Why Independent Reading Practice?

It is universal and clear in research and evidence that reading achievement is improved when reading volume increases. Richard Allington in his 1977 first publication, “If They Don’t Read Much, How They Ever Gonna Get Good?”, described ineffective reading practices as one factor that hindered students, it hindered all children from engaging with reading. Krashen (2004) was one strong voice in identifying independent reading as the single greatest factor in reading achievement. Shananahan (2018) said this about independent reading, “Correlational studies consistently reveal a positive relationship between the amount of independent reading and reading proficiency. Simply put, the best readers tend to read the most.” Nagy, Anderson, & Herman (1987) stated, “Just sixty minutes of independent reading every day gives students the opportunity to acquire over 4.3 million new vocabulary words every year.”

Still in the same vein, Allington (2009) said this, “Struggling readers need to read a lot because it is during the actual reading that they can practice all those complicated strategies and skills they are developing in unison. There is good evidence (Torgeson & Hudson, 2006) that we can design interventions that include word recognition skills and strategies and still be left with students who cannot read fluently and with comprehension. It isn’t that teaching struggling readers better word reading skills and strategies isn’t important, but rather that better word reading skills and strategies will not necessarily improve the reading of text—real reading, the ultimate goal. What we need in order to help struggling readers develop is the substantially more complicated achievement of reading text accurately, fluently, and with comprehension. The only way to do this is to design interventions such that struggling readers engage in lots of text reading.” What Really Matters in Response to Intervention: Research‐based Designs. Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

I hear a very clear tune commonly sung by these voices. They all agree that independent reading can - improve overall reading achievement and proficiency, improve specific skills and knowledge in vocabulary, reading strategies, fluency, and comprehension, and children can engage more and better in reading itself. On the negative side of the coin, struggling readers will continue to be hindered, not engaged and disinterested in reading, and not improved in their reading skills without providing them with interventions to engage in lots of text reading and independent reading practice.

What is independent reading practice? Shananahan (2018) proposed that independent reading is reserved for situations that are truly independent: in which readers choose to read, choose what they want to read, and are accountable to no one for what they read. The NZ Ministry of Education suggested that independent reading should be relaxed and enjoyable. Teachers should demonstrate that they value independent reading when they read themselves and also make sure that students have time to enjoy independent reading.

The basics for effective independent reading practice vary and the list can be long. But there are essentials for an effective independent reading - and they are provision of time and space, access and engagement, choice and voice, structure and accountability, reading model, engagement of teachers, leaders, families and community stakeholders.

It is my intention to explore these essentials of independent reading practice in my teaching inquiry and how they contribute to the improvement in the reading skills of struggling readers.

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