SPA615 – Teaching Reading Skills

Teacher: Mr.Huân

Student: Lê Ngọc Ân

Student code: M1622002

Class: 01

Reflection Entries No.2 – Extensive Reading

"The best way to improve your knowledge of a foreign language is to go and live
among its speakers. The next best way is to read extensively in it" (Frank Smith). It is clear
that reading is the easiest way to gain knowledge about almost everything in the world.
Regardless of the subject matter, the more one reads, the more he or she learns. When
learners read extensively, they read very easy, enjoyable books to build their reading speed
and fluency. Another way to say this is that students learn to read by actually reading rather
than examining texts by studying the vocabulary, grammar, and phrases.

The term "extensive reading" seems to be a familiar term for many language teachers
and has become a practice in the past two decades (Anna C-S Chang, 2017). Therefore, what
is extensive reading? There are various ways of understanding the term "extensive reading".
According to Palmer, who is credited with coining the term "extensive reading," it is when
students read a lot and read quickly. Palmer believed that extensive reading was done for
language study as well as for real-world experiences.

There are several reasons why extensive reading is necessary in English learning.
Extensive reading refers to providing large quantities of easily comprehensible English books
to students, thereby improving the students’ reading proficiency while allowing them to enjoy
the learning process (Day & Bamford, 1998). ER improves reading comprehension, reading
speed, vocabulary, writing, speaking, and listening—nearly all aspects of language
competence (Anna C-S Chang, 2017). I personally believe that students can benefit a great
deal from extensive reading. 

First of all, extensive reading builds vocabulary. When learners read a lot, they meet
thousands of words and word patterns that are not taught in textbooks. Extensive reading
allows the learner to develop their range of vocabulary and thousands of lexical phrases.
 Extensive reading helps learners understand grammar. In textbooks, learners can meet
hundreds of grammar patterns. However, textbooks do not provide enough contact with
grammar for real acquisition to occur. Extensive reading provides opportunities to see
grammar in context, so learners can deepen their understanding of how grammar is really
used.

Extensive reading helps learners build reading speed and reading fluency. In
particular, developing reading speed is important because it helps learners understand
language faster and better. The more learners read, the more familiar they are with the text.
As a result, their reading speed will have improved considerably.

After some years of teaching English, there is still one of the biggest questions
remaining unanswered for me, which is how to help my students become more favorable
readers. Although many of us are well educated about the benefits of reading, not many of us
find it easy to take up reading as an interest, if not as a habit. For our students, this habit is
even more challenging to conquer. It is true that most children find reading boring and
difficult, especially when it is in a different language, such as English. I think it is important
for us, the teachers of English, to be well aware of the reasons why our students are not into
reading so that we can find feasible ways to support them. 

I have found that most of my students do not have a habit of reading, even in their
mother tongue, because they do not really have any reason to do so. In fact, the only reason
they read something is that it is their assignment or homework. As a result, they read to
complete the task, not for themselves, and almost nothing remains in their minds after
reading. The reason could be that they find the content unrelated to their interests or their
lives.

Another reason why students do not like reading, particularly in English, is that they
find the text challenging to understand due to a lack of vocabulary and grammar in their
knowledge. It is a fact that when a text includes so much new vocabulary and complex
grammars and structures, students find it annoying, and their comprehension of the text is
greatly limited.

The curriculum, or the syllabus, itself is a cause. There is a little reading session in the
teaching program, so extensive reading has no place to occur. Most teachers believe that
reading should take place outside of the classroom rather than in it. Therefore, they pay little
attention to building up activities for reading in the classroom.
 It is also a case that some of my students cannot find good materials for reading. I am
happy that a few of my students really enjoy reading and share what they read to me.
Unfortunately, they sometimes do not have enough to read. A shortage of reading materials
over the long term can really lead to a decrease in reading interest.

Because of the massive benefits of extensive reading, I believe that there is a need to
build this reading habit among learners. According to Richard R. Day and Bamford (2002,
pp. 137–141), the following are the top 10 principles of extensive reading. "The reading
material is easy; a variety of reading material on a wide range of topics is available; learners
choose what they want to read; learners read as much as possible; the purpose of reading is
usually related to pleasure, information, and general understanding; reading is its own
reward; reading speed is usually faster rather than slower; reading is individual and silent;
teachers orient and guide their students; the teacher is a role model of a reader."

Personally, to ensure that our beloved learners read extensively, I suggest the
following methods.

First and foremost, set a model for your learners. Teachers should become extensive
readers so that their learners can learn this good habit from them. Also, when teachers are
extensive readers, they know how to support and encourage their learners to read. Otherwise,
it will be difficult to know which books to recommend to what types of learners, when to
move them up to the next level, what advice to give to struggling ones, and so on.

Second, to ensure learners' enjoyment, teachers should provide them with fun,
authentic, and easy-to-handle reading materials. Extensive reading should be fun rather than
stressful, so the key value is that students need to be able to understand most of what they
read without using dictionaries word by word. In my case, I usually give my learners a
collection of readers that I think are highly engaging to the student group and lower than their
reading levels—short, funny stories, for example. 

Thirdly, it is important to create some minutes for reading time in your lesson
schedule for students to read quietly on their own in every single lesson until they become
comfortable reading in English. This can be done at the beginning or at the end of every
lesson.

Next, teachers should have a rich source of reading materials on various topics so that
students can feel free to choose what they like to read. Teachers can sometimes give advice
but not enforcement. 
 Robb and Kano (2013) suggested a very time and effort-efficient method called M-
Reader. It is an online tool that allows students to take a short quiz after finishing a book, as
well as reduces the instructors' workload as they do not have to spend so much time keeping
track of their students' reading. I think this is also a good way to monitor our students' reading
outside the classroom.

In conclusion, I find extensive reading really beneficial and interesting. To be honest,

I must admit the fact that I am not an extensive reader. Therefore, I need to urge myself to
read much more extensively, not only to enhance my knowledge and experience, but also to
set a model for my students. Although I have found some ways to enhance my students'
interest in and practice of extensive reading, it seems like a very long way before I reach a
real triumph.