I Can't Remember What I Read

Description of Learner:
Alan is a 32- year -old construction worker who entered an adult education program with the goal of improving his reading, writing, and math skills to get a better job. He has worked in construction for the past 10 years, and he believes improving his basic skills will improve his chances of a career change. His long -term goal is a high school diploma.

Challenge Faced:
Alan lacked confidence in his reading ability and he read as little as possible. He stated that he could read short passages, but could not remember what he has read. I observed that he mouthed the words as he read silently, and when reading aloud, he read at a slow halting pace. Because he lacked fluency, he often missed the meaning of the passage.

What We Did:
I asked Alan if he would be willing to experiment with a strategy, which might seem childlike to him, but one that I had used with other students and found it to be successful. He agreed. I asked him to put his forefinger over his mouth to keep it closed while he was reading silently. I encouraged him to read 10 minutes at home each day using this technique, and when he finished, to try to remember what he had read. He returned to class the next session and reported that he was frustrated with the technique, but felt he did remember more of what he read. I continued to monitor his silent reading for several months and his fluency, understanding, and confidence increased using this technique.

Analysis:
Because Alan was mouthing each word as he read silently, he focused only on the single word he was reading, and he lost the meaning of the passage. I explained to him if his brain only had to perform the one function of telling his eyes the word, then he would be able to read faster and retain more of what he read.

What I Learned:
Although speed-reading is not a goal, improving reading rate can increase comprehension. Even though the above technique appears elementary, if the student is concentrating on speeding up his reading, he will be less susceptible to distractions around him, which often account for the student's inability to remember what he has read. This explanation seemed to encourage him to persevere with his reading practice.

Alan, Group Discussion:

How did you get Alan to buy into trying the technique of putting his forefinger over his mouth when he read silently?
I explained to him that I had tried this strategy before and it had worked for other students. Right away, he knew he wasn't the only student with this problem. I also told him as he increased his reading rate, he would remember more of what he read, and this was his goal.

What did you tell him to do if, when using this technique, he came to a word he didn't know?
I told him that he did not need to know every word to get meaning from a passage, and if he came to a word he didn't know to skip over it and keep reading. We could then discuss the words he didn't know, and he could read the passage a second time for increased comprehension. He found the discussion of new words helpful, and he seemed to enjoy the rereading afterward.

You seem to have given the student a lot of explanation as to why you thought this would work for him. Why did you do that?
I realize I gave a rather simplistic explanation for a complex process, but I felt he would be more inclined to try to make it work if he had an understanding of the process. I explained that when his brain had to tell his eyes and his mouth the word, it was taking him twice as long to read. By not saying each word quietly as he read, he would find that his reading would be faster and he would understand and remember more of what he read.

Does this technique work for all students?
No, some students need to hear themselves say the words, because they are auditory processors. For others, I have used this technique successfully a number of times, but it may not work for all students.

Summary:

Director's Comments:

I wonder if other interventions such as group reading and discussions were involved that might account for a portion of Alan's reading gains. The act of reading often helps build skills and when coupled with friendly discussion, frequently encourages adults to read more.

Another approach to encourage fluency is to keep a record of number of words read. By setting a consistent time and counting the number of words, a visual record, such a bar chart, could be used to show fluency progress. Alan could see his improvement at a glance, and that visual representation could foster his determination for further improvement. Once the reading speed is at a reasonable rate, then you could begin focusing on comprehension without reducing speed.

Since Alan skipped unknown words and discussed them with you later, he may wish to keep a list of difficult words. Once he knows the meaning, he could draw a quick sketch of the meaning and refer to his list as needed in future readings.