Ok so a topic came up in 541 the other night that is near and dear to my heart. As a lit devotee for many a year now, I have come to certain realizations about the nature of the written media. It is, the reading of it is, an isolated event. We read the book; we think about it. Perhaps, later, we are lucky enough to discuss it with someone who knows it as well as we do and whose opinion can serve to enlighten ours. But this happens after we have already experienced the text, it is a reflective exercise. Nonetheless, this is part of what draws all of us English Majors to the discipline, that discussion wherein we all learn a little bit more about the books we read, the ways in which we read them and perhaps a bit more about ourselves as readers. It is that opportunity that is so important: to turn the private and personal and rewarding nature of reading into a shared experience. I remember the professor at Rutgers, Vesterman, who first showed me how to close read, who helped me take my appreciation for literature to a new level. The books we read in his course are still among my favorites, if only for the fond memories they hold. The discussion in those classes challenged me to explore my own abilities as a reader. The texts were challenging, my peers were competent and eager and my professor was excellent. I learned why reading and discussing books was my academic passion in that class. Now years later, I have nurtured many other interests that often compete with my desire and time for reading. I love to watch movies and good TV, I listen to music so often and so loudly that I often feel that there is nothing else in the world but that song. And I hurl myself into credit card debt in order to ensure a certain level of aural quality in my car and my apartment. In fact, the stereo in my Subaru is certainly worth more than rusty old, beaten up station wagon that houses it. My point is that nearly everything else I enjoy in life besides reading, can be shared with others in real time, in the moment. Many of these things are in fact better because of it. As anyone can plainly tell, I am a very social person. Most people thrive on personal contact with others, I am a fanatic. The little connections and interactions between other souls and myself is what charges my batteries. I love people. Thus, those other media sources like film and music that lend themselves so well to common experience, to simultaneous and shared enjoyment are very valuable to me.
I had an epiphany one night a couple of years ago, as I sat listening to music with friends of mine. Among mostly close friends, who I knew to be lovers of literature, I wondered aloud why we were always bound to the same activities when indoors. Why couldn't we read a book together or a poem. It sounds stupid or crazy to most people, but then, you goofy English teachers who read my blog are not most people. What happened after that is that we did... we read a book. We took turns, actually, reading aloud and discussing what each person had chosen to read. Since that day, I have incorporated reading aloud into my social circles and party time as often as possible. It is usually difficult, it requires a bit of focus and dedication from all involved. It is not nearly as passive as watching even the most demanding film. But when it happens, it is fantastic. My girlfriend and I have actually completed a novel aloud together, Of Mice and Men, and we are in the midst of numerous others. One of my favorite shows on NPR is Selected Shorts, where a professional actor reads a classic short story to a live audience. To me, this is about the coolest thing in the world. People actually pay to go see these people read. I know that reading aloud is going to be a major part of my relationship with my children when I become a father, and I want it to be a major part of my classroom when I become a teacher.
This brings us to the class discussion in 541. The topic of reading aloud came up, and I felt that my opinion was in the minority. There seems already to be a stigma attached to reading aloud in the classroom. I have heard many an MAT student remark with disdain that one or another host teacher spent entire periods reading from the book, to sighs, yawns and eye rolls from the audience. Or the class who spent six weeks reading Shakespeare aloud and doing nothing else. I agree that this is BS, it is a time filler and, in my opinion, a waste of time. Even the survey we conducted in 505 with Kennedy indicated that the majority of students had a negative attitude toward reading aloud in class. But none of this changes my attitude toward reading aloud with my students. I want my students to get used to reading aloud, and to me reading to them. People say that many students are mortified by reading aloud, that it is cruel to force them. People say that many student readers are not very good at reading aloud, which turns off everyone involved and can make the student doing the reading feel even worse. Worse still some students are terrible readers and don't know or don't care, they are the first ones to raise their hand for the activity and they are the most difficult ones to shut up. I recognize that these are legitimate hurdles for a teacher like myself, but I am afraid of being discouraged by these hurdles. I don't want to give up this ideal. I want to get to a point, in my classroom and in my personal life where reading a book aloud is commonplace. And where it is accepted and looked forward to by a majority. I want to figure it out. I apologize for this inordinately long post, and for the parts that may seem pretentious or self indulgent, but these things are important to me. I am hoping that you English teachers will understand where I am coming from, if you guys don't then the hurdles I speak of are even greater than I imagined. Am I crazy? Will anyone want to join me? Does anyone have success stories about reading aloud in the classroom? If books can be more powerful and emotionally involving than movies, even music, why shouldn't they be shared in that initial moment of power and emotion by more people than the one holding the book.
Here's Kerouac reading from On the Road...
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12 comments:
As you note, Joe, there are many reasons why people shy away from reading aloud in class, and you're right, in many cases it does seem like a time filler.
However I do want to add that public readings are an integral part of our professional writing program. Of course, in that situation, the students are reading their own work, but I think the same point applies. There certainly is value in the performance of work (though I'd note a difference between that peformance and rote reading).
I'm pretty sure I spaced out during this section of class last week, but I think reading aloud can have merit if conducted in a lively manner with a stimulating teacher. And you certainly seem capable of being one of the teachers that can make regular reading aloud in class a worthwhile activity.
Forgot to mention: I found volume 16 of the Selected Shorts: Celebration of the Short Story. Remind me to copy it for you.
Joe, I think that reading aloud, like anything else, is good in moderation. The problem most of us have in class is that teachers pop a tape in so that they can sit back and relax. I also think that "cold" reading is a terrible ordeal for most students. I hated doing it myself; when I read aloud, I'm so focused on how I sound that I entirely miss the meaning. But, if students have time to prepare for a good dramatic read-aloud, then the fear of mispronouncing words or stumbling over the words would definitely be lessened. I like the idea of a class preparing a reading and then discussing it in parts, much as you do with your friends.
The best part about reading aloud is that not only do you share the telling of the story but you also share the emotions of your fellow readers.
I love to hear the emotion you can put into the dialouge. It is sorely missed while reading silently. Besides the dramatic performance and characters that are embued with emotion that is real and vibrating the tiny bones in my inner ear, physically affecting me, the reactive emotions that arise from the reader lend themselves immeasurably to sympathetic and empathetic experiences by the listeners.
Reading non-fiction aloud is equally pleasant. Theory and dissertation is more easily digested when softened by real human sounds.
You got me thinking about my read aloud history, so I posted about it on my blog.
I know that I was one of those people talking about the kids who love to read aloud, but don't do it well thereby boring or frustrating others. I think you're proposing a solution. We should be teaching dramatic reading, not requiring round-robin reading. If we're reading supposedly dramatic, emotional, powerful texts, then shouldn't this come through when we hear them read aloud? And shouldn't we be able to share our reactions immediately - creating a live, interactive reading experience? The challenge is - as usual - it doesn't work like that for everyone. Just look at how people speak in the classes you're in - some always, some never, most in between. To try to help your students develop skills like reading aloud and discussing what they read as they read sounds good to me. Just make sure that they get opportunities to demonstrate their understanding, reactions, questions and insights in a variety of ways.
One of the schools I taught in follwed something called the Balanced Literacy Protocol - basically, it's a way to organize your teaching (I can give more detail if you're interested). A major component of this protocol was a daily read aloud. It was just that - something short, of the teacher's choice, read aloud. Most of the time it introduced or went along with whatever we were doing, but a couple of times I read excerpts from books I was reading that I really liked. Another component was called Read Aloud/Think Aloud. This is something I had done during my student teaching when my cooperating techer and worked with Ellin Keene's Mosaic of Thought. Essentially, you model active/close/critical reading strategies out loud as you read. Not sure if this is making sense, but the point is that reading out loud is definitely happening in English classrooms. The challenge is to make it meaningful. I think you're up to the challenge, Joe.
I suspect you are a fan of This American Life on NPR. There was a great story about a father reading The Borrowers aloud to his daughter. Check it out here. You can click on the speaker icon and the show will start streaming. This story is "Act Three," so fast forward to 37:37 to hear the story.
Joe, I'm glad you brought this topic up on your blog. I admit I am of two minds. I agree that often reading aloud in our classrooms is filler....it's just easier to "cover" the book in class rather than ask students to do any "work" as readers to prepare for class. Increasingly the latter seems to be a novel idea in the ELA classes I visit.
I find it rather amazing though that we would as Eng. teachers expect students to grow as readers if the only time they're reading is for a few minutes in ELA class every other day (block).
But that seems to be the thinking there! Naw, not really, but too much to go into here.
I also believe with you, Sarah and Joe, that dramatic readings by both student and teacher can be very powerful and should have a place in ELA classrooms.
The YA Lit class is currently doing some oral reading of THE POET SLAVE OF CUBA, A BIOGRAPHY OF JUAN FRANCISCO MANZANO, a wonderful new collection of poems written in tribute to Manzano and his work.
Thanks for blogging about this important topic.
P.S. Kerouac, my fav! Thanks for sharing this clip. ON THE ROAD was my bible for many years. I need to re-read. See, you never know what you can learn about your old English teachers.
I'm bringing more giveaways to class on the 12th!!
You should just copy and paste your "Shared Experience" post right into your philosophy of teaching literature paper for 541 next week! Great job on your personal webpage project!
Thank you all for the great comments. They are full of good advice and cool resources. The internet is frickin sweet.
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