I’ve always been a fan of YA literature...
While some adults view the genre as taboo, something they are embarrassed to admit to reading, I have always been proud to declare to my love of such novels. I used to read YA simply because I liked it, found it entertaining, and enjoyed the character's perspectives. Through my experiences in my undergraduate and graduate YA literature courses, I have gained a new appreciation for it's nuances. I now pay attention to the ways teens are constructed in these novels, the lessons they teach, and the themes they tackle. To those who say that YAL is not as "literary" as other genres, I beg to differ.
What I have come to believe is most important in raising abilities in our students, is fostering a genuine love of reading. What is the most important step in this? Getting teens to read. Period. It is our job, as educators, to create environments that encourage, support, and enhance reading in all forms. We need to get students motivated.
Wigfield and Gunthrie have identified three motivational categories for reading which include:
1. Competence and efficacy
2. Purposes for reading: intrinsic and extrinsic reasons
3. Social purposes for reading: the influence of family and peers
(Hayn & Kaplan 81)
Educators have the power to influence all three of these. One way to raise competency and efficacy is through Penny Kittle's strategies (discussed in the Pedagogy section). Student's will find intrinsic purpose for reading as they discover books they identify with and enjoy, and extrinsic reasons as their grades and abilities improve. We can create social purposes for reading through communities of readers in the classroom and encouraging reading to take place outside of school in homes.
Among some of the things that get young readers interested in a book, students expressed the desire for, "characters that were like them... characters who were wrestling with the same conscious and subconscious identity issues that they themselves were experiencing" (Hayn & Kaplan 85). This website is designed to help teachers lead students to such books. You never know which story will be the hook that turns a student on to reading. We have the power to change this generation's attitude towards texts, one book at a time.
What I have come to believe is most important in raising abilities in our students, is fostering a genuine love of reading. What is the most important step in this? Getting teens to read. Period. It is our job, as educators, to create environments that encourage, support, and enhance reading in all forms. We need to get students motivated.
Wigfield and Gunthrie have identified three motivational categories for reading which include:
1. Competence and efficacy
2. Purposes for reading: intrinsic and extrinsic reasons
3. Social purposes for reading: the influence of family and peers
(Hayn & Kaplan 81)
Educators have the power to influence all three of these. One way to raise competency and efficacy is through Penny Kittle's strategies (discussed in the Pedagogy section). Student's will find intrinsic purpose for reading as they discover books they identify with and enjoy, and extrinsic reasons as their grades and abilities improve. We can create social purposes for reading through communities of readers in the classroom and encouraging reading to take place outside of school in homes.
Among some of the things that get young readers interested in a book, students expressed the desire for, "characters that were like them... characters who were wrestling with the same conscious and subconscious identity issues that they themselves were experiencing" (Hayn & Kaplan 85). This website is designed to help teachers lead students to such books. You never know which story will be the hook that turns a student on to reading. We have the power to change this generation's attitude towards texts, one book at a time.