QUICK RESOURCE SHEET #59

Book clubs/Readers’ groups

PREVIOUS TOPICS LISTED AT BOTTOM OF PAGE

 

   

 

As the most important discipline in education, reading generates more than 1,200 research projects annually. It took the Commission (on Reading) two years of pouring through more than 10,000 research projects done in the last quarter century in order to separate the wheat from the chaff … If a nation doesn't read much, it doesn't know much. Thomas Jefferson explained the danger in that when he wrote: "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."

---from http://www.trelease-on-reading.com/rah_chpt1_p1.html

 

Too many American adolescents either fail to complete high school or receive their diploma without being fully prepared to make the transition to entry-level employment and postsecondary education. Even if a student earns a high school diploma, that student is not very likely to be ready for college.  …in 1995, 43 percent of California State University freshmen failed the English placement test (Breneman et al., 1998).

---from http://www.woodrow.org/CommissionOnTheSeniorYear/Suggested_Reading/transforming.html

 

The National Association of Manufacturers 2001 members' survey asked employers about the most serious skill deficiencies of current hourly production employees. They found that:

---from http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/facts/workforce.html

 

 

Many are concerned with the low reading level of many students. Even in the case of students with average or above average reading ability, it often seems that reading is a last-choice activity, only to be engaged in when required. Yet we know that reading continues to be a crucial skill, regardless of – or perhaps because of – advances in technology.  We also know that a regular reading habit increases writing skill, general knowledge, and the ability to perform a wide variety of academic and non-academic tasks.

One way many have developed this reading habit without much difficulty is to participate in a book club – also known as a readers’ group or a literature circle. The motivation of being able to discuss a book with others can inspire more frequent reading.

It’s simple enough to begin a book club locally, or join one online. See the resources below for more detail.

 

 

http://www.press.umich.edu/esl/studentbookclubs/

 “The benefits of extensive reading have long been identified (see Krashen 1993, to name just one leading researcher). Book club readings are often selected because they are selections that students will be interested in or are part of the classical canon. But teachers can also encourage more reading by having students read more in class, and the book club is a wonderful way to do that. Research shows that less than 10% of the time students are in school today is actually spent reading (Cunningham and Allington 2002).”

 

http://www.literaturecircles.com/research.htm

 

“Dana Grisham of San Diego State University has been an indefatigable recorder of emerging Literature Circle research. Grisham has catalogued literature circle research documenting benefits for inner-city students (Pardo, 1992); incarcerated adolescents (Hill and Van Horn, 1995); "resistant" learners (Hauschildt & McMahon, 1996); homeless children and children living in poverty (Hanning, 1998); second-language learners (MacGillivray, 1995); and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners (Dupuy, 1997). Various versions of book clubs and literature study circles have been found to increase student enjoyment of and engagement in reading (Fox and Wilkinson, 1997); to expand children’s discourse opportunities (Kaufmann, et al, 1997; Scharer, 1996); to increase multicultural awareness (Hansen-Krening, 1997); to promote other perspectives on social issues (Noll, 1994); to provide social outlets for students (Alvermann et al, 1977); and to promote gender equity (Evans, Alverman, and Anders, 1998).”

 

 

 

http://www.hemingwaybookclubofkosovo.com/

“Paula Huntley's husband signed on with the American Bar Association to help build a modern legal system in the rubble of Kosovo, and she reluctantly agreed to leave their California home to accompany him. Not sure how she could be of any service in a country that had suffered so much, Huntley found a position teaching English as a second language to a group of Kosovo Albanians. In this extraordinary journal …Huntley describes in rich, compelling detail her own experiences in Kosovo, the lives of the young Kosovar students she came to know and love, and the remarkable book club they created together.”

 

 

 

http://www.eslmag.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=29

 

“How did we come up with this book club idea? In 1998 we attended a seminar given by Dr. Stephen Krashen of the University of California. He advocated reading for pleasure as part of a good ESL program, citing a 1994 study (Cho and Krashen) that found that Korean woman who read the Sweet Valley High series for teens showed improvement in spoken English, especially larger vocabularies.”

 

http://www.book-clubs-resource.com/running/

http://www.spl.org/default.asp?pageID=collection_discussiongroup_howtos

http://www.ehow.com/how_6181_start-book-club.html

 

“The process of organizing and maintaining a book club is both challenging and rewarding. Book-Clubs-Resource.com provides you with several insightful essays and links with information about running a reading group. Most of the information presented here is intended for the traditional book club that meets in person; however, members of online book clubs may also find much of it to be helpful.”

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/world_book_club.shtml

http://www.nytimes.com/ref/readersopinions/reading-group-picks.html

Want to join a reading group where you might have a chance to pose your questions to the author of the book you’re reading? Check out these two links.

 

 

 

Previous editions of the QUICK RESOURCE SHEET

#1 – Creating quizzes (and more) online                                                         

#2 – Vocabulary builders

#3 – Online discussion groups for English teachers                                    

#4 – Grammar headaches – and how to cure them

#5 – Resources for new teachers                                                     

#6 – International Education Week

#7 – Mentoring programs                                                                    

#8 – Education publications online

#9 – Applied Linguistics                                                                   

#10 – English for Young Learners

#11 – World AIDS Day                                                                      

#12 – Online writing guides

#13 – E-mail exchanges                                                                      

#14 – Free online English courses

#15 – Effective e-mail communication                                             

#16 – Libraries online

#17 – American Studies                                                                     

#18 – Teaching methodologies

#19 – Internet tutorials                                                                       

#20 – Using the newspaper – Part I

#21 – Making books                                                                           

#22 - Using the newspaper – Part II

#23 – Human rights in language teaching

#24 – Blogging

#25 – Poetry and language teaching

#26 – The communicative approach

#27 -  Idioms

#28 – Earth Day

#29 – Alternative assessment

#30 – Peer assessment

#31 – Self-assessment

#32 – Portfolio assessment – Part I

#33 -  Portfolio assessment - Part II (Online Portfolios)

#34 – Intercultural communication

#35 – Teaching Adults

#36 – Learning disorders / Special needs

#37 – Using computers in reading instruction

#38 – Use of authentic materials

#39 – English for Medical Purposes

#40 – Sources for authentic materials

#41 – Education and technology

#42 – Academic writing

#43 – Teaching and stress

#44 – Back to school

#45 – Motivating students

#46 – Action research

#47 – Internet terminology

#48 – Fluency

#49 – Curriculum design

#50 – Pragmatics

#51 - Podcasting for English teachers

#52 – Critical reading

#53 – Learner autonomy

#54 – Scaffolding

#55 – Holidays

#56 – English for Academic Purposes

#57 – Mixed-level classes

#58 – The brain and language learning