Books for Boys? As I met him at the door to the classroom, he tried to avoid my eyes. \u201cTim, where\u2019s your book? I thought you chose one at the library.\u201d \u201cDon\u2019t make me find a book . . . just let me sit in class today, OK?\u201d \u201cBut that\u2019s what we\u2019re doing today . . .we\u2019re reading. Do you want to get another book before class starts?\u201d \u201cMr. Jones . . . do I have to? I hate reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a 6th-grade classroom across town, Jason slumps at his desk and mutters, \u201cThis is stupid!\u201d as the teacher asks him and his friend Gregory, who sits across from him, if there\u2019s a problem that requires them to talk out loud during reading class.<\/p>\n
Down the hallway from Jason and Gregory, 2nd-grader Elijah dutifully\u2014and slowly\u2014sounds out each word on a page filled with words, losing all continuity and sense of story as the classroom aide points to each word with her finger, Educators today know there is a problem with boys and reading. Many male students do not like to read. Many boys can read well but choose not to do so. And sadly, others cannot read at the appropriate grade level.<\/p>\n
Of course, we all recognize that without appropriate skills and positive experiences with reading, the rest of a young man\u2019s formal education will be a challenge\u2014for him and for his teachers. Reading is at the heart of school. When students do not see themselves as readers, too often they struggle to learn and to find meaning and belonging in their education. According to data recently released by the U.S. Department of Education and reported in USA Today, American boys are falling farther and farther behind girls in academics. The report states that more boys have learning disabilities, that more females are earning bachelor\u2019s degrees, and that boys trail girls in both reading and writing. In addition, the article notes that more boys than girls are held back a grade.<\/p>\n
We have all had students who slink through the day, avoiding the teacher\u2019s eye or who disrupt the class with silliness, anger, and\/or menace. Many of the boys in our classes meet with huge obstacles to becoming readers who will grow up to be productive, responsible, and happy men\u2014fathers and uncles, grandfathers and brothers who value\u00a0the written word<\/a>\u00a0and all the power it holds, and who\u00a0model this behavior<\/a>\u00a0for others. William G. Brozo speaks of \u201cthe importance of literacy as boys develop a sense of self.\u201d<\/p>\n By focusing on boys and reading in this article, I do not mean to suggest that girls have no challenges with reading or that all boys are challenged in this area. Improving students\u2019 reading will not fix all society\u2019s problems. However, we need to explore our obligations as teachers to young male readers. This article will suggest positive steps teachers can take to foster in their male students a greater engagement with reading.<\/p>\n Jim Trelease, author of The Read Aloud Handbook, explains \u201creading is the single most important social factor in American life today.\u201d<\/p>\n Without a doubt, boys who fail to connect early with reading will encounter problems in school. Difficulty in school is a crucial, negative element in many males\u2019\u00a0downward spiral<\/a>\u00a0of defeated and often deadly behavior. Statistics from the late 1990s cited in a recent article in the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy provide an unsettling picture of the hazards of being male today:<\/p>\n While I do not believe that reading is the great panacea for society\u2019s ills or that fixing problems with boys\u2019 reading will eradicate males\u2019 deadly\u00a0behavior<\/a>, I do believe that fostering in boys a greater ability for and appreciation of reading will go a long way to curb much of society\u2019s despair by allowing young men a greater chance at obtaining a good education. At least reading is an area about which we teachers have knowledge and influence; I think it is worth our time to pay attention to what is going on and do something about it.<\/p>\n In order to do something about the problems many boys have with reading, we need to first review what is known. Trelease reminds us that \u201cstudents who read the most, read the best, achieve the most, and stay in school the longest.\u201d<\/p>\n Eve Bearne and Molly Warrington\u2019s research confirms, \u201cLiteracy cannot be separated from issues of self-esteem and preferred learning styles.\u201d How can we get boys to read more and feel that it is worth their effort?<\/p>\n Many of us would probably note significant differences between boys and girls\u2019 reading in the area of content. Traditionally, much of children\u2019s reading falls into \u201cboys\u2019 books\u201d and \u201cgirls\u2019 books.\u201d While this probably represents an unfair generalization, certain subjects do appeal more to one gender than to the other. Research into boys\u2019 reading offers several telling points to consider when addressing boys\u2019 reading issues. In \u201cReading Don\u2019t Fix No Chevys\u201d: Literacy in the Lives of Young Men, Michael W. Smith and Jeffrey D. Wilhelm summarize much of the recent research and cover many elements that contribute to boys\u2019 disinclination to read. They found that:<\/p>\n Many teachers are aware that many of their reluctant male readers can indeed read very well, but choose not to do so. Many boys apparently do not find\u00a0satisfaction\u00a0<\/a>in reading\u2014especially as it is taught in school\u2014and that dissatisfaction makes them progressively less likely to rely on reading to help them find meaning in their lives. As teachers, we need to recognize these points as we plan and execute our classes.<\/p>\n Thomas Newkirk in Misreading Masculinity: Boys, Literacy, and Popular Culture focuses on the need for readers to discover that satisfaction in reading is the key to success in school: \u201cUnless we can persuade students that reading is a form of deep,\u00a0sustained pleasure<\/a>, they will not choose to read; and because they will not choose to read, they will not develop the skills to make them good readers.\u201d<\/p>\n Teachers need to explore how boys develop into readers who find pleasure in their literacy. They need to identify boys\u2019 reading interests and expectations.<\/p>\n When teachers choose reading selections for the whole class they have to ask themselves if the books will appeal boys? The majority of elementary teachers, school librarians, and children\u2019s authors are women, choices of children\u2019s reading material are mostly filtered through women. There is no doubt that whole-class reading assignments of Number the Star by Lois, Lowry, Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan, or Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson are great reading, but we must go out of our way to find books that appeal strongly to boys as well. Brozo advises: \u201cReading engagement should be the highest priority to teachers of disinterested and struggling readers, because only as boys encounter literature that speaks to their unique male imaginations are they likely to become regular and lifelong readers.\u201d<\/p>\n Additionally, we ought to consider allowing students to\u00a0select materials<\/a>\u00a0they want to read. If we expect boys to read deeply and for their own purposes, we must give them experience in choosing books to read. Our school and classroom libraries will thus need to include a broader selection\u2014especially information books, since many boys prefer this type of reading over stories and narratives.<\/p>\n Our classroom bookshelves should include well-written nonfiction along with good biographies and autobiographies intended for young readers. Allowing boys to choose their own reading will also require us to rethink our policies about what kinds of reading material are suitable in the classroom and library. That is a challenge for many of us\u2014especially in the Christian school. While I do not propose that\u00a0Adventist\u00a0<\/a>schools lower their standards, I do think we need to recognize the pervasive influence and appeal of mass culture as we look for reading material that will engage boys. And, as any classroom teacher knows, boys are not generally \u201ctasteful\u201d in their interests. That fact will require us to explore what is acceptable for boys\u2019 (and girls\u2019) reading choices.<\/p>\nWHY DON\u2019T BOYS READ?<\/h3>\n
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SOLUTIONS TO BOYS\u2019 PROBLEMS WITH READING<\/h3>\n
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BOOKS FOR BOYS?<\/h3>\n