LET’S NOT FORGET READING RECOVERY!

I know being interviewed on a radio programme does not allow the subject to be fully explored, but some time ago, I was listening to FM Classic radio (Margaret Throsby) and the topic was, ‘Simple view of reading’ with Reading Comprehension happening as the result of Listening Comprehension (linguistics) and Decoding. The interviewee began with the naming of 5 components of reading, phonemic awareness, alphabet principle, fluency, wide vocabulary and finally comprehension was mentioned. It may seem ‘simple’ as it appeared to be a linear process. 

The message that did not come across was that all the above mentioned parts should intermingle as a child reads for meaning. Comprehension happens as children read; furthermore, it is not tacked on the end when questions are asked.


(Incidentally, I always associate phonics learning and learning to write words (spelling) with writing).

‘Simple view of reading’ seems to weigh heavily towards the phonics learning direction; children's view of  reading may be that  decoding words rather than making meaning is what reading is about. Decoding is a complex operation and for some children they concentrate on decoding (sometimes not successfully) and miss comprehending the meaning of the ideas in a story. As anyone knows It is not always the case that phonics and  the ‘alphabet principle’ match. There is inconsistency between many word sounds and how words are graphically represented.

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But it is not this programme that has my attention, it is Reading Recovery that I shall be writing about in this paper. Reading Recovery is an intensive literacy experience designed for young students who have been identified as being at-risk of reading failure after 1 year of schooling: I ask, why do we keep diverting our attention away from such an effective and correct method of teaching children to read?

In Reading Recovery, as children read material at a level close to their independent reading level, they learn or reinforce and practise letter knowledge and sounds; they learn decoding strategies (e.g. look at the first letter, break the word into syllables);  day-by-day they increase their vocabulary, which assists their fluency when reading and their understanding of word meanings is established before they read. Each child learns to use thinking strategies (e.g. predicting, “What do you think will happen next?”,  analysing, “Why do you think the main character behaved that way?”): they connect prior knowledge, visualize the happenings, deal with the unusual and differences and monitor their own reading (e.g. does it make sense?). They learn how language structures (e.g. punctuation, grammar) help make meaning.

During the daily ½ hour Reading Recovery session children  transform what they have read into written sentences, thus further reinforcing their understandings.

As well,  during each session, the child's progress is assessed (Running Records / thinking questions are asked). All aspects, phonemic awareness, alphabet principle, wide vocabulary and comprehension, fluency are learnt at the point of need. Independent reading and understanding being the aims. Moreover, teaching expertise is the required ingredient.

My thinking lapses into thoughts of Dame Professor Marie Clay and her colleagues from Auckland University, New Zealand, who in the 1970’s researched successful  methods teachers use to teach reading  to their students; the teaching decisions they make and the effectiveness of their reinforcement of strategies that readers take on. All this research created teaching practices, specific to reading, ‘Reading Recovery’ (with individuals) and later the development of ‘Guided Reading’ with small groups within the classroom. 

Reading Recovery teachers take on an intensive year’s study of what to observe and how to respond; what questions to ask, what strategies are beneficial. The training teachers are taught by Reading Recovery tutors who are extremely knowledgeable and skilled. Learning and practise for Reading Recovery teachers does do not stop there. ‘Continuous contact’ approximately 3 times a year reinforces a Reading Recovery teacher’s teaching proficiency. The philosophy of Reading Recovery is that it is a trained, competent teacher who works with children with reading difficulties.

Of course, an argument against Reading Recovery has always been that it is too expensive. Reading Recovery is patented but maybe slight adjustments should be put in place (although I cannot help thinking, “What price do we pay for our children to read and think independently?”).

Reading Recovery states that all children in their first year at school are fully part of the classroom reading programme. This is an appropriate approach. It is where phonics is fairly dominant, but so is extending a reader’s vocabulary, and hopefully this learning, comprehension and lateral thinking happens in the context of continuous print.

By the 2^nd year some children are not reading at a level that they should be. It is also the case that in some schools there may be a large amount of children needing extra assistance. Reading Recovery and one Reading Recovery teacher, taking 4 children per morning, would be hard put to cater for all these children’s needs. 

Suggestions are: 

Tier 1 for children who would quickly respond to 1-1 expert instruction (approximately 19 weeks).   

Tier 2 for children who would need a far longer time than 19 weeks to respond, could  be better served working in small groups for ½ hour each day with the Reading Recovery expert. 

As well, teachers in the classroom are trained in the teaching strategies by the Reading Recovery teachers  and when they implement Guided Reading (the classroom version of Reading Recovery), they reinforce the learning children are exposed to in Reading  Recovery. For example, teachers knowing not to confuse children by introducing too much in a lesson and keeping focused on a learning aspect. These are, in fact, teaching practices that are necessary in all areas of learning in the classroom.

As a final comment, I have seen children in Reading Recovery warm to reading because it is connected to ‘real’ reading and they see themselves gradually master more and more difficult texts. Most importantly, they learn to help themselves problem solve as they read.So let Reading Recovery be brought back in schools.