SCET Journal 2020

Reconsidering

Our Practice

Summer Reading: Let Students Choose!

Julianna V. Lux

Summer reading—these two words are often a point of contention among students, parents, teach- ers, and administration in many districts. According to the very non-academic site, Urban Dictionary, summer reading is the “prickiest thing teachers could come up with, usually blown off until the last minute because kids shouldnt [sic] be forced to read” (Sum- mer Reading, n.d.). A quick glance at some South Carolina high school websites uncovered a variety of summer reading programs: lists of books from which students choose; a book or small number of books chosen by teachers for all the students to read; book lists sometimes accompanied by assignments includ- ing annotations, essays, journals, online discussions, projects, or other assessments during the school year. Based on my review, summer reading is rarely optional and seldom allows free choice. In the past 16 years, the English department at my freshman academy has implemented at least six different summer reading programs, with almost every program receiving a number of complaints from parents, students, or teachers including: books are inappropriate for the student; not enough options are available; the books are too hard for the students; the books are too easy for the students; the books are boring; my child would prefer to read a book of his own choice; we could not find the assigned book; we did not want to force her to read a book she did not want to read. And once the students return to school, the problems continue as teachers must decide how to assess the summer reading. Ultimately, students resent being forced to complete homework over the summer; parents resent having to give up vacation time to force students to read; teachers resent having to assess the students knowing some did not read and instead use Spark Notes or Pink Monkey or watch the movie. This is a no-win situation. Why is Summer Reading Important? The necessity for reading year-round is well-docu- mented (Allington, et al., 2010; Scholastic & YouGov, 2017). In 2017, 65% of the nation’s eighth grade students scored below proficient in reading (NAEP, 2017). Numerous studies have demonstrated the amount of time spent reading is a predictor of read-

ing achievement (Blanton, 2015; Whitten, Labby, & Sullivan, 2016). We need our students to read during the summer. Summer reading helps to curb the summer learn- ing gap—also known as summer reading loss, sum- mer drift, summer decline, or summer slide—through continued practice and engagement with text. In general, reading improves academic achievement (Blanton, 2015; Lindley, Giles, & Tunks, 2016) and develops vocabulary skills (Durán Bautista & Rendón Marulanda, 2018), deeper thinking skills, and critical thinking skills (Colwell, Woodward, Hutchison, 2018). Whitten, Labby, and Sullivan (2016) determined avid readers achieved higher academic averages than those who read little or not at all. Even children and parents recognize the impact reading through the summer has on expanding vocabulary and keeping the brain active (Scholastic & YouGov, 2017). Reading through the summer improves self-perceptions of reading ability and encourages additional recreational reading, which improves academic reading achieve- ment (Arnone, Small, & Weng, 2015). In contrast, the lack of continued reading and learning through the summer can lead to more pronounced achievement gaps as a child progresses through school (Alexan- der, Entwisle, & Olson, 2007). Reading also improves non-academic areas of development. Reading encourages agency (Ivey & Johnston, 2013); emotional and moral development (Colwell et al., 2018); identity development, relation- ship skills, and autonomy (Ivey & Johnston, 2013); and the desire to examine other perspectives and empathize (Colwell et al., 2018; Ivey & Johnston, 2013). With so many positive reasons to read, why not encourage our students to read as much as pos- sible? To curb summer reading loss, students need to be reading and enjoying what they are reading. Unfor- tunately, the students who need to be reading are not reading the classics we often assign during the sum- mer, at least not as much as we would like. Many of the classics are far more dense and challenging than most students are willing to tackle during summer va- cation. Very few of my students have ever expressed the desire to read To Kill a Mockingbird or Things Fall Apart

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