INCREASES FLUENCY Fluent readers recognize words quickly and accurately, which allows them to focus on “comprehending the text, criticizing it, elaborating on it, and reflecting on it—in short, doing all the things we know good readers do” (Nathan & Stanovich, 1991, p. 176). Reading aloud is a common way to practice fluency, but studies suggest that silent independent reading can play a meaningful role as well. Researchers measured the effectiveness with third graders of an instructional method called scaffolded silent reading. In scaffolded silent reading, teachers guide students’ selection of appropriately challenging books, encourage wide reading of different genres, provide regular feedback about their progress, and hold students accountable for time spent reading silently. The researchers randomly assigned students to one of two groups. One group engaged in guided repeated oral reading all year, while the other participated in scaffolded silent reading. The study found that scaffolded silent reading is just as effective as guided oral reading in improving fluency and comprehension (Reutzel, Jones, Fawson, & Smith, 2008). EXPANDS VOCABULARY Leading literacy researchers analyzed 10,000 digitized texts written for students and identified a “core vocabulary” that accounts for more than 90% of the words in school materials (Hiebert, Goodwin, & Cervetti, 2018). The list consists of roughly 11,000 words, an untenable number for classroom instruction; but through avid independent reading, students can grow their vocabularies immensely. Research suggests that reading volume is the prime contributor to differences in children’s vocabularies (Hayes, 1988; Nagy & Anderson, 1984). The average child at the 90th percentile in reading volume reads almost two million words per year outside of school, over 46 times more words than a child at the 10th percentile (Anderson et al., 1988). “Even the child with limited reading and comprehension skills will build vocabulary and cognitive structures by being encouraged to read” (Cunningham, 2005, p. 64). Another study analyzed the role of pleasure reading in learning academic words. The study defined academic vocabulary as both technical terms specific to a given discipline, such as photosynthesis , and words that appear across many subject areas, such as influence . It found that free reading of popular young adult fiction is between two and six times more efficient for learning academic words than direct teaching of the words. While the research does not suggest that students can learn all academic words by reading fiction, the activity can “serve as a bridge or ‘conduit’ to academic language” (McQuillan, 2019, p. 134). Reading nonfiction can also boost vocabulary, exposing students to academic words they must master in order to be successful readers across a range of content areas (Young, Moss, & Cornwell, 2007).
SCHOLASTIC LITERACY PRO FOUNDATION PAPER 7
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