousreasons the programs were discontinued, but there are twomajor reasons that reading programs fail: 1) they have notbeen planned to meet the needs of students and 2) the in-structors were inadequately prepared to teach reading.

Suggestions for Planning a Junior CollegeReading Program

The planning and development of an effective junior collegereading program must be based upon sound educational and psy-chological principles, derived from available research evi-dence.

Although much of the reported research in reading is con-tradictory and oftentimes questionable, there is sufficientevidence to provide direction and techniques for the juniorcollege reading program. The instructor in charge of a read-ing program should be an efficient critical reader with ade-quate preparation and experience to select valid research forhis purposes. He should quickly detect and reject thoseloosely controlled, biased accounts that masquerade as validresearch and trip the unwary reader.

Planning the Program Takes Time

A reading program cannot be developed overnight. The ideathat a reading program is needed may be born during an evening

or between sips of coffee, but a workable plan must be nurturedand evolved over a period of time.

Two of the most important ingredients for planning and di-recting a reading program are the availability of a competent,well-prepared instructor, or staff, and an administration thatbelieves in the need for such a program. Another importantingredient is the services of a reading consultant who isqualified to give advice and suggestions to both the teachingstaff and administration.

The consultant should be available to the reading instruc-tor when advice is needed. Some of the consultant's contri-butions might include demonstrating techniques of teachingreading in subject matter areas; providing information aboutsources of materials; and helping to inform the regular staff,parents, and students about the goals and the working proce-dures of the program.

The consultant may also contribute to the instructionalprogram by questioning and evaluating suggested techniquesof teaching and procedures of administering the program. Hemay prevent the teaching staff from being stampeded into anunsound program simply because it is a new innovation or be-cause a similar program is in operation at another institution.Yet he must not be so hidebound that he rejects all suggestionsfrom subject matter teachers because they have never hadcourses in the teaching of reading.

Subject matter teachers often contribute worthy ideas forimproving the teaching of reading in content areas but lackthe experience for implementing their suggestions. The read-ing consultant's contribution in such instances becomes two-fold: 1) he takes the undeveloped ideas and shapes them intoworkable interrelated parts of the total program; and 2) heconverts these subject matter teachers into active supportersof the reading program and eventually has them using readingtechniques to improve the teaching in their own content areas.

Major Objectives of a Junior College Reading Program

Two broad goals which are basic to any reading program andwhich chart the general direction of the program are 1) pro-viding each student with the kinds of instruction and experi-ences that will enable him to become a mature independent readerwho can learn what he needs to learn through reading and 2)making the reading process so challenging and stimulating thathe not only learns through reading but that he also learns tolove reading.

Specific Objectives. Specific objectives of the programshould be written in simple, direct language that is easilyunderstood by both instructors and students. Such objectivesmust be based upon each student's needs, too numerous or

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diverse to list in any one paper.

Fortunately, research and practical experience provideevidence that certain basic skills are prerequisite to readingsubject matter. Many of these basic reading skills have notbeen mastered by junior college students and may serve as aminimal list of specific objectives. In order that studentswill not experience extreme difficulty or failure in learningsubject matter, they should have the following skills:

1. An adequate sight-vocabulary of the most commonwords in English;

2. Word recognition and pronunciation skills;

3. The ability to use a dictionary independently;

4. The ability to follow written and oral directions;

5. An understanding of the meaning of a large numberof vocabulary words;

6. The ability to get literal meaning from what is read;

7. The ability to mentally organize what has beenread so that recall of information is possible;

8. Some knowledge of the necessity for varying theirrate of reading according to the kinds of materialsthat are being read and the purposes for suchreading;

9. Some ability in setting purposes for reading;

10. The ability to use the index, table of contents,glossary, and the author's clues for meaningfulreading;

11. A knowledge of when to use additional references; and

12. The ability to use the library and its referencematerials (1:84-85).

In addition to the previous list of minimal skills, many ofthe students will, for example, need help in developing andrefining their ability to use study skills for learning subjectmatter, to follow more complex oral and written directions, tolearn how to skim and when to skim materials for specific pur-poses, to read for main ideas, to summarize and organize mate-rials they have read, and to continually adjust their readingrates in light of new and different purposes for reading.

The instructor must also be aware that some of the studentswill have mastered the previously mentioned skills and now needsupervised practice in learning to read critically.

Briefly, the preceding are some of the needs of students whowill be enrolled in the reading classes at the junior collegelevel. These needs provide the bases for specific goals that

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give direction and impetus to the reading program.

Selection of a Reading Instructor

It is axiomatic that no program is any better than thosewho teach it. One of the major weaknesses of an inefficientjunior college reading program is that of inadequately pre-pared teachers. The instructor of reading, therefore, shouldbe no less than a reading specialist. Briefly, he should be1) an experienced classroom teacher, 2) specially preparedin the field of reading, 3) able to meet the "Minimum Standardsfor Professional Training of Reading Specialists" proposed bythe International Reading Association's Committee on Profes-sional Standards, and 4) dedicated to the task of helping allpeople become better readers.

A reading specialist is no ordinary individual. He hasthe preparation, characteristics, and attitudes necessary forworking with severely retarded readers, corrective and devel-opmental readers, subject matter teachers, and administrators.

Determining Procedure for a Junior CollegeReading Program

When planning a reading program, it is both prudent andnecessary that details of procedure be agreed upon by thosein charge of the teaching and the administration. Onceagreement has been reached, the plan should be written downand followed. This rule does not mean that a program onceagree upon becomes an inflexible master incapable of beingchanged and revised. Such action provides sta'ility to theprogram and keeps it on course, thereby preventing anothercasualty--a program that is abandoned because "the studentsdid not benefit from the instruction."

It is not always a simple task for reading specialists,administrators, and teachers to reach agreement about manydetails of procedure necessary for an adequate reading pro -;Tam. The difficulty is not due to lack of amity among thediscussants but rather to their differences in preparationand experiences with reading. Therefore, once a program hasbeen developed and approved, efficient operation is fosteredby having a written record of certain vital details such asbudget allowances, sufficient space for teaching, ampleamounts of materials, specific criteria for the selection ofstudents, and procedures for continual, objective appraisalfor the purpose of improving instruction.

Changes must be made in the best of programs if improvementin instruction is achieved. With minor exceptions, however,only minimal necessary changes should be made before the pro-gram has had time to prove its effectiveness.

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Selection of Students

The selection of students will vary among different juniorcolleges according to the kinds of students that are enrolledand the purposes of the institutions. A few junior collegesare primarily "prep" schools for certain universities andcolleges and cater to transfer students. The majority oftwo-year colleges, however, admit anyone who wishes to con-tinue his education. Some of the students will transfer toregular universitites and colleges; some will be terminal,and some will return year after year for an occasional course.Selection of students for reading help will, therefore, dependgreatly upon the makeup of the student body. Whatever thebases for selection, the reading specialist should be thefinal authority in the matter of selection since hs is theone who is responsible for the reading instruction.

Materials

There should be no compromise about an abundent supply ofnecessary reading materials covering many areas of interestand varying levels of difficulty. The ever-growing numberof excellent paperbacks permits an ample supply of interestingmaterials at comparatively low cost.

Since many students in the program will be terminal, everyeffort should be made to encourage them to buy inexpensivebooks of their own. Experience shows that many a reluctantreader has developed a keen interest in reading after he hashad an opportunity to buy paperback books that are writtenabout topics in which he is interested.

Newspapers and magazines are a must when ordering materials.We know that the majority of adults limit their reading tonewspapers and magazines, but few know how to read these mate-rials for the information they are seeking. They are oftendelimited in reading informative and worthwhile magazinearticles because they are unaware that such articles exist,that the articles are of value to them, or that they arecapable of reading these kinds of materials.

Evaluation and Diagnosis

Succinct plans for the evaluation and diagnosis of eachindividual should be written and followed. Evaluation shouldreveal the student's strengths and weaknesses to both thein-structor and the student. The student should be aware ofand understand the results of his tests, what the resultsindicate, and how such information may be used to help him.Many times he may reveal further pertinent information to theexaminer when the results are discussed with him.

The student benefits most from appraisal when evaluationis continuous. Both standardized and informal tests reveal

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and measure specific aspects of reading, but evaluation shouldnot be limited to testing. It should include teacher ob-servation, pupil self-evaluation, anecdotal records, andsamples of the student's work.

Whenever possible, plans for an interdisciplinary approachto evaluation and therapy should be made. Medical doctors, -

ministers, social workers, and counselors are representativeof some of the professional people who may be of great valuein helping the reading teacher in his task of aiding the in-efficient reader. At this time, educators are only in theinitial stage of interdisciplinary therapy and diagnosis inreading. Further information about the interdisciplinaryapproach may be found in the 1965 and 1966 IRA Proceedings.

Summary

This repot has been limited to eight areas that are perti-nent to plarm!.ng a junior college reading program. Althoughother important areas were not mentioned, those that werediscussed may provide a nucleus for the planning of suchprograms.

It cannot be overemphasized that with the help of a readingconsultant, time spend by a school staff in the planning of areading program is time wisely invested. Such planning willprovide specific, measurable objectives to serve as guide-posts and stimulators for the successful progress of a juniorcollege reading program.

Reference

1. Marksheffel, Ned D. Better Reading_in the SecondarySchool. New York: The Ronald Press Co., 1966.

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PROMOTING CRITICAL READING AT THEJUNIOR COLTFGE LEVEL

Jordan Utsey

University of Oregon

DURING THE PAST several years various authorities in readinghave attempted to define critical reading and to delineatethe most important elements of the process. Needless to say,there are both consensus and diversity in their opinions.

Note first that there is general consensus about certainaspects of critical reading. For example, critical readingis an integral part of the total reading process; a criticalreader not only understands the ideas presented by the authorbut also interprets and draws inferences from the content; acritical reader makes judgments about the material, the lan-guage, and the author; and, as Artley indicates, "reconstructsfrom the printed page the writer's ideas, feelings, moods, andsensory impressions" (2).

Sochor has indicated that no matter how critical readingis defined, it invariably includes both the facts presentedin the selection and the use of high mental processes; that"to understand the nature of critical reading, one must under-stand the nature of thinking in general and possibly criticalthinking" (15).

If critical reading is, in fact, reading and thinkingcritically, then one must be concerned about "critical think-ing," how it is defined, what skills are important in itsdevelopment, and so on.

At least two authors define critical reading and thinkingas a process of formal logic and problem-solving. They re-cognize the language function but stress formal reasoning. Adefinition of critical reading cited by Bruner falls in theforegoing category. He states, "Critical reading is not thesame as reading fluency. It Is, instead, something like theability to see the connotations of sentences. The criticalreader gets beyond the material literally referred to andperceives that the sentence is relevant to a larger domain.My assumption is that the parallel between critical readingand formal reasoning is very close. The literal contents ofsentences are premises; the connotations are the conclusions"(3:169-70).

Robert Ennis defines critical thinking in somewhat the samemanner by stating that "critical thinking may be construes asthe correct assessing of statements." Ennis further irdicates

that there are three basic divisions of critical thinking:"the logical dimension, the critical dimension, and the prag-matic dimension" (2).

Other authors define critical reading or thinking primarilyas a language function. They do not omit the logical dimensionbut simply stress the language aspects. Richard Altick's Pre-face to Critical Reading (1) is an example of this position.

A third position is reflected by various educators writingin the field. Certain reading authorities recognize both thelogical dimension of critical thinking and the function oflanguage but go beyond either of these to a consideration ofthe reader himself. They have recognized that critical think-ing involves not only the evaluation and judging of the author,language, and content but also includes an evaluation of thereader himself and the attitudes, purposes, and backgroundwhich affect his ability to think critically. Crossen (5),Eller and Wolf (8), and othershave provided evidence thatpersonal or intense feelings on the part of a reader may bea major source of uncriticalness. Thus it appears desirableto include in any definition of critical thinking and readingsome consideration of the reader himself.

Such a consideration has been provided by Ethel Maw. Shehas written, "Critical thinking skills include examiningcarefully the facts and ideas presented, recognizing and de-fining problems, selecting pertinent information, evaluatingsources of evidence or opinion, recognizing unstated assump-tions, forming and evaluating hypotheses, making valid gener-alizations and inferences, determining cause and effect,evaluating arguments, and understanding one's own predilectionsand prejudices" (11).

The definitions of critical thinking, as reported, overlapone another considerably. The major differences among themare a matter of emphasis. Where as one author devotes moreattention to formal deductive and inductive reasoning pro-cesses and the analysis of the content of the text, othersmay concentrate upon the analysis of language, the author'suse of mood and tone, anu the denotation and connotation ofwords.

To arrive at a comprehensive definition of critical readinginvolves the consideration of several interrelated factors.When one speaks of critical reading, it is quite difficult tobe precise, to know which skills and processes are being in-cluded but it is helpful Lo think of critical reading asinvolving 1) the ability to comprehend literally and in depththe content of the material; 2) a willingness and the abilityto suspend judgment until the evidence warrants a conclusion;and 3) the ability to apply reason and criteria in the se-lection, evaluation, and interpretation of the language andevidence used in making a judgment and in reaching a conclusion.

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Critical Reading: Some Essential Skills

While definitions may, in a very real sense, be useful inhelping educators determine the purposes and goals of areading program; they are frequently high-order abstractionswhich must, if they are to be useful, be supplemented with alisting of the individual skills implied in the definition.Therefore, if one is to help students develop the ability toread critically, the specific skills inherent in the criticalreading process must be identified and organized into sameframework whereby they may be taught.

Spache (16), Smith (l4), Ennis (2), Heilman (10), and othershave identified and listed many of the more important critical

reading skills, but probably the most elaborate and extensivelist of the separate critical reading skills is that compiledby Crossen. She lists forty-nine critical reading skills inthe following four categories: "(1) getting the meaning ofwords and phrases, (2) seeing relationships, (3) makingevaluations of the material read, and (4) drawing conclusionsfrom the material read" (5).

A second, less extensive list has been provided by Williams(18). She did not group her thirty-three separate skills underany particular headings; however, three categories appear:1) skills necessary for gaining an initial understanding ofthe passage; 2) skills which employ the application of criti-cal thinking; and 3) skills necessary for drawing conclusions.

A survey of the professional literature in the field ofreading has suggested that the several different criticalreading skills are related to one or more of about four basicactivities in which the mature reader may engage. These fourfundamental activities and some of the more essential criticalreading skills related to each are as follows:

1. Skills a critical reader utilizes in evaluatingand judging his own purposes, attitudes, andbackground.

a. He determines his purpose for reading inorder to adjust his reading behavior tothe content being read;

b. He recognizes and takes into account hisown attitudes, values, prejudices, andbiases in order that he may be as objectiveas possible;

c. He recognizes the extent. of his own back-ground of experience and how this mattermay enhance or limit his effectiveness andunderstanding of material; and

d. He seeks continually to broaden his back-ground and improve his reading skills.

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2. Skills a critical reader utilizes in evaluatingand judging the author and publisher.

a. He determines the author's purpose forwriting;

b. He is aware of the author's point ofview, biases, slants and prejudices;

c. He attempts to determine the author'sbackground of experience and the ade-quacy of his knowledge in the field inwhich he is writing; and

d. He attempts to determine when an authoracquired his experience and its relationto the publication of the material.

3. Skills a critical reader utilizes in evaluatingand judging the language of the text.

a. He recognizes that a word may have manymeanings and therefore, seeks to selectthe particular meaning that applies tothe context;

h. He recognizes and adjusts to figures ofspeech, metaphors, and cliches;

c. He looks for rhetorical swaying andfalae allusions;

d. He notes sentence length and the positionof words in sentences and sentences inparagraphs; and

e. He recognizes and adjusts to the moodand tone of the text.

4. Skills a critical reader utilizes in evaluatingand judging the content of the text.

a. He attempts to distinguish between factand opinion and between primary andsecondary sources of information;

b. He recognizes the organizational patternof a selection, identifies main ideas,and notes significant details;

c. He attempts to identify the techniquesand content of propaganda; and

d. He brings logical support to the judgmentshe reaches in evaluating the content of aselection.

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Critical Reading: Some Saggested Teaching Strategies

In the institutions of higher education are a fair share ofwhat Francis Chase has designated the "higher illiterate" (4),the student who can absorb and repea_ ideas found on the printedpage but who has not developed the ability to relate these ideasto the life around him. The higher illiterate does not raisethe sharp questions which probe the content of reading for mean-ing, test it for accuracy and penetratica, or weigh its impli-cations for himself and society. He cannot entertain ideaswhich are at variance with his preconceptions. In short, forhim reading is not an invitation to reflective thought. For-tunately, there are several instructional strategies at disposalwhich can be utilized to help students grow into mature criticalreaders.

The first of these strategies is related to teachers, them-selves, at their own levels of commitment. If teachers demon-strate to students through the types of questions asked thatthe main concern is simply having information recalled, studentswill learn to read and memorize the material so that they candemonstrate their proficiency at this task. Students, by andlarge, attempt to fulfill the expectations educators hold; thus,if educators are satisfied with having students read, memorize,and recall data, this activity is precisely what they will tryto accomplish.

The first Lusk, then, is for instructors to ask the kindsof questions which motivate and challenge students to do morethan read and recall information. Questions must be askedwhich force students to analyze and evaluate information inaddition to remembering it.

As an example of the questions teachers should be asking,consider these used after students had read an assignment:

1. Are the authors qualified to write on this subject?Are they likely to be biased? What does thearticle reveal about the authors' scholarship?

2. Is the information in the article accurate? Doesit agree or disagree with other data you can findon the topic? Have the authors reached the sameconclusions as the researchers who conducted thestudies?

3. Are the assumptions, premises, criteria, andconclusions of the article subject to questionsor controversy? What other positions are takenon the same issues?

4. Is the logic of the article sound? Are the mainconclusions reached inductively or deductively?Did the authors misuse either process? Did youfind the use of logical fallacies?

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5. What learning theories underly basic assumptionsstated or implied in the article?

6. Have the authors chosen their terms carefully orhave they colored their reviews by the use ofcertain language, all-none statements, etc.?

7. Can you adequately analyze or evaluate thearticle on the basis of the information you nowhave or should you seek additional data?

The second strategy for improving critical reading is re-lated to language. Teaching vocabulary and the meanings ofwords is very likely one of the more difficult but crucialtasks undertaken by reading teachers. A reader may experi-ence difficulty with language through ignorance of syntax;however, the chief misunderstandings appear to stem fromignorance of the kinds of meaning that language conveys. Thetask, then, is to help students recognize that meanings areoften quite complex; that meanings, like the English languageitself, are in a state of constant change; and that meaningsmay convey both information and attitudes.

The problem of the complex meanings of terms in a familiarone. The English language contains large numbers of wordsthat shift their meanings from one referent to another invarious contexts. The term sap is a good example of such aword. A slip may be a cutting from a plant, a note, a youngand slender person (a stripling), clay in a liquid state, achild's pinafore or frock; or slip may mean to move as ifsliding or gliding, to escape without being observed, toexcape one's memory, to slide out of place, to declineslightly, to deteriorate, to elude; or a slip can be a berthon a ship.

The problem of the changing meanings of words is an obviousone. Both denotations and connotations change. For example,the current meaning generally assigned to pudding is compara-tively modern. The older sense appears in "black pudding,"a sausage made of pig's blood.

Meanings convey both information and attitudes. Sayingof a kindergarten student, "She is a child," is much dif-ferent from saying the same thing of a grown woman. In thefirst instance, information is being conveyed; the secondconveys primarily an attitude.

Another example of how word meanings convey attitude liesin the following paragraph taken from the student's newspaperof a large university where students had been trying unsuc-cessfully to gain admittance to faculty meetings:

As far as we know, faculty meetings at theUniversity have been closed to the press, andto the public in general, since the University

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was created. We have tried time and timeagaln to gain access to the clandestinegatherings, but our requests have met withonly sternfaced opposition.

Could the writer's use of clandestine portray his attitudethat faculty meetings are evil or for illicit purposes?

Certain literary techniques are also used to convey mentalimages which tend to carry additudirva or emotional overtones.Note from the following quotation how Max Rafferty has usedallusions and mctaphors to convey his attitudes L.id feelings.

Nothing was taken too seriously. Nothing wasallowed to disturb our composure. Above all,no hint of coming austerity or sacrifice wassuffered to ripple even for a moment the brim-ming pool of full prosperity.

In short, we were strutting, free-wheelingspecimens on a grand scale of what the oldGreeks used to call hubris, that fatal pridein one's own excellence which in classicaltimes used to call for immediate chastisementwith one of Jc?e's more lethal thunderuolts.To mix metaphors, our necks were out and wewere riding for a fall.

Into this smug smog of perfumed complacencyhas driven like a stiff breeze from the norththe recent startling achievements of Sovietscience. In glistening silver letterstraced across the sky for all to see, theRussian satellites and moon rockets havewritten Finis to our dream of a monopolyof know-how. The time is obviously here fora girding of loins and a measured marshallingof our resources in preparation for a tech-nological marathon which may last a hundredyears (13:118-25).

The foregoing examples make it clear that the secondstrategy must be focused upon helping students develop asensitivity to the denotations and connotations of words;understand language patterns; recognize metaphors, analogies,and cliches; perceive how words and phrases are related totheir antecedents; and understand the re]ationships ofphrases to sentences, sentences to paragraphs, and para-graphs to the total organization of the text. How can edu-cators best develop this sensitivity? There is some evi-dence that requiring students to write on many differenttopics and having tham present papers in which they defendor justify a point of view or position may be as effective

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as anything else. Students can also engage in the followingactivities:

1. Compare the advertising claims of competitiveproducts.

2. Compare different versions of the same eventin newspapers, magazines, etc.

3. Compare biographies of famous people with thefictionalized account.

4. Compare a straight news story of an event orissue with editorial or columnists' accounts.

5. Read news stories, poems, etc., and attempt toidentify the general mood or tone the authorwas trying to convey.

6. Identify emotion-producing terms in selections.

7. Compare accounts of historical events whichwere written at the time of the occurencewith others written later.

8. Identify the number of words the author useswhich carry possitive connotation with thenumber he uses which reflect negative conno-tation.

The third strategy for teaching critical reading is re-lated to the analysis and evaluation of the content of apassage or text. Students must first be taught to make whatis perhaps a basic evaluation--that of determining if thefacts presented are true, deciding whether the treatment ofa topic is completa, judging which information presented bythe author is most significant, evaluating the logic of theauthor's conclusions, as well as making several other judg-ments.

Probably the most dif.icult elements of content analysisto teach are those aspects related to assessing the logic ofthe author's presentation. Accurate, clearly stated infor-mation provides the basis for making sound judgments but doesnot assure sound decision making. Only effective, accuratethinking about the data assures this skill. Thus the criticalreader must have some familiarity with the processes of bothdeductive and inductive reasoning, not only for evaluatingthe author's reasoning but for analyzing his own thoughtprocesses. This criterion is not to suggest that juniorcollege reading courses should become courses in formal logicbut rather that reading instructors shouM help students applythe principles of deductive and inductive thought to theirreading.

Deductive reasoning is the concern of most formal logicbooks. A dedutive,argyment is normally composed of elements

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known as propositions stated in a certain fashion. Proposi-tions may be either true or false and are used as the evidenceor premises for a conclusion. In accurate deductive reason-ing, the conclusion is said to follow from the premises.Propositions are commonly divided into four classes: 1) par-ticular affirmative--some students can read well; 2) particu-lar negative--some students can't read; 3) universal affirma-tive--all teachers are educated; and 4) universal negative- -no child misbehaves.

Students, nnd adults as well, often fail to distinguishamong the foregoing classes of propsitions and thus causeerrors in reasoning. For example, a student may read a re-port of research in which the author states that in experi-mental classroom A ;which included only second grade young-sters) phonics program X was the cause of superior readingachievement. "Well," thinks the reader, "if phonics programX was instrumental in developing superior readers in class-room A, it will therefore enable all children to read better."The 1-elder's conclusion based upon immediate inference may betrue. In the foregoing relationship in which the truth ofthe universal is dependent upon the truth of the particular,all that can be logically inferred is that if the particularis true, the universal is undetermined.

There are two types of deductive arguments, in particular,that students should be familiar with: the conditional--theif-then relationship and the disjunctive--the either-or argu-ment.

The conditional argument starts with the premise that ifcertain conditions are satisfied, specific consequences willfollow. The major source of error in evaluating conditionalarguments is the failure to distinguish between necessary andsufficient conditions. To illustrate: If this student wereuninterested in reading, he would be failing. He is failing.Therefore, the student is uninterested in reading. Themajor premise may be sufficient, but is not necessary forthe consequences it implies.

The disjunctive argument starts with the premise that oneor another of two possibilities must be correct. For example:His success in reading is due to high intelligence or goodstudy habits. He has good study habits. Therefore, he isnot highly intelligent. The foregoing example illustratesthe chief difficulty of disjunctive arguments: startingwith premises that do not really exhaust all of the possi-bilities.

In examining the deductive argument, then, the criticalreader will question the acceptability of the premises andwhether the reasoning is valid. If these can be answered inthe affirmative, then at least the logic is acceptable.

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Inductive reasoning takes two major forms. One has to dowith the gathering of data in an attempt to draw a generalconclusion from many bits of related evidence; the other con-cerns the setting up and testing of hypotheses.

The gathering of the data in order to reach a conclusionis almost a necessary condition of modern life and is carriedon in one form or another by most, if not all, human beings.The young child learns that certain types of behavior are re-warded and others, punished. The mean little boy portrayedby Red Skelton was reasoning from particular instances in hisexperience when he mused to himself about an anticipated mis-deed, "If I dood it, I get a whuppin: I dood it!"

The foregoing example illustrates not only how one commonlyrelies on experience and personal observations to provide himwith the specific data upon which he generalizes but alsoportrays one of the major dangers related to inductive rea-soning--the adequacy of the evidence.

When one generalizes from personal observations, he isoften in danger of going further than he is really entitledto do. Generally speaking, the more evidence available, themore reliable are the conclusions; however, a simple accumu-lation of instances may not prove anything if only those in-stances favorable to a point of view are counted and thosecontradicting it, ignored. A basic requirement of a goodsampling technique is that the sample represent all items inthe population to be sampled. One is all too familiar withthe failure of opinion polls to obtain random samples, afailure which often results in inaccurate and embarrasingresults.

Another error commonly made in inductive reasoning is toassume a causal relationship between two events simply becauseone precedes another in time. Causes are often complex anddifferent in their immediacy. What are the causes of readingfailure? Some factors are "underlying" and others, more"immediate."

The discussion of causes leads to the consideration of thesecond general use of inductive reasoning--the setting up ofhypotheses for the purposes of testing the truth. Hypothesesare encountered whenever and wherever observed data suggest aproblem which requires a solution. Hypotheses vary all theway from simple guesses to elaborate and sophisticated theories.Thus a hypothesis is essentially a guess--man's ability to syn-thesize a group of given facts and to see the possibilitieswhich will explain those facts.

Aside from inherent plausibility, simplicity is likely tobe the hallmark of a good hypothesis. One can, for example,suppose that when a child takes out his reading text, he isgoing to dispose of it in the wastebasket; but it is simpler

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to assume that it is time for reading instruction.

At best, inductive thought is the essence of scientificmethod; however, it must be remembered that often hypothesesand generalizations are assumed rather than proved.

College students must be helped to apply deductive andinductive thought processes to content evaluation of theirreading materials. Suggested here are ways in which thisskill can be aided by the reading courses:

1. Provide students with several statements and askthem to write a paragraph on each explaining thedata they wou3d require to be convinced the state-ment was true:

a. Phonics is a crucial prerequisite to initialreading success.

b. If a drowning man goes down for the thirdtime, he is lost.

c. Terror can turn one's hair white in a fewhours.

d. Television viewing by children has sharplyincreased the number of remedial readingproblems.

2. Provide assertions based on some form of inductivethinking. Ask students to examine the statementsto determine:

a. If the terms are carefully and clearlydefined.

b. If the assertion is a hypothesis and ifit allows for all possibilities, can itbe tested.

c. If the evidence justifies a generalization.

3. Ask students to analyze the soundness of reasoningin statements by determing:

a. If the premises are true.

b. If the conclusion necessarily followsfrom the premises.

There is currently an over-reliance and emphasis at alllevels of education upon the prepackaged instructional pro-gram--the box or the machine-controlled sequence. Thesematerials may be effective in certain areas (teaching content),but they seldom challenge students in the manner suggested.

When students are challenged to evaluate and judge thematerial they read and are provided the techniques for engag-

ing in these activities; when students are able to determinenot only what the author is saying but why he is saying it,how he is trying to convey his message, and the logic of hisassertions, only then are they on the way to becoming maturecritical readers.

References

1. Altick, Richard D. Preface to Critical Reading. NewYork: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1962.

2. Artley, Sterl A. What is Reading. Chicago: Scott,Foreseman and Company, 1964.

3. Bruner, Jerome S. Toward a Theory of Instruction.Cambridge: The Belknap Press of the Harvard UniversityPress, 1966.

4. Chase, Fancis S. "Inadequate Understanding Marks HigherIlliterate," a lecture, 1965.

5. Crossen, Helen J. "Effects of the Attitudes of theReader Upon Critical Reading Ability," Journal ofEducational Research, 42, 1946, 189-98.

6. Eller, William, and Judith L. Wolf. "Factors in CriticalReading," The Philosophical and Sociological Bases ofReading, Fourteenth Yearbook of the National ReadingConference. Milwaukee: The National Reading Conference,Inc., 1965, 64-72.

7. Ennis, Robert H. "A Concept of Critical Thinking,"Breakthroughs to Better Teaching, Harvard EducationalReview. Montpelier: Capital City Press for the GraduateSchool of Education, Harvard University, 1965, 157-87.

8. Heilman, Arthur W. Principles and Practices of TeachingReading. Columbus: Charles E. Merrill Books, 1961.

9. Maw, Ethel W. "Teaching Critical Thinking Through Read-ing," Dimensions of Critical Reading, Vol. II. Newark,Delaware: Proceedings of the Annual Education andReading Conference, University of Delaware, 1964, 75-87.

10. Rafferty, Max. Suffer Little Children. New York: TheNew American Library of World Literature, 1963.

11. Smith, Nila Banton. Reading Instruction for Today'sChildren. Inglewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1963.

12. Sochor, E. Elm. "The Nature of Critical Reading,"Elementary English, 41, 1959, 230.

13. Spache, George D. Reading in the Elementary School.Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1965.

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14. Wiese, Mildred J., and Steward G. Cole. "A Study ofChildren's Attitudes and the Influence of a CommercialMotion Picture," Journal of Psychology, 21, 1946,151-71.

15. Williams, Gertrude. "The Provisions for Critical Readingin Basic Readers," Elementary English, 36, 1959,323-31.

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A JUNIOR COLLEGE READING PROGRAM IN ACTION

Horst G. Taschow

Central Oregon College

MOST FRESHMEN entering junior college are senior high schoolgraduates whose academic ability levels range anywhere fromgrade seven to grade twelve. These facts speak for themselves.For a junior college reading program to be effective means thatone must be prepared to meet the wide range of the students'reading and learning abilities. The way in which and the meansby which this condition is met will ultimately determine thecourse of the reading actions to be taken within the quarteror semester period.

Junior college freshmen who choose to come to the collegereading center usually want to comprehend more in less time,to find quickly ways and means to improve study habits, toincrease scanty vocabulary repertoires, and to become "betterspellers." Whatever is stated, outlined, and prescribed inany reading program is valid only to the extent to which thecontent serves the needs and purposes of the students who havechosen the reading course to improve themselves, whatever theirreasons may be.

Among the different learning tasks stated earlier, oneappears to be more ardently, more wishfully, and yet more fear-fully anticipated than all other learning requirements. Whena student says "How can I comprehend more?" or "I wish I couldunderstand what I have to read," or "Make me read better:" nosincere-minded reading teacher can fail to get the student'smessage: he wishes to comprehend reading material more easily.For some students the road to comprehension is rugged and steep;but almost always a goal within their own capacities is reach-able. Other students require assistance and guidance in vary-ing degrees in order to accomplish temporary goals in theirreading efforts toward comprehension. If reading is reasoningand thinking, then comprehension is the nucleus around whichall other reading competencies circulate.

In the functional undertaking of teaching reading compre-hension, reading aspects, skills, attitudes, and personaldevelopment are steadily interacting in a closely knit inter-relationship denoting the "highly complex, purposeful thinkingprocess engaged in by the entire organism while acquiringknowledge, evolving new ideas, solving problems, or relaxingand recuperating through the interpretation of printer symbols"(7).

The total complexity of the reading act contributing to

comprehension must be clearly recognized in order to perceiveeach detail, not as a separate entity in inself but as acontributing part of the whole.

Any reading aspect to be taught must, of course, dependentirely upon the need of the student who is engaged in thereading task. The first necessary step then in attemptingto improve comprehension is to begin instruction at the stu-dent's instructional reading level.

Instructional Reading Levels

To determine the student's instructional reading level atwhich he can read and learn content materials, the writeradministers the Nelson-Denny Reading Test, a group informalreading test; and for those students scoring below the 25thpercentile on the Nelson-Denny Reading Test and/or scoring50 percent or lower on the group informal reading test,an informal reading inventory is used. In addition, it isnecessary to be cognizant of the reading range within thegroup. This reinforces multilevel instruction as well asmultilevel book approach. The former calls for flexiblegrouping which may encompass the class as a whole group whena new topic is introduced, demonstrated, and discussed.Smaller groups are formed, dissolved, with new ones formedagain in accordance with and depending upon the needs andpurposes arising from the goals to be pursued and the tasksto be accomplished. Individual instruction takes place whena student encounters difficulties not encountered by otherstudents.

Starting instruction for comprehension at the student'sinstructional level means to meet the student on a levelwhere he can perform the task successfully which, in turn,assists in fulfilling belonging and esteem needs and makeshim ready to attack new and more complex and difficult tasks.

Teleological Determination

To perform a task successfully implies that the task mustnot only lie within the student's functional ability but alsonust be directed toward a reachable goal. The student'steleological determination or the ability to set a goal orpupose is one of the main ingredients for effective, mature,and independent reading. Recognizing this necessity, thewriter teaches "setting purposes before reading" in a sys-tematic fashion showing the "how" and the "why" to the stu-dents.

How can a student learn to set a purpose? One might writea chapter heading or any subheading on the chalkboard and askthe students to put it in the form of a question. Studentsfirst work examples given by the instructor and then usetitles taken directly from their required textbook reading.

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This is meaningful learning that transfers readily to dailyreading tasks. The answer to "why" one sets purposes isillustrated by having students answer the formed question.Every question requires an answer. To find this answer, thestudent must read to understand; i.e., to work toward ful-fillment of the set purpose. When the student has learnedto set purposes, the "why" acts as a psychological drive tofulfill the need to problem-solve and the reading task is nolonger done for the sake of assignment or the teacher's fancy.

The Flexible Reader

After the "how" and the "why" of Getting a purpose or pur-poses are accomplished, the student learns to adjust readingrates to different types of reading materials. Readingselections from history, geography, mathematics, chemistry,and geology are first read for comprehension. It is clearthat rate anti comprehension vary with the difficulty of thematerials as well as with the purpose of the readers. In-ductive reasoning will lead the students to realize that thereading of materials in science and mathematics necessitatea slower reading rate in order to gain greatest possiblecomprehension. Most important, however, is the fact thatstudents must, out of their experiences, arrive at the con-clusion that there is not one single, all-governing readingrate. They must begin to realize that reading rate isgoverned by proficiency in basic reading skills, backgroundexperiences, intelligence, purpose, and the organization anddifficulty of the reading material. The ability of a studentto adjust to the reading materials makes him a flexible reader.

Vocabulary Improvement

Functioning competently as a flexible reader demands sys-tematic enlargement in breadth and depth of the student'svocabulary repertoire. Vocabulary improvement is anotherbasic requirement for optimum reading comprehension. Studiesemphasize that without an understanding of words, comprehensionis impossible. It follows that a large vocabulary is relatedto high comprehension. Comprehension then depends upon theextent and the richness of the reader's meaning vocabularywhich comes from his background experiences. To be certain,vocabulary should not be taught in isolation but should al-ways be related to meaningful content. Leary, in fact,postulates that in order for the reader to achieve greatestpossible comprehension he must become meaning-conscious.This skill is taught by means of word structure analysis andcontext clues. The former depends upon word recognition ofprefixes, suffixes, and root words and on studying word origin,synonyms, and antonyms as well as word combinations and com-pounds. The latter, context clues, is taught by means ofinference, definitions, figures of speech, tone and mood, and

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comparisons and contrasts. One might instruct the studentto use either cards or a notebook to write down unknown wordswhich occur frequently in his textbooks as well as thosewords and phrases which are used in lectures, conversations,and in additional study or recreational reading. To be ableto make use of these selected words the student must pro-nounce the words and associate meaning with them. Wordswhich cause difficulty are viewed again in the meaningfulsetting in which they had been located in the textbooks.Possible meanings are discussed and perhaps attached to thewords, and, if necessary, definitions are rechecked in thedictionary. The next step is to make the newly learned wordsfunctional, i.e., have the words applied whenever possible indaily discussions, in oral utterances, and in written exer-cises or in other subject matter area assignments. The morethe student uses these words and integrates them into hisword repertoire,the more he builds up a thorough understandingof them. To broaden and deepen these vicarious experiencesgathered by exploring new meanings, the student could be re-quested to write and follow a personal program of recreationalreadings which would assist him in strengthening his abilityto read the lines, to read between the lines, and to readbeyond the lines.

Instructional reading levels, teleological determination,flexible reading, and vocabulary development never stand inisolation withil L. reading activity but must function har-moniously toward the common goal of comprehension.

The Directed Reading Lesson

How can the goal of comprehension be reached in the mosteconomical manner while focusing on the psychological well-being of the reading student? The directed reading lesson isthe answer. A directed reading lesson is a planned, purpose-ful and systematic procedure whereby the student reads fordiffering degrees of comprehension. First, the reading in-structor should demonstrate to the student the procedure ofa directed reading lesson. After the student has overviewedthe directed reading lesson, he works through each step inorder to experience the impact of each activity on cc pre-hending intelligently the reading material under discussion.Progressive insight permits the student to conclude that allthe activities inherent in each step must be thoroughlymastered before proceeding to the next succeeding step. Psy-chologically, it involves the student's attention and con-centration as well as his planning and systematizing abili-ties. The directed reading lessons provide the student witha procedure which enables them to look deeper into and beyondthe printed symbols.

After the student knows the objective or objectives for

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the lesson as a whole, the readiness period follows in whichhe must generate interest in the work at hand and motivatehimself if he is not already interested in and motivatedtoward the tasks. Since interests are learned and vv.y witheach individual, discussion with the learner may ignite aspark of curiosity which will act as a drive toward furtherinvestigation. During the readiness period, or assignmentperiod required reading skills as well as content materialsmay be discussed in hope of filling in missing backgroundexperiences. In addition, new words could be pronounced,heard, or seen and their various meanings, clarified. Atlast, the student sets his own purpose, writes them down forhis own reference, and then enters the second activity ofthe directed reading lesson, silent reading.

After reading materials have been assigned in accordancewith the student's instructional reading level, silent read-ing for meaning begins. While the student is perusing silentreading material, the reading instructor is free to observethe student's reading habits. Head movement, lip movements,finger- or pencil-pointing as well as subtle distress orfrustration signals, such as frowning and glancing around,may be noted for later discussions with the individual stu-dent.

The silent reading is followed by a question and discussionperiod. A student's answers to vocabulary, fact, and infer-ence questions reveal how effectively he has read for purposeas well as for differing degrees of comprehension. Questionslike What did he say? What did he mean? and What evaluationcan you make? denote varying degrees of comprehension. Outof the question and discussion period and accompanying teacher-student interaction there develops oral and/or silent re-reading.

Oral or silent rereading requires new purposes of a moredetailed nature. Rereading serves the purpose of regainingoverlooked or not clearly perceived statements of the author.Rereading also allows for the meaningful practice of scanningto locate pertinent information as well as for meaningful oralreading of the located information. Critical thinking willenter into the process to weigh the pro's and con's. Thisprocess prepares the students to explore the last phase of thedirected reading lesson, the special improvement period.

To make the special improvement period meaningful,lonemovement must initially take place: the previously formedinstructional reading groups dissolve and new groups areformed to fulfill new purposes in accordance with the students'needs. Some students (research groups) will investigate per-tinent and related subject matter; others (interest groups)will broaden and deepen common interests aroused by the sub-ject area under consideration; still others (special needs

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groups) will ask to pursue special needs not shared by therest of the class; and a few (tutorial groups) may be willingto help and assist some students in learning particular skillsthey are trying to learn.

In addition to these follow-up experiences, the meaningfulexplored activities contained in the successive steps of thedirected reading lesson must be applied to a maximum numberof similar learning situations so that transfer occurs.

Fulfillment In Action

Each reading aspect, with its related activities, contri-butes its pertinent share toward comprehension and understand-ing of any reading material. Prerequisite to this achievementis the understanding that the junior college student must mas-ter the various reading aspects and their related activitiesnot only theoretically or just practicably in the shelteredatmosphere of the reading room but also outside on his own asa mature and independent reader. At this point the student,within his own capacity, is reading for the highest possiblecomprehension, be it for study requirements or for recreation.

When these suggested reading activities actually take placewithin the confinements of the reading room, then and onlythen, the junior college reading program with all its ramifi-cations is fulfilling one of its major services to juniorcollege reading students.

References

1. Cutter, Virginia. "And Beyond the Lines," Vistas inReading, Proceedings of the International Reading Associ-ation, 2 (1), 1966, 64-66.

2. Dolch, E. W. "Success in Remedial Reading," in Oscar S.Causy (Ed.), The Reading Teacher's Reader. New York:The Ronald Press Co., 1958.

3. Fisher, Cora I. "Ektendihg Comprehension Skills," inOscar S. Causy (Ed.), Starting and Improving CollegeReading Programs. Fort Worth: The Texas ChristianUniversity Press, April, 1958, 60-66.

4. Gainsburg, Joseph C. "Achieving Personal Maturity ThroughReading by Reacting to Ideas!" in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.),New Frontiers in Reading, Proceedings of the InternationalReading Association, 5, 1960, 96-98.

5. Holmes, Jack A. "Speed, Comprehension, and Power inReading," in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.), Challenge andExperience in Reading, Proceedings of the InternationalReading Association, 7, 1962, 143-149.

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6. Letson, Charles T. "Achieving Personal Maturity throughReading by Establishing Purposes for Reading," in J. AllenFigurel (Ed.), New Frontiers in Reading, Proceedings ofthe International Reading Association, 5, 1960, 93-96.

7. Marksheffel, Ned. D. Better Reading in the SecondarySchool. New York: Tbe Ronald Press Company, 1966.

8. Robinson, Frances P. Effective Study. New York: Harperand Row Publishers, 1961.

9. Schick, George B. "Diversity in College Reading Programs,"in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.), Perspectives in Reading No. 1:College-Adult Reading Instruction, Proceedings of theInternational Reading Association, 9, 1964, 14-26.

10. Shaw, Phillip. "College Reading Improvement Programs ofthe Future," in J. Allen Figurel (Ed.), Changing Conceptsof Reading Instructions, 6, 1961, 48-51.

11. Smith, Henry P., and Emerald V. Dechant. Psychology inTeachinz Reading. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 19;6.

12. Sochor, Elona. "Readiness and the Development of'ReadingAbility at All School Levels," in Oscar S. Causey (Ed.),The Reading Teacher's Reader. New York: The RonaldPress Company, 1958.

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