蜜桃影视

Five years after implementation of the Common Core State Standards in reading began in earnest, some instructional practices in reading have shifted for the better, while others 鈥� most notably teachers assigning texts based on reading level rather than grade level 鈥� have actually changed for the worse, a new report finds.

The Common Core State Standards encouraged a number of big changes in American reading instruction, including a shift to more complex texts, particularly nonfiction, and content-rich curriculum. The standards are more rigorous, but can present challenges for teachers, particularly those whose students are behind academically.

A little more than a quarter 鈥� 26 percent 鈥� of teachers surveyed for a said they assign texts based on grade level rather than reading level. That鈥檚 down from 38 percent in a , meaning that fewer struggling readers are being challenged to catch up to where they should be.

Overall, elementary-level teachers are still the most likely to assign based on the less rigorous reading level, but the proportion of middle and high school teachers who do has risen sharply from the older study, from 38 to 58 percent among middle school teachers, and from 24 to 42 percent for high school.

One potential explanation for the marked uptick is that 鈥渘early half of teachers say 鈥榥ot enough鈥� attention has been paid to 鈥榙iagnosing and addressing the challenges posed by a text,鈥� 鈥� the report authors wrote.

Struggling readers can access grade-level texts with appropriate help from teachers, like early introductions of potentially tricky vocabulary words or 鈥渂read-crumbing鈥� questions that help lead students through text, study author David Griffith, Fordham鈥檚 senior policy associate, told 蜜桃影视.

But that鈥檚 a difficult skill for teachers to pick up, he said.

鈥淲e need to help teachers a little bit here, because we鈥檙e asking a lot of them when we say teach grade-level texts, even when [students] are behind,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not doing it, and it seems likely that鈥檚 just part a basic capacity issue.鈥�

The Common Core State Standards is a group of benchmarks for reading and math, developed by state leaders through the National Governors Association and Council of Chief State School Officers. Forty-one states, the District of Columbia, and the Defense Department鈥檚 school system both the reading and math standards; a few states adopted and later revoked them.

They garnered intense criticism among conservatives as an inappropriate attempt to nationalize K-12 education 鈥� President Donald Trump during his 2016 campaign called for abolishing them 鈥� and many parents and teachers balked, saying some of the tests aligned to the standards were too difficult.

Teachers surveyed by Fordham also said they鈥檙e assigning less fiction and more informational texts. That鈥檚 important, given the Common Core鈥檚 emphasis on nonfiction, but they also said they鈥檙e assigning fewer 鈥渃lassic works of literature,鈥� which the report authors called a 鈥渃oncerning development.鈥�

鈥淟iterature should remain the cornerstone of English courses in middle and high school,鈥� the report states.

鈥淕reat works of literature鈥� should include literary fiction and nonfiction, as prescribed by the Common Core, the authors said.

鈥淚n other words, the reading list should include not only 鈥楾he Great Gatsby鈥� and 鈥楲ord of the Flies,鈥� but also works such as 鈥楲etters from a Birmingham Jail,鈥� The Emancipation Proclamation [and others],鈥� they wrote.

Educators should remember that the emphasis on nonfiction is spread across subjects, so history, science, and other teachers as well as English teachers should help students learn to analyze informational texts, the report said.

General content knowledge has also been overlooked, the report found.

More than half of teachers surveyed 鈥斅�56 percent 鈥斅爏aid general content knowledge 鈥渟uch as the laws of gravity or who Shakespeare was鈥� have not gotten enough attention in state standards or implementation.

鈥淸General content knowledge is] critical to vocabulary acquisition. It鈥檚 critical to reading comprehension. It almost equates to those things. If you don鈥檛 know anything about outer space, you鈥檙e not going to be able to make sense about a scientific article about it,鈥� Griffith said.

The report offers several , including the use of 鈥渢ext sets,鈥� or units focused on one broad subject to help build general knowledge and vocabulary.

School leaders and advocates could work to craft better curricula, particularly ones that offer students the general knowledge they need, Griffith said.

Teachers also aren鈥檛 doing enough to push for evidence-based writing, still relying on creative and personal expression, the report said.

On the positive side, teachers are doing a good job teaching vocabulary in the context of reading text, Griffith said.

鈥淭he days of sort of disconnected flashcards seem to be over,鈥� Griffith said.

They鈥檙e also using appropriate tools to gauge the complexity of texts they鈥檙e giving to students, and they鈥檙e teaching the 鈥渃lose reading鈥� analytical skills that students need, according to the report.

Researchers surveyed 1,237 English language arts teachers online in fall 2017, and they also conducted a focus group with teachers from Maryland ahead of the survey.

Disclosure: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided financial support for the Thomas B. Fordham Institute report and 蜜桃影视.

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