As I read Tompkins, I kept thinking of all the times in middle school and high school where round-robin reading was the method used. I also noticed that the book states round robin reading is not used anymore as the practice of it can lead to children being embarrassed and cause them to lose attention. I cannot count how many times I would get bored and either read ahead or be thinking about something else while reading aloud to the class. A method that could better be used would be the buddy reading method or shared reading. The buddy method could especially be useful in a class setting where many different readers are at different levels. This would not only be an enjoyable social activity for some, but it would also help students work together to read passages from the text. It would also allow students to teach others that are struggling, and by working together figure out unfamiliar words and problems that would arise.
Another familiar process mentioned in Tompkins chapter two is the writing process. In school I can remember using the writing process, and I still do today, although not as strictly. The one point I took from this writing process, besides the details of the process, was how between stages of the writing process it was important to take a day away from the product and return later to read it. This allows students to gain a fresh perspective on their writing.
The best information I took from chapter two in Tompkins is how the reading and writing process connect. Both have similar activities at each stage and have similar goals. Each process helps students construct meaning in reading and writing. It encourages them to bring their prior knowledge and past experiences to the classroom and share their ideas with fellow classmates.
Kyle Williams-
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I’m not sure I remember much about using the Round Robin technique in school, but I can imagine that it would be hard to keep the attention to the text being read aloud that second. I can imagine students flipping through pages, reading only their page, while others students would struggle along, all while being embarrassed and nervous. I understand that it is a better method to make sure everyone has the opportunity to read aloud, as well as finding an effective way to try to keep the students at the same pace.
ReplyDeleteThe experiences that I can recall about the Round Robin were horrible. The students would pick which students read after them. The whole time one would be following along, there would be the constant fear of if their friend would call on them next to read. There were also many students who would not follow along and therefore, every time they were called on, the whole class would have to stop to show that student where we were.