A Growing Problem With Reading

IMAGINE the problem of finding your way if you could not read a street sign. How would you take medicine properly if you could not read the instructions on the container? And how could you apply for a job if you could not read the application?

These are just a few of the problems facing those who cannot read. Yet it is estimated that one out of five American adults, about 27,000,000, are functionally illiterate.a In 1980 there were altogether some 824 million illiterates worldwide, age 15 and over, and the number is rapidly growing. The consequences are sad. For example, in the United States the Labor Department reported that up to 75 percent of the unemployed lack the necessary skills in reading and communication.

Yet those who cannot read do not simply face problems in employment. They are deprived of so much that brings pleasure and happiness. Think of the improved quality of life that can result from increased knowledge of the world around us. How limited we would be if we were to learn only from what we observe or experience ourselves! Reading opens the door to the accumulated knowledge of centuries.

Reading is a remarkable human ability. As Science Digest puts it: “In an instant your eyes and mind are playing hunches, cutting corners, filling gaps and dealing with an information processing task that would challenge the most ingenious computer.”

Would you like to improve your reading skill? Or would you like to assist someone else to do so? In the following two articles some of the factors contributing to reading problems will be examined, and suggestions will be given to help improve one’s reading.

[Footnotes]

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How could you apply for a job if you could not read the application?

Why Some Do Not Read

MANY view reading as a chore. Why? For one thing, some never really learn to read while going to school. One 34-year-old woman said that whenever she looked at a printed page, all she saw was “jumbled-up stuff” that did not make any sense. At times, it would take her up to two minutes to read a sentence.

Not long ago, a high school graduate sued the San Francisco Unified School District for half a million dollars because it awarded him a high school diploma even though he was barely literate. According to the report, he was reading at a fifth- or sixth-grade level when he received his diploma. As a result, when applying for jobs, he found himself incapable of properly handling the application forms. How could this happen?

Diverse Methods of Instruction

Unfortunately, certain methods of reading education seem to have proved seriously defective. In recent years, much criticism has been launched against the “see and say” method. This method teaches students to recognize whole words without being able to pronounce the individual syllables and letters that make them up. The main objection to this method is that it produces readers who guess at words, who are poor at pronouncing new words, and who read inaccurately because they confuse similar-looking words.

To illustrate: In his book Why Johnny Still Can’t Read, author Rudolf Flesch reprinted a letter he received from a woman who described herself as a victim of the “see and say” method. She said: “We could look at the pictures, for example an apple. The teacher would tell us to remember the word apple because it had two P’s in it. This meant that every time I saw a word with two P’s in it, I thought it said apple.”

It is estimated that the “see and say” method enables a child to recognize only about 350 words at the end of the first grade. By the end of the second grade he can recognize about 1,100 more words, another 1,200 by the end of the third grade, and an additional 1,550 by the end of the fourth grade. That represents a total of 4,200 words in the child’s vocabulary.

By contrast, it has been estimated that children who are taught reading by the “phonics first” method can expect to learn up to 40,000 words by the end of their fourth year of elementary schooling. “Phonics” means “of vocal sounds,” and in the phonic method the student is taught not merely what the letters are called but also how they sound in a word. First the vowel sounds are learned and then the consonants. Thereafter, the two are combined into two-, three-, or four-letter combinations to form words, then phrases, and finally sentences. (See Awake! of July 8, 1967, pages 12-16.) Independent testing seems to support the “phonics first” method of reading instruction in primary grades.

To complicate matters further, however, some teachers may view negatively the learning capacity of their students. One expert stated: “Whether children are ‘advantaged’ or ‘disadvantaged,’ black or white, rich or poor, does not have anything to do with how successfully children learn to read. Based on my professional experiences, such statements are only excuses for not teaching children to read.”​—Italics ours.

Other Factors Affect Reading

Television is cited as another reason why people do not read. It has been estimated that a person in the United States who lives to be 70 will have watched 70,000 hours of television in his lifetime, second only to the time spent working and sleeping! TV Guide reports: “An increasing body of scientific evidence attests to the incompatibility of heavy TV viewing and mastery of the basic skills of reading and writing for the beginning elementary-school child. Studies . . . suggest that even children who come from backgrounds where reading is valued but who are also allowed to watch a lot of TV are highly vulnerable to reading difficulties.”

Still other factors bear directly on a person’s ability to develop good reading skills. “A child whose eyes are not functioning properly may suffer from headaches, eyestrain, nervous tension, and other ailments which may make reading a very unpleasant activity.” In regular classes, however, often little attention is given to such pupils.​—Diagnostic and Remedial Teaching, page 49.

Hearing defects are at times a factor. Partly deaf children would naturally be handicapped in classes where phonetic methods of teaching are employed.

Emotional factors play a significant role as well. For example, “a child who has met with initial failure in reading frequently develops an emotional attitude toward reading which hinders further progress,” says one authority, adding: “The sight of a book or the mention of the word reading has been known to cause certain individuals to become tense and uncomfortable.” Also, the environment of a broken home, insecurity in the home, or neurotic parents can often have an effect upon a child’s progress in reading.

Most significant of all factors affecting a poor reader is his failure to read. The point is that no one has ever learned to read without reading. Often, such failure to read has its roots in one or more of the physical or emotional factors already discussed.

Whatever the reason for an individual’s reading handicap, a genuine effort to overcome it will, in time, produce some results. Next, we will offer suggestions that may help.

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Children who are allowed to watch too much TV are highly vulnerable to reading difficulties

Improve Your Reading​—You Can Do It!

ADMITTEDLY, there is no magic formula for better reading. However, if you can read, then you can read better! We cannot hope to read better without reading regularly. At least half an hour a day should be set aside for this purpose​—more if possible.

The Need to Be Selective

Be selective in what you read. Choose material that contains words familiar to you and subjects that are not technical. Then, progressively select material that will develop your vocabulary.

Be selective in another sense, too, for not all literature is upbuilding or refreshing to the mind. A wise man once said: “To the making of many books there is no end, and much devotion to them is wearisome to the flesh.” (Ecclesiastes 12:12) Publications abound today and many provide wholesome reading. Select those that will benefit you the most morally and spiritually. In the Bible book of Proverbs, chapter 13, verse 20, it states: “He that is walking with wise persons will become wise, but he that is having dealings with the stupid ones will fare badly.” This principle applies as much to selecting what one reads as to being selective with the company one keeps.

A Change in Reading Habits

Obviously, we cannot read at birth. Like many other things in life, reading is a skill that is developed. Can a person become a good pianist without practicing on a piano? Or can anyone become a good tennis player without playing a lot of tennis? If a person develops bad habits early in his career as a pianist or tennis player, he must correct them or remain handicapped by them.

This is true of reading. If, at an early age, a student develops bad reading habits, he handicaps himself. As a result, he must struggle through life, wrestling with the printed page with very limited reading skills. As he gets older, it becomes more difficult to break bad reading habits. But this can be done​—if a person is willing to make the effort! Let’s consider some of these habits.

The primary physical aspect of reading involves eye movement. Each time you read a line of print, your eyes make a series of stops, or fixations. These fixations are important because it is only when they occur that the eye really sees what is there. During these intervals, the visual impression is transmitted to the brain for “decoding.” The brain, not the eye, does the reading. Your eyes are an extension of your brain.

A slow reader stops at almost every word. This disjoints the messages sent to the brain, and reading becomes a chore because the eyes are overworked and little of what is read is remembered. In contrast, efficient readers have smooth and rhythmic eye movements as they progress over a page of print. They learn to reduce the number of visual stops, or fixations, per line. By reading phrases or word groupings, they are able to move more rapidly over a page of print and increase their comprehension.

This brings up the matter of regression. To regress means to go back and reread material already read. Most regressions are habitual. Of course, there are times when a particular thought may be obscure. To go back and reread what was said may then be essential. However, most regressions are not really necessary and merely slow down the reader. Whenever possible, avoid regressing.

Another habit that many authorities believe hinders good reading development is vocalization. That is when the reader moves his lips, actually saying every word to himself. Similarly, some people say the words to themselves silently, “hearing” them in the mind. This is known as subvocalization. Vocalizing or subvocalizing limits the number of words we can read per minute because, in effect, we are reading only about as fast as we speak. The average person may speak about 125 words per minute, while records show that an average reading speed is 230-250 words per minute.

Since there are many things we will want to read over faster than we can do while vocalizing, it would be good not to make vocalizing a general practice. Make yourself read faster than you could possibly vocalize or subvocalize. Make an effort to read word groupings. And remember, vocalization or subvocalization is generally not an aid to comprehension.

However, as with regression, there are times when vocalization may be appropriate. If one wants to meditate deeply on certain material, or to commit it to memory, then it could be helpful not only to repeat words over and over again but also to vocalize to some extent. Generally this is done “in an undertone,” or aloud.

Interestingly, Joshua, a leader of the ancient nation of Israel, was commanded: “This book of the law [of God] should not depart from your mouth, and you must in an undertone read in it day and night.” Why? “In order that you may take care to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way successful and then you will act wisely.” (Joshua 1:8) Reading the “book of the law” in an undertone (vocalizing) would be helpful in committing it to memory as well as meditating carefully on all the thoughts expressed there. Thus, the Law would be before Joshua constantly to remind him how he should conduct himself as a servant of God. Similarly, faithful Christians today appreciate the wisdom of “remembering” God’s Word and meditating on it, and they therefore read it regularly.​—Psalm 103:17, 18; compare Proverbs 4:5.

Developing Better Comprehension

In his book Diagnostic and Remedial Teaching, Glenn Myers Blair stated: “The primary goal of all reading improvement programs is to develop power of comprehension on the part of pupils. Other matters are of secondary importance.” Basically, comprehending what you read means getting the sense of it, understanding it. This is what makes reading valuable and worth while.

Robert Krych, educator and lecturer at City College of New York, recommended: “To aid comprehension, at all times endeavor to read with a purpose. Decide in advance what you want from the material you select to read. On one occasion you may wish to read in order to obtain specific facts. At other times, your reading may be simply for pleasure and recreation. Whatever is the case, adjust the rate of reading to the purpose and difficulty of the material to be read. Become critical when reading. Ask yourself: Why did the writer say this? What was his objective? Isolate the main point or thought of the paragraph. Ask, In what way does it affect me, the reader?” Yes, make it your habit to read with a purpose and you will find reading to be a pleasure.

Reading Well Brings Many Benefits

Good reading habits are essential, whether you are a student, a professional person, a housewife, or an office or factory worker. Many doors are open to those who read well.

A student who is a good reader becomes more proficient in his work and doubtless will learn more in school. He can minimize time spent in reading and rereading assignments.

Similarly, a businessman or professional person with good reading ability will be able to cope successfully with lengthy reports and the like. In turn, this will allow more time for personal contacts with patients, clients, or customers. Improved reading skills will enable him to engage in more extensive reading, and this will assist him to become better acquainted with the work, studies, and experiments carried on by others.

With the increased knowledge acquired through improved reading skill, family heads can often improve their job skills and ability to care for responsibility. The ability to read directions, regulations, and similar instructions will, in many parts of the world, assist in caring better for things in the home. Reading skill is also a help when it comes to managing the family’s finances.

Housewives who acquire greater knowledge through reading will be better able to care for the family with regard to proper nutrition, hygiene, prevention of sickness, or those who become ill. Mothers who are good readers may have success in teaching their children to read before they enter school.​—See Awake! of May 22, 1968, pages 20-2.

More important, one who reads well can acquire knowledge that will lead to life beyond even this present system of things. Bible prophecies pertaining to the conclusion of the present system of things are now being fulfilled. It is vital for all who would entertain the hope of enjoying everlasting life on a paradise earth to acquire a knowledge of our Creator and his purposes. Jesus stated at John 17:3: “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.”

Without a doubt, then, a door leading to a world of knowledge and excitement is open to anyone who is willing to enter. The key is reading. Yes, read well and that door is always open to you!

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Be selective with your reading material