Reading in School and Reading as an adult

[Redsfaithful]

I'll quickly become tired and end up dozing off.

I used to get this, switching to a Kindle helped for some reason.

[marcshoe]

I read almost entirely on kindle these days, with the only exception being some of my textbooks and journal articles and studies. For some reason, even though I read on the Kindle with no problem, my eyes can't adjust to reading a long article on a regular computer screen. I have to print journal articles out before reading them, killing as many trees as possible.

Which reminds me, I need to print out a journal article for tomorrow.

[SunDeck]

I hated literature in high school; what we read was largely incomprehensible to me and the level of analysis that was expected from students was over my head. And in college I did even worse, leaving me with the feeling (probably to this day) that there's something missing in my intellectual make up. In that sense, my reading habits for fiction have always gravitated toward stuff that's not overly complex. That's not to say I wouldn't read a classic, but honestly, the author has less than fifty pages to hook me or I'm out of there.

Now, am I a reader? Yes! I read constantly, but it's almost always utilitarian; I used to read the NYT religiously and I've had a subscription to the Atlantic and the New Yorker for many years. But I do read fiction, ordinarily it's historical, like the year I spent reading every age of sea novel we had in the library. Moby Dick is an exception, because, well, fifty pages in I was struggling to stay awake. Anyway, that little project netted somewhere around 60 books. Even thought it was fiction, it was also utilitarian reading; I am a hobby sailor who dreams of one day cruising into the open sea. And I read YA novels...in German, because it helps me retain the language. Weird, right?

I used to review books for a business journal; I like that stuff, books on innovation, corporate history, especially when it's good narrative non-fiction. Then again, I did this for the money, so it's not like I've sought any of that stuff out after the gig ended. What I like is good story telling; David McCullough, Walter McDougall, Malcolm MacDowell.

On a side note, I met Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket) yesterday. One of the funniest lunch speakers I've ever had the pleasure of listening to. And he's genuinely personable, too.

[marcshoe]

I'm taking a break from transcribing an interview I did last week. The interviewee was a high school counselor who had briefly been an English teacher. She talked about how much of what she read in high school was meaningless to her, but when she re-read the material after she had more life experience, she got it. I wonder whether we could do a better job creating readers if we eased up on the classics some (not entirely) and gave students more choice as to what to read. I've read several studies lately that pointed in this direction as well.

I have a year and a half before I start my dissertation, so I have time to think.

[marcshoe]

btw, people keep suggesting that I try transcription software, so I plugged my interview into an online sample. Here's the result.

nnj where these questions nnj well mn so dnmt you anyone dnmt yeah jumpers just entertaining do you know seem somewhat if you're wondering insurance recordings all right arm so Disney you can't imagine wow short list anything so it's not in so I didn't worry I wasn't here their interests and that's fine wants the organs sting supermarkets so won't Xena's eyes or some Wednesday was I importantly yeah wondering all students no really more all market moves your answering not many so remember wow are almost all do you have slow reading this something awful reading marketing about Cellucci so well I don't know why in more ways so I don't kn around three well Sir emergencies in western Sydney did things around I so all in so I think it's yours arms well I'm just as small stones while you certain certain njima what's your number

The word "entertaining" is actually in the interview, but I'm not sure any of the others are. njima indeed.

[SunDeck]

I'm taking a break from transcribing an interview I did last week. The interviewee was a high school counselor who had briefly been an English teacher. She talked about how much of what she read in high school was meaningless to her, but when she re-read the material after she had more life experience, she got it. I wonder whether we could do a better job creating readers if we eased up on the classics some (not entirely) and gave students more choice as to what to read. I've read several studies lately that pointed in this direction as well.

I have a year and a half before I start my dissertation, so I have time to think.

I agree with what that counselor says, or at least it was probably my experience exactly. I think having to read The Pearl actually damaged my interest in reading. My wife is a children's librarian and she has long been frustrated by reading lists for kids and parents who demand that their kids read up to a certain lexile level. The point, she says, is that kids need to learn to love reading before they can be pushed to work at reading.

[Spitball]

Marc, I strongly suggest you look at Readicide by Kelly Gallagher http://kaymcgriff.edublogs.org/2011/...lly-gallagher/ and Reading Don't Fix No Chevys by Michael Smith and Jeffrey Wilhelm http://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print/resource/1292 .

These two books both do excellent jobs of examining some of the problems with literature instruction in today's educational systems.

[marcshoe]

Thanks. I'm reading Readicide now, and I'll check out the other book as well.