The Book-Reading Habits of Students in American Schools

[Flux]

I apologize if this has already been posted. I read some and skimmed some, but found it kind of interesting. It's not very hard to pick out the assigned reading! I read somewhere else recently that High-Schoolers read largely on about a 5th grade level. A lot of what appears to have been assigned reading is around that level, with a few exceptions of course. Here it is.

[usetoschool]

Well, that just makes me sad and grateful I homeschool, especially in light of the many threads and discussions and reading lists going on around here the last few days. I kept looking for a pull out quote to sum up what frustrates and saddens me but there are just so many things that are wrong and discouraging and I am only on page four.

 

Fifth grade reading level? Really? We are doomed.

 

I think the librarian's ideas and list are the most shocking and telling.

 

eta: I am listening to a talk about the history of progressive education while I am reading that report - there couldn't be a more clear example of how it has failed.

This is the road we started down and now we have come to the end of the road and all of the educators are running around with their hands in the air wondering what went wrong and how did we get here and how do we fix it.

Edited March 26, 2012 by jcooperetc
who stole my apostrophe - I know I put it in...

[Parrothead]

 

Fifth grade reading level? Really? We are doomed.

 

Nah. It will be easier for the homeschooled kids to take over and rule the world. No problem.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

:lol::lol::lol:

[Butter]

Reading level isn't the whole story. Hunger Games, for example, is a RL 5.3. That just tells you what the words equal. Themes are a whole different story. So when they say 5th grade reading level, do they mean just the words (usually, that's it) or do they include comprehension? I mean, not all 5th graders could *understand* Hunger Games even if they could read the words easily.

[usetoschool]

Nah. It will be easier for the homeschooled kids to take over and rule the world. No problem.

 

 

:D and hopefully help the next generation out of this mess

[Flux]

Reading level isn't the whole story. Hunger Games, for example, is a RL 5.3. That just tells you what the words equal. Themes are a whole different story. So when they say 5th grade reading level, do they mean just the words (usually, that's it) or do they include comprehension? I mean, not all 5th graders could *understand* Hunger Games even if they could read the words easily.

 

Yeah, my guess is that reading level was compiled from words used and sentence structure. I think themes were probably what loosely constituted the lower, middle, and upper grades abbreviations that followed.

[SailorMom]

It's a computer program - they type in representative paragraphs and the computer spits out a number.

The scores are based on the words and length of sentences.

Tiki Tiki Tembo (the kids' picture book) scores higher than The Grapes of Wrath. (I looked it up)

The scores mean very little.

Edited March 26, 2012 by SailorMom

[6packofun]

Top 25 Librarians' picks for grades 9-12? Sheesh. So, those aren't the librarians' actual picks from their OWN selection, they had to choose from 200 "most popular" books (meaning, popular with the teens??). It's settling for the best of the low standards that teens choose for themselves. Really helpful for parents and teachers.

 

And Gossip Girl books being some of the most challenged? LOL!!! Oh, WAHH.

[Susan in TN]

Reading level isn't the whole story. Hunger Games, for example, is a RL 5.3. That just tells you what the words equal. Themes are a whole different story. So when they say 5th grade reading level, do they mean just the words (usually, that's it) or do they include comprehension? I mean, not all 5th graders could *understand* Hunger Games even if they could read the words easily.

 

That's true, but I think it does speak to the overall decline in language complexity, which is sad.

[Flux]

Well, that just makes me sad and grateful I homeschool, especially in light of the many threads and discussions and reading lists going on around here the last few days. I kept looking for a pull out quote to sum up what frustrates and saddens me but there are just so many things that are wrong and discouraging and I am only on page four.

 

Fifth grade reading level? Really? We are doomed.

 

I think the librarians ideas and list are the most shocking and telling.

 

eta: I am listening to a talk about the history of progressive education while I am reading that report - there couldn't be a more clear example of how it has failed.

This is the road we started down and now we have come to the end of the road and all of the educators are running around with their hands in the air wondering what went wrong and how did we get here and how do we fix it.

 

Agreed.

 

Thanks for the chuckle, Chucki. I have a lifelong bad habit of finding humor in things I probably shouldn't, so it's appreciated!

[justamouse]

Nah. It will be easier for the homeschooled kids to take over and rule the world. No problem.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

:lol::lol::lol:

 

The saddest part is that it's slightly believable. Especially the way things are going.

[LostSurprise]

I'd say read the article, especially the book charts.

 

Most writing is based at a 6th grade level. Certainly newspapers are. Complex 800 page Harry Potter books? 6th grade level. In fact, there wasn't anything on the list that went over a 6th grade level except Shakespeare. That's right, they had to pick the guy who invented thousands of words, wrote in iambic pentameter, and lived at a huge change in the English language in order to break 6th grade level...and he's only at a 10th grade level.

 

Tracking classics written 50-250 years ago most were in the 5th-6th grade range.

 

This is not about theme.

This is not about complexity.

This is not about 'difficult' novels.

This is about how long a sentence is. How long average words are. All in a single paragraph or passage pulled from the small part of an entire book.

 

The sky is not falling. Carry on.

[Mrs Mungo]

I'd say read the article, especially the book charts.

 

Most writing is based at a 6th grade level. Certainly newspapers are. Complex 800 page Harry Potter books? 6th grade level. In fact, there wasn't anything on the list that went over a 6th grade level except Shakespeare. That's right, they had to pick the guy who invented thousands of words, wrote in iambic pentameter, and lived at a huge change in the English language in order to break 6th grade level...and he's only at a 10th grade level.

 

Tracking classics written 50-250 years ago most were in the 5th-6th grade range.

 

This is not about theme.

This is not about complexity.

This is not about 'difficult' novels.

This is about how long a sentence is. How long average words are. All in a single paragraph or passage pulled from the small part of an entire book.

 

The sky is not falling. Carry on.

 

Generally, I agree with this. eta: Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee is listed at 7.9. That is a *very* dense, dry book. Reading that book would be beyond most seventh graders (and it's not age appropriate, either). The Grapes of Wrath at 4.9? Candide at 7.3? Yeah, these are not accurate grade levels, imo. I have actually read all of these books and the *actual books* are much more difficult than these grade levels imply.

 

I did have a problem with what one author tries to claim:

What SHOULD children read? I say: whatever they want. To illustrate

my point, let’s take this simple test:

What would YOU rather read? (please choose only one)

A) A book that’s fun and entertaining, but doesn’t teach you anything.

B) A book that will teach you something, but isn’t fun or entertaining.

Why do you have to choose? I read for both purposes. I may not get the same *type* of pleasure from reading a breezy beach read as I do from an Edith Wharton novel or from learning about Thermopylae, but I can take away a sense of accomplishment and edification. Those should be *good reasons* to read! Edited March 26, 2012 by Mrs Mungo

[Jenny in Florida]

I did have a problem with what one author tries to claim:

Why do you have to choose? I read for both purposes.

 

I'll go farther and say that I find learning entertaining.

 

Also, I did read the report, and my 14-year-old son was looking over my shoulder. It's not just the grade equivalents that we found bothersome. We have both read a number of the books on those lists, and we both freely admit that many of them -- the majority, actually -- are very light reading.

 

My son said he's thrilled I don't let him get away with reading nothing but the stuff on those lists. He was even more surprised and appalled than I was at some of those selections.

[heliconian]

While I agree that the classification of books by reading level in this article is completely useless, I had a major problem with a basic assumption of some of the authors. Jeff Kinney stated it most clearly:

 

“As parents, my wife and I are just along for the ride....The way I see it, our goal as parents is to respond to their interests without judgment and to be ready with a new book in hand.”

 

I don't see myself as someone who is just along for the ride. I see myself as a guide. And while I get the point about making sure that the child gets to pursue his own interests, he won't be interested in the wonders of the world unless he knows about them. It's my job to show him.

[Mrs Mungo]

I'll go farther and say that I find learning entertaining.

 

I find it entertaining too, just not the same type of entertaining. It's not always pleasant because the topics are not always pleasant. People shouldn't believe that it should only be pleasant.

 

Also, I did read the report, and my 14-year-old son was looking over my shoulder. It's not just the grade equivalents that we found bothersome. We have both read a number of the books on those lists, and we both freely admit that many of them -- the majority, actually -- are very light reading.

 

My son said he's thrilled I don't let him get away with reading nothing but the stuff on those lists. He was even more surprised and appalled than I was at some of those selections.

 

Those on pages 24 and 25? I would *definitely* consider most of those light reading. My tenth grader just finished The Inferno. But, I would not consider a 11th grader reading Walden or Crime and Punishment to be doing below grade-level work, but that is what the chart is implying (page 47). The conclusions (up front) seem to be creating a somewhat false impression.

[Jenny in Florida]

Those on pages 24 and 25? I would *definitely* consider most of those light reading. My tenth grader just finished The Inferno. But, I would not consider a 11th grader reading Walden or Crime and Punishment to be doing below grade-level work, but that is what the chart is implying (page 47). The conclusions (up front) seem to be creating a somewhat false impression.

 

Here are some of the books that appeared on the top 40 high school list:

 

Twilight

Breaking Dawn

Eclipse

New Moon

The Percy Jackson series (original, not the newer one)

The House of Night series

The Harry Potter series

Holes

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series

The Kane Chronicles

Hatchet

Pretty Little Liars

 

What I noticed was that many of the titles on the Core Standards list (including the ones you mentioned) didn't actually appear on the top 40 lists.

[LucyStoner]

But, I would not consider a 11th grader reading Walden or Crime and Punishment to be doing below grade-level work, but that is what the chart is implying (page 47). The conclusions (up front) seem to be creating a somewhat false impression.

 

:iagree:

 

The other thing is that I don't think it is all that much different than the past. Newspapers have always been written to about a 5th grade level, right?

 

I concur with the poster who said the sky is not falling. :001_smile:

[Mrs Mungo]

Here are some of the books that appeared on the top 40 high school list:

 

Twilight

Breaking Dawn

Eclipse

New Moon

The Percy Jackson series (original, not the newer one)

The House of Night series

The Harry Potter series

Holes

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series

The Kane Chronicles

Hatchet

Pretty Little Liars

 

Like I said, I agree. I consider that sort of thing light reading, even for elementary school kids.

 

What I noticed was that many of the titles on the Core Standards list (including the ones you mentioned) didn't actually appear on the top 40 lists.

 

Right. So, this hearkens back to the other thread. Why does the school system think it needs to regulate *me*? :glare:

[readinmom]

Keep in mind that this is just a publication, a recommendation. This is in preparation for the common core standards that will be implemented in 2013-14. Finding literary merit in Captain Underpants? Really? Did anyone else notice the lack of quality non-fiction and what we consider the "classics"?

 

Yes, getting most kids to read in a classroom is very difficult. If it's not handed to them, they struggle. The move towards these standards is having a student read a selected passage from the literature, and get the gist of the structure and style (elements). That way we are not "wasting time" teaching an entire novel when we could be focusing on so many other things. :confused::confused:

[TravelingChris]

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is supposedly 5th grade material? I don't think so. The reading index is stupid. It may be helpful for very young readers but for older kids trying to find material to read? I would not recommend any Faulkner for a fifth grader, nor would I recommend Ulysses by James Joyce for a sixth grader.

[Lizzie in Ma]

Nah. It will be easier for the homeschooled kids to take over and rule the world. No problem.

:lol::lol::lol:

 

:iagree: :D

[SailorMom]

According to their ratings:

 

Twilight - 4.9

Of Mice and Men - 4.5

 

'nuff said.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

 

I think the librarian's ideas and list are the most shocking and telling.

 

 

 

:iagree: I really can't believe that list.

[Mom-ninja.]

Nah. It will be easier for the homeschooled kids to take over and rule the world. No problem.

 

 

 

And because I refuse to cut the apron strings (according to some people), it will really be ME who will rule the world. :thumbup1:

 

Of course, I'll share the power with my fellow WTM home school parents.

[mommymilkies]

Nah. It will be easier for the homeschooled kids to take over and rule the world. No problem.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

:lol::lol::lol:

 

:lol:

[2_girls_mommy]

And some of the author's commments on what they should be reading are laughable. Did you see the one by Ellen Hopkins? It had nothing to do with what books they should be reading. Just her views on laws being passed and rants on the ones that have been challenged that were mostly about textbooks, not books that kids should read.

 

I won't talk politics and start saying what I think about her assumptions, just that it had nothing to do with what they should be reading or the lists given. I wasn't getting her logic.

 

And the question about what you want to read: the light, fun story that teaches you nothing or one that teaches you? I say teaches me, hands down. I only read what I learn from. I have always loathed brain candy books, seriously. What teaches me might not be as challenging to others as it is to me, but it teaches me.

[Trish]

Reading level isn't the whole story. Hunger Games, for example, is a RL 5.3. That just tells you what the words equal. Themes are a whole different story. So when they say 5th grade reading level, do they mean just the words (usually, that's it) or do they include comprehension? I mean, not all 5th graders could *understand* Hunger Games even if they could read the words easily.

 

Same thing with To Kill a Mockingbird -- that is usually covered in grades 8 or higher due to theme.

[readinmom]

I almost feel like Scholastic sponsored the report.

 

Our school's book fairs are Scholastic, and we are pushed to order from them to support PTA, etc. No thanks! $3.00 more than at B & N.

 

Our high school librarian does book chats with my kids for their monthly book reports. She always goes for the classics first, and never recommends fluff, as she calls it. She pre-reads every book before chatting with the kids about it.

 

I just don't understand the lists at all.