EXPERIMENTS IN EDUCATION

Vol.XXXV September 2007 No.9

Editorial

Research and Development towards 'Centum' Scores:

II. Reading

We have seen in the previous issue that the first contributory factor towards centum scores is attention in the classroom, and how to improve that. The second major and direct contributory factor is reading. Unlike in the West reading is not offered as a separate optional subject in teacher education in India. With the result our teachers know very little about reading in a systematic way. Another consequence of such neglect of reading is that what little we know about reading pertains to literature on the subject based on the teaching and learning of the English language and not our Indian languages which belong to a different of family as per the taxonomy of linguists. It is time the N.C.E.R.T. and the N.C.T.E. took some initiative to promote reading in English as well as in the various Indian languages.

From the point of view of helping bright pupils secure centum we can draw upon research findings which prima facie appear to be universally applicable. The first and foremost question is which is more productive-silent reading or loud reading. 'Initiation' into reading in the elementary classes has necessarily to be in the 'loud' mode: otherwise, the teacher cannot

readily know whether a pupil has learnt to read a particular word properly: as the teaching of reading has to precede the teaching of writing albeit by a few moments, the first, formative, instant, concurrent and ongoing evaluation of a

pupil's mastery of reading of a particular word cannot be otherwise. At the elementary level it will be difficult to set apart time for silent reading in an in-class session. One major problem is classroom management: it is very difficult to keep small children in a classroom from making noise without specifically engaging their attention-without talking to them. And, there is no way the teacher can ensure the young, five year old has his/her attention on the word he/she is to master during the silent interregnum for reading.

Perhaps, the concept of reading readiness has to be further articulated into the two distinct of modes of reading: readiness for loud reading and readiness for silent reading. Innumerable researches from varied perspectives have more or less established that silent reading is more productive than loud reading. Obviously the learning of loud reading must precede that of silent reading in epigenetic growth and development. We do not know whether research has been undertaken on the question of whether readiness for loud reading and for silent reading unfold epigenetically at different points in time, sufficiently far apart -like one year-such that it is premature to try to teach silent reading when initiation into reading is begun. If so, it is necessary to train the individual pupil to learn and master silent reading as and when he/she matures into readiness for the same and not when initiation into (loud) reading is begun. Up to the present generation, we believe, those of us in India who have become well-versed in silent reading have done so by trial and error and not due to specific training for that.

Whatever the nature of the temporal relationship between loud reading and silent reading the pupil who is going to face his/her first public examination is already 14 years old and must have become ready for silent reading at least two years ago. It is a moot question

whether pupils who are to face the public examinations in about 6 months' time and who still read aloud are to be re-conditioned into the silent reading mode and whether it is possible to do this re-conditioning tromp the loud to the silent reading mode within this span of time. We have advised the school and the teachers not to disturb the pupils who are going to face the public examinations on their mode of reading lest this exercise turn out to be counter-productive.

However, we have advised the school to conduct a survey among the pupils in other classes who do not have a public examination within a year and identify loud readers and silent

September 2007

readers. With the help of a simple, even crude IQ test it must be possible to find out whether loud reading makes for statistically significant under-achievement. If it does, such underachievers must be re-conditioned to silent reading after giving them feedback to this effect. It is quite likely that loud reading makes for underachievement in most cases but not in all. Even if it does not, all must be reconditioned to the silent reading mode as the silent mode is less energy consuming. A year, we reckon, should be sufficient to do the reconditioning to silent reading.

Beyond reconditioning to silent reading, the SQ3 R Method of reading, which is now widely known for its effectiveness, is to be taught to all the students. The strategy we have chosen is to select among the volunteering teachers of the school Lhose who evince an interest in and aptitude for the teaching of reading, train them for teaching the pupils the SQ3R Method, with a few sample/demonstration sessions, in the paradigm of an action research program involving a simple pre-test - post-test field experiment.

- Dr.D.Raja Ganesan