Reflection #9: Motivating Students to Read

     The Pitcher et al. article discussed the challenge of motivating young adolescents to read.  Adolescents can sometimes have the perception that reading is something that is primarily done in the classroom.  However, reading is a skill that most adults use every day, whether we realize it or not.   Reading has become a skill that is too often taken for granted.  I liked the questions that were asked in this study.  These questions helped students recognize that they actually are reading even when they are simply surfing the web or texting a friend.

     In addition, this article mentions the role that technology plays in students’ daily lives and how reading factors into this role.  Today, most students even in the poorest of areas have some access to technology-whether it be a cell phone, television, computer, or iPad.  As teachers, we can motivate students to read through such technologies.  I know in my classroom we currently have a class set of iPads for our students to use.  I have seen firsthand how students can engage in programs on the iPad without even realizing that they are doing math!!  If using technology can engage students in math, I fully believe that it can do the same for reading.