Learning to Read without School

When I tell people that school was of no value to me, the response I generally receive is, “Aww...come on. You must have learned something there that you liked. I mean, look, you’re successful, you write well, you’re articulate and you have so many varied interests. You wouldn’t be those things without school.” To which I explain, yes, I would. School didn’t push me forward. It held me back. The things I’m good at today, I became good at outside of school. “Well, you learned to read,” they say. “Without school, you wouldn’t have known how to read and write.” To which I explain, I didn’t learn to read at school. I learned to read at home. I started reading at a young age. I was about 3 years old. I liked performing and acting and wanted to read words of stories so I could put on a show. I was also very curious and knew words had the answers. Most importantly my family had books all around and read to me until I read to myself. I also had a room full of books and would be left to read for hours. 


But it seems as a society we have it so ingrained in our heads that it is at school where we first learn to read and then read to learn. I didn’t even realize why it was so important to teach children reading at an early age until I read, research professor Peter Gray’s explanation in Psychology Today.




For children in standard schools, it is very important to learn to read on schedule, by the timetable dictated by the school. If you fall behind you will be unable to keep up with the rest of the curriculum and may be labeled as a "failure," or as someone who should repeat a grade, or as a person with some sort of mental handicap. In standard schools learning to read is the key to all of the rest of learning. First you "learn to read" and then you "read to learn." Without knowing how to read you can't learn much of the rest of the curriculum, because so much of it is presented through the written word. There is even evidence that failure to learn to read on schedule predicts subsequent naughtiness in standard schools. One longitudinal study, conducted in Finland, found that poor reading in preschool and kindergarten predicted poor reading later on in elementary school and also predicted subsequent "externalizing problem behavior," which basically means acting out.


The thing that struck me was how true it was that schools are often places where we read about things rather than places where we do things. If we had a chance to do more things, schools would certainly be less boring and it is through doing things that we learn independently and begin building our interests and talents. Once we have interests and talents at some point, reading becomes important.

Gray goes on to explain that with unschooled children, they may learn to read at any time, with no apparent negative consequences. He invited unschooled adults and parents to share their stories of how children learned to read. Of these, two learned at age 4, seven learned at age 5 or 6, six learned at age 7 or 8, five learned at age 9 or 10, and one learned at age 11.


I read this and wondered, if all these unschooled kids learned to read on their own though, why is it that here in New York City we have all these students who by high school still read so poorly even with all this schooling. Gray gives us seven principle of learning to read without schooling and one thing becomes evident. A barrier to learning to read or write is when it is pushed upon children extrinsically, especially when it relates to things you could care less about. He shares this story from the mother of an unschooled child. “I was doing more harm than good to my son, because I was making him hate reading. I immediately ceased formal instruction in reading, and just went back to reading to him whenever he wanted me to." She went on to note that, roughly two years later, her son "entirely surreptitiously" began to look at books on his own and eventually to read, apparently hiding his interest and practice so as not to feel pressured. When children are given opportunities to do things and find their interests, talents, and passions, in every case reading flowed naturally. 


Now how ironic is that?! The answer to the illiteracy problem could just be that we’re doing too much forced teaching of reading and not giving children enough opportunities to discover and do what they love. I’m sure there are a whole lot of people ready to dismiss this as poppycock, but to me the best research is with the real live people who share there stories. Gray collects more than a dozen such stories and I’ve shared a couple dozen profiles of these unschoolers and they speak for themselves. Below are Gray’s principles for learning to read without school.


Seven Principles of Learning to Read Without Schooling
1. For non-schooled children there is no critical period or best age for learning to read.
2. Motivated children can go from apparent non-reading to fluent reading very quickly.
3. Attempts to push reading can backfire.
4. Children learn to read when reading becomes, to them, a means to some valued end or ends.
5. Reading, like many other skills, is learned socially through shared participation.
6. Some children become interested in writing before reading, and they learn to read as they learn to write.
7. There is no predictable "course" through which children learn to read.



Gray provides terrific insights and examples with each principle. For the whole story you can visit this link.

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What Might a 21st Century School Look Like

Editor’s Note: This post was written in response to a job interview question and is the topic of a brainstorming session I am partaking in today. I thought it was a relevant, thought-provoking question and a great interview exercise. This is some of my thinking on the topic.

As innovative educator Peggy Sheehy’s students recently explained in their video, No Future Left Behind, “Education really needs an upgrade!” A 21st Century school, unlike other schools wouldn’t be a place Rip Van Winkle would recognize after his 100 year slumber. Sheehy’s students complain, “I can't create my future with the tools of your past.” “The future is trying to get in, but you’ve blocked it.” “Let the future in. We want to talk to the world.” Marc Prensky of “Engage Me or Enrage Me! ” fame would applaud these students for so articulately sharing the concerns of others around the world. An evangelist of student-centered instruction and decision making Prensky advises, that we should accept “the students, not the teachers, should be leading the charge with using technology.” As I think about the advice of my personal learning network, what I take from this is that we are moving toward a time when the teacher’s role will become more of a personal learning facilitator who’s role is to help students exist in what Sir Ken Robinson refers to as their “Element,” a place where natural talent meets personal passion.

So, how does this take place? In Disrupting Class, the authors share that 50% of all high school classes will be delivered online by the year 2019. The expansion of this type of alternative delivery of instruction provides unique opportunities not previously available to students. For instance online delivery of instruction could enable students to access less popular or more advanced areas of study then would be possible at a single school campus. It provides opportunities for students who may not be able to participate in school due to illness, familial obligations or pregnancy. It allows students to connect with others in a niche area of study.

Teachers at a 21st Century school would all have laptops, projectors, and video recorders and would engage in innovative practices like Richard Buckland who teachers a regular class to students, but also tapes all of his classes and allows students who are not physically present to receive credit upon watching the video and completing assignments. His students have the added bonus of being able to rate and comment on his lectures giving their teacher and each other feedback that is currently not existent in most classrooms. They can also watch segments of the class over if there is something they missed or skip past information they already know. This addresses an area Sir Kenneth Robinson recently spoke about when he asked, “If everyone agrees we learn at different paces, why in school are we expected to teach everyone at the same pace?” He adds, “Why is the date of manufacture the single most important thing educators think kids have in common?” Digital learning opportunities could allow students who are having difficulty in a subject to spend more time in areas of need, and those who are advanced to continue on. The students mentioned above in Richard Buckland’s college class by the way are high school students hungry for more challenging coursework not available to them at their school site. That said, it should be a given that students attending a 21st Century school would have the basic technology necessary to succeed in the social or professional connected world in which they live which includes having a reliable internet connection, a keyboard enabled device in which to access it, and an onsite student support team to ensure it’s effective and efficient use.

Peggy Sheehy’s students also hit upon another important ingredient lacking in many schools when they complained, “You don’t know me. You don’t trust me. You don’t believe in me.” The 21st Century school would be created as an environment for personal success. Every student in a 21st Century school would have a personal learning profile and plan for student success using tools like the Renzulli Learning System and Personal Success Plan. At many schools teachers don’t really know the whole child, so it is difficult to teach the whole child and nearly impossible to group students for instruction or provide truly customized, personalized instruction. If all students are profiled, they become more than just a name but rather teachers can instantly find out information like the following and align the work they do to their unique interests, learning styles, abilities, and expression styles.

Here is an excerpt from my learning profile:

Lisa has specific preferred instructional styles. Learning or instructional styles are the ways students like to learn and the strategies parents and teachers use to help them learn. Lisa has very clearly defined learning preferences. Her preferred instructional style is through technology. Her second choice of learning style is discussions that happen when two or more students talk with their teacher or in small groups about issues and topics by discussing facts and opinions and discussing them. Lisa also enjoys learning games that enable her to learn content by playing games or participating in activities with cards, board games, or even electronic games.

If only my teachers had let me learn based on this information, education would have been a much more valuable experience for me. However, it is not only important to be in touch with students interests while they are students in the 21st Century school. As Geoffrey Canada founder of the renowned Harlem Children’s Zone recently shared, “I refuse to let kids disappear into the abyss after they leave me.” This would not be a possibility for 21st Century school students who would be involved not only in the school’s instructional online network, but would also have the opportunity to stay in touch with their 21st Century school teachers and classmates through the Facebook accounts and groups they safely, appropriately, and responsibly participated in with their teachers. It is through these types of connected learning environments that educators and classmates would continue to support and share successes with one another.

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To join the Classroom 2.0 conversation click here.

Read student's Vision of What School Should Look Like from Chris Lehmann's Modern Theory of Education at the Science Leadership Academy's class.

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Ten Innovative Ideas for Getting Started with 21st Century Teaching and Learning

I’m often asked for advice on how to get started with using 21^st century tools to enhance teaching and learning. The mistake some people make is believing educators instantly need to become producers of websites, blogs, wikis, podcasts, social networks etc. Most educators need to become comfortable and familiar as participants in these environments before they can feel successful as creators in these areas. To follow are ideas that educators who want to get started with educating innovatively can explore.

10 Ideas to Begin Educating Innovatively

1. Equipment

In order to get started on your road to success, you need a laptop, projector, and internet access. As an innovative educator, I could not survive or teach effectively without these three things. If my school could not provide these basic pedagogical tools, I would invest in them myself, apply for a grant or write to http://www.donorschoose.org/. Next, I recommend investing in low cost laptop carts so students also have devices. For information on these options read Low Cost Computing Options That Will Enable More Educators to Consider 1-to-1 Environments and Bridging The Digital Divide in NYC. If you begin on the path to creating a 21st Century environment for students and educators, you will also want to consider Starting a Student Support Team in Your School.

2. Innovation Integration Plan

The use of 21^st century tools must be planned for and integrated into the day to day work of teachers and their students. Channel 13 has put together an Action Plan Template and gives advice for Writing an Innovation Plan that will help schools do just that. To help with planning across subjects in each curricular area consider using the Content Area Innovative Integration Plan Template which supports teachers in looking at what they are currently teaching, reviewing the standards, and then determining how what they can teach more innovatively.

3. Standards

You can’t plan without knowledge of the technology standards and ideas for infusing technology into the curriculum. Become familiar with ISTE's Educational Technology Standards which serve as guides for teachers, students and administrators to help them focus on the skills and expertise needed to teach, learn, and lead more effectively in an ever changing global community. Teachers can use the standards to facilitate student learning and creativity, create digital work and assessment, model good digital citizenry and pursue personal growth and leadership.

4. Curriculum

You need ideas about how to enhance the curriculum with technology. A great place to start is with the Information Communication Technology Literacy Maps. In collaboration with several content area organizations, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills developed a series of ICT Literacy Maps illustrating the intersection between Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Literacy and core academic subjects including English, mathematics, science and social studies (civics/government, geography, economics, history). The maps enable educators to gain concrete examples of how ICT Literacy can be integrated into core subjects, while making the teaching and learning of core subjects more relevant to the demands of the 21st century. The download the maps below to get started.

• ICT Literacy Map - Geography - Map
• ICT Literacy Map - Math - Map
• ICT Literacy Map - Science - Map
• ICT Literacy Map - Social Studies - Map
• ICT Literacy Map - English

5. Professional Development

Of course, effective integration of technology into the curriculum also takes a well thought out professional development plan and if possible onsite support and coaching. Check with your local school district to determine what offerings they provide for teachers and work to schedule a plan across the year based on the goals of your technology plan. In New York City many schools use this Professional Development Resource for Innovative Educators which is a site that provides professional development materials in the areas of literacy, science, social studies, math, fitness, cyber safety, interactive whiteboard training and more. To see some of the elements for a successful curriculum and professional development rollout read The Power of 21st Century Teaching and Learning Brought to Life at Bronx Middle School CIS 339’s Open House.

6. Social Networking

Join social networks. It is no longer acceptable for innovative educators not to be involved in social networks. It is crucial that educators begin learning how to function in these environments which have tremendous potential for enhancing teaching and learning. Despite what you’re kids or students may have told you, YOU'RE NOT TOO OLD FOR FACEBOOK. Must joins are http://www.facebook.com (for everyone), http://www.classroom20.com (for educators interested in using web 2.0 tools), http://iteachilearn.ning.com (for NYC educators in tech-rich classrooms), and http://www.futureofeducation.com (self explanatory). To get started read Why Every Parent and Teacher Should Learn Facebook.

7. Blogs

Find some great education blogs to read. You probably want to find blogs that are written by a teacher for a student audience (Techbrarian), blogs written by educators for other educators (Techomnivore), blogs written by students (Newly Ancient), blogs written by parents (NYC Public School Parents) and blogs written by principals (Practical Theory and Greg's Weblog). Subscribe to these blogs (Google Reader is a great tool for this). Once you get to know them, begin commenting on the blogs. Commenting on blogs is one of the most important things innovative educators can do. Vicki Davis, an excellent, well-respected, and widely read blogger explains how to comment effectively in her post How to comment like a king (or queen!).

8. Wikis

Wikis are an amazing and transformative tool for educators and Wikispaces » for teachers let’s you get started for FREE. You can see what educators are doing with wikis over here. You may also want to check out the Wiki Walk-Through from TeachersFirst. The Cool Cat Teacher blog post How I use wikis. What do you do? identifies these 5 uses of wikis in education.

1 - Lesson Summaries

2 - Collaboration of Notes

3 - Concept Introduction and Exploratory Projects

4 - Dissemination of Important Classroom Information beyond the Classroom

5 - Individual assessment projects

9. Online Safety

Make sure you are aware of online safety concerns. There are some useful resources at HOW DO I HELP MY CHILD LEARN TO USE THE INTERNET WISELY?. At the NYC DOE we partner with i-Safe, but there are many organizations providing free materials. Visit TIE's Internet Safety for ideas.

10. Assessment

It is important to have a method to assess how you’re doing. I’ve listed quite a few at Tools Innovative Educators Can Use to Assess the Infusion of 21st Century Skills Into Instruction. The post includes ideas for assessing teachers, classrooms, and administrators.

These are ten ideas to get innovative educators started with 21st century teaching and learning. Of course, there are an endless number of ideas and technologies to consider. Start with a few of these that make sense to you, and build upon these ideas to accomplish your goals.

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