Welcome to education: I Won't Read and You Can't Make Me

Many teachers tell their students: "don't write in the book!" but I am definitely NOT one of those teachers. I write in my books. And it's easy to tell which books I've really connected with because I'll write A LOT in these books. I even encourage my students to write in their books, that is, if they own them and sometimes I just encourage them to write in my books, but with pencil. I think this interaction with the text is crucial for really digesting the material and it helps me remember which parts I particularly connected with or would like to come back to later on. At other times, I simply jot a word or two in the margins just so that I can remember that paragraph's main point (because sometimes it's a little difficult to figure out exactly what the person WAS trying to say).

Recently, I was supervising my 5th period class as they began their weekly DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) time and a handful of students meandered around the room, trying to locate some new reading material. I have some old magazines I brought from home (Rolling Stone, Details, Vogue, Vanity Fair, etc.) and I also have several bookshelves of romance, classics, field guides, mysteries, etc. I watched each of the meandering students, one-by one, locate something to read and I was reminded of a book I'd borrowed for my school's library: "I won't read and you can't make me" by Marilyn Reynolds. While I had several students in the class who were readers before we began to observe DEAR, there were many more that were reluctant readers. I located the book, opened it up and promptly got ready to make some notes in the margins, when I realized it wasn't my book. Instead, I grabbed some of my trusty scrap paper, and began to jot down some of Ms. Reynolds' main points. I was sucked back into the book... and I realized I'd had the book for quite sometime (as in, over a year) without having recieved an overdue notice. I knew I was "special," but I didn't think I was that special. Realizing that I must have accidentally stolen the book from my school's library, I took it back and formally checked it out with the vow to read it in a timely manner and actually return the book to the library BEFORE it was due.

What reminded me the book was on the shelf was my desire to find some solutions to the students being reluctant to read. I was pleasantly surprised that Ms. Reynolds and I agreed about many of the tactics that will work and have worked as well as the tactics that are definitely losers. First and forement, DEAR was a winner. I could agree with that, with the caveat that each teacher had to lead by example and demand reading for enjoyment. DEAR is NOT and should NOT be used as a study hall, otherwise it undermines the fundamentals of allowing students to connect with reading. It gives them the excuse to do something else. This is a gross injustice to the students, whether the students realize it or not. That's what teachers are for: to guide and mold students to be responsible, healthy adults.

Ms. Reynolds covered a myriad of issues facing reluctant reader. She lets the reader know about her student population, which included students from diverse backgrounds and especially students with learning disabilities, histories of abuse (sexual, psychological, substance, etc.) among other extenuating circumstances. The approach is the same: find a book that the student can connect with. Once this connection is formed, continue to encourage more connections with books by suggesting more books and talking with the student about what he or she is reading. Feed the student's soul through reading and the desire to learn and the reading skills will also develop with this student's desire to read more.

Why do I love this book? 1. It supports students reading ALL types of books-- even the ones with foul language, sex, violence and other controversial issues. The goal is for a student to connect with a book and sometimes this is only done through a student being able to relate to the book-- which often will mean that the language and experiences should be reflective of what the students has/ is encountering. 2. It gives ways teachers go right and go wrong with encouraging reading. There are lists and explanations. This should be mandatory reading for administrators and all teachers-- particularly in the field of language arts. 3. This book encourages teachers to become the writers teens are seeking out & it encourages teachers by showing that there a several authors who got their starts in this way. 4. Lastly, Ms. Reynolds gives a nice list of tried and true books for teens and she breaks them down by topics too.

What would I change about this book? The organization struck me as peculiar in that I felt that it popped around enough that it didn't always flow logically. Also, I would have like to see more about her process for publishing and more about how she assesses students' reading gains. I realize the goal is to encourage a lifelong habit of reading, so there may only be qualitative analysis for this, but it seems like there should be some research out there that she could have brought in to really back up her claims. In this way, I felt that her argument was not nearly as influential as it could have been (remember, I'm already a DEAR supporter). Lastly, (p. 119) there were a couple of errors: Zlata Filipovic is NOT the author for "Freedom Writer's Diary." Filipovic wrote "Zlata's Diary". Erin Gruwell is the author to "Freedom Writer's Diary." On the same page later on, it says that "No One Here Gets Out Alive" is about John Morrison, when it's actually about Jim Morrison (lead singer for The Doors). I caught both of these because I'd read "Zlata's Diary" and "No One Here Gets Out Alive" and thought they were captivating. "The Freedom Writer's Diary" was adapted into the movie "Freedom Writers," which I would also highly recommend. Overall, it was an informative read and it reminded me a bit of Natalie Goldberg's Long Quiet Highway, which is also about writing and teaching, but in a less "professional development" sort of style.