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Reading is important for school, work, and day-to-day life. In order for students to become good readers, they must practice. This article explores aspects of reading motivation.
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Inside the Literacy Ecosystem: Reading Motivation
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Alison Glass IST 668
September 29, 2013
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Definition and Description Reading is the only way. According to Stephen Krashen, the only way for people to become good readers and writers, develop a sufficient vocabulary, and achieve competence in grammar and spelling is to actually read (2004, p. 37). The question becomes, then, how librarians, educators, and other adults can nurture that love of reading in children, so that they will read frequently and thus become good readers. There is no doubt that reading motivation is an essential aspect of this process. If students are not motivated to read, they will read less frequently, and thus not develop the literacy skills necessary to succeed. But what is reading motivation? Guthrie and Wigfield define it as “the individual’s personal goals, values, and beliefs with regard to the topics, processes, and outcomes of reading” (as cited in Clark & Rumbold, 2006, p. 16). Motivation for reading can be intrinsic or extrinsic, though many reading experts hold the belief that intrinsic motivation is essential to becoming a lifelong reader (Colker, 2007). Intrinsic motivation stems from a person’s “internal desires, interests, and experiences” (Colker, 2007), while extrinsic motivation comes from external factors, often based on rewards and social controls (Colker, 2007). There has been much research on the topic of extrinsic motivation, leading to mixed opinions on whether it is an effective method of getting students to read. Some studies have shown that extrinsic motivation has
been negatively associated with both reading for enjoyment and text comprehension (Clark & Rumbold, 2006), while others have shown that extrinsic motivation in the form of rewards has a negative impact on intrinsic motivation (Clark & Rumbold, 2006). On the other hand, many other people believe that students’ motivation is comprised of both extrinsic and intrinsic factors, and that extrinsic motivation can sometimes be used to bring about intrinsic motivation (Clark & Rumbold, 2006). Gambrell and Marinak, for example, have found that selected rewards can support motivation, especially rewards related to reading, such as books (2009), while Chen & Wu concluded, among other things, that intangible rewards could have a positive effect on reading motivation (2010). While intrinsic motivation does stem from students’ individual, internal interests and experiences, there are certainly things educators and librarians can do to help students develop intrinsic motivation and become lifelong readers. Providing students with a book-‐rich environment, offering books with characteristics in which students are interested, providing a social component to reading, reading aloud, providing time to read, and allowing students to self-‐select reading materials can all help nurture students’ love of reading (Edmunds & Bauserman, 2006; Hunter, 2005; Krashen, 2004; Tilley, 2009). One way in particular to help students develop motivation for reading is by just giving them the time to read through Free Voluntary Reading (FVR).
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FVR is, quite simply, reading for the sake of reading, with no obligations like book reports or comprehension questions at the end of a chapter (Krashen, 2004). FVR is not a replacement for a language arts program, but rather is meant to complement assigned reading and direct instruction (Krashen, 2004). FVR can be accomplished through sustained silent reading programs, in which students and teachers are given some time each day for reading, self-‐selected reading, like a readers’ workshop format, or extensive reading, where there is minimal accountability required, such as a short summary of a book (Krashen, 2004). FVR can help students to become consistent readers, but they must have access to books and the ability to choose the books that interest them, even if those books fall into the category of “light reading” (such as magazines or teen romance) (Krashen, 2004).
FVR is more successful, and motivation is greater, if students are able to discuss what they have read with other people (Krashen, 2004). Reading as a social activity can be beneficial for students; research on the topic of reading motivation indicates that students are more motivated to read when people share what they are reading with them ( Edmunds & Bauserman, 2006). Students also enjoy being able to discuss what they are reading (Tilley, 2009); this gives them the opportunity to share their own perspectives, as well as exposing them to a diverse range of ideas and allowing them to develop a deeper understanding of what they have read (Hunter, 2005). Allowing students to have these social interactions revolving
around reading can help to develop a stronger culture of literacy, which can, in turn, be motivating; it is important, therefore, to give students frequent opportunities to share and discuss what they are reading (Edmunds & Bauserman, 2006). Reading is a skill that is essential for success in school, in the workplace, and in day-‐to-‐day life. In order for students to become good readers, they must be motivated to read on a regular basis. It is the job of educators, librarians, and parents to help students develop that motivation for reading.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/departmentofed/9605572819/ Challenges and Opportunities As with any aspect of literacy, there are a number of things to consider in terms of reading motivation. Several challenges and opportunities that teachers, parents, and students must face are listed below.
Access to books. Research has shown that one thing that affects students’ motivation to read is access (Edmunds & Bauserman, 2006).
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Students who have ready access to a variety of books are more likely to read and more motivated to read. This can be both a challenge and an opportunity for educators. Classroom teachers should develop well-‐stocked classroom libraries and allow their students to visit the school library frequently in order for students to have the access they need (Edmunds & Bauserman, 2006). However, not all classroom teachers have the resources or desire to develop robust classroom libraries, and it is often the case that students do not have access to reading materials at home. Students coming from low-‐income communities, for example, have fewer books available at home, have access to fewer books at their local public libraries, and live near fewer bookstores (Krashen, 2004).
Parents and teachers may not have the resources to provide print-‐rich environments for their students; this is an opportunity for school librarians. Students with access to a school library read, on average, twice as many books as those with no school library access (Krashen, 2004), so the school library is particularly important in providing students with access to reading material. School librarians can organize more planned library visits for students or keep the library open after school or on a weekend in order to provide students with access, and thus help them develop motivation to read.
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Choice. Students are more
motivated to read when they are given the option to choose their reading material; research suggests that allowing students to make choices in regard to their reading material will result in increased engagement and effort during reading (Gambrell & Marinak, 2009). Students who are able to choose their reading materials will have more interest in reading, and increased interest leads to increased motivation (Hunter, 2005). As such, reading choice is a powerful method of motivation.
Librarians, parents, and teachers all have the opportunity to help students develop into lifelong readers by simply allowing them to choose reading material in which they are interested. Librarians should take students’ interests into account when developing their collections, and include a variety of materials, while parents and teachers should not try to steer
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students toward books they consider to be proper or valuable. It is most important for students to read, even if they are reading romance novels, magazines, or other “light reading” (Krashen, 2004); giving students a choice regarding what they read is an important opportunity to increase motivation.
Reading choice can also present some challenges; students may want to read materials of interest to them, or recommended to them by friends, which, realistically, may be too difficult for them. While it is true that choosing books of interest may motivate students to make additional effort when reading (Gambrell & Marinak, 2009), there does come a point when reading material becomes too difficult to truly impact a student’s learning. Because of this, it is important for librarians, parents, and educators to help students, particularly struggling readers, choose books that are both interesting to them and at an appropriate level of difficulty (Clark & Rumbold, 2006).
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Time. In this age of standardized testing, teachers may be of the opinion that there is no time for FVR. They may feel that language skills instruction or a focus on classic literature rather than popular literature is the only way for students to master those tests, or that visiting the library would take away from instructional time. As a result, students may only have the opportunity to read assigned books, and never have the opportunity to choose their own reading material. Additionally, so much time may be focused on language skills instruction that students may have very little time to read at all.
Students must practice in order to become good readers. FVR provides the opportunity for this, provided teachers make time for reading during the school day. Sustained silent reading (SSR), one type of FVR, allows teachers to set aside time each day for reading; evidence shows that students really do spend their SSR time reading, and students who have participated in SSR are more likely to read on their own than those who have not participated (Krashen, 2004).
Librarians can work together with teachers in their schools to develop a plan to implement FVR in a way that works for everyone. When teachers understand that reading for meaning, even if it is a work of popular literature rather than a classic, is a way for students to develop their language skills, they will be able to see that FVR, in the form of SSR or another program, will help students achieve on standardized tests.
Focus on Extrinsic Motivation.
As was previously discussed, focusing on
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external factors to motivate students to read can have mixed results. Students may read simply to pass a class or earn a good grade, and not for pleasure and enjoyment; while assigned reading is sometimes a necessity, ideally students would be intrinsically motivated to read because they enjoy reading and like the challenge of mastering a complex text (Colker, 2007).
Because so many students claim to hate reading or choose not to do any reading, teachers often focus on rewarding or coercing students to get them to read (Krashen, 2007). This is a dangerous practice to implement, as providing students with rewards that are unrelated to reading may, in fact, have a negative impact on their intrinsic motivation (Clark & Rumbold, 2006). Similarly, reading management programs such as Accelerated Reader (AR), while designed to motivate students to read more, may also negatively impact students’ reading motivation, as many teachers incentivize this program, offering rewards based on how many points are earned (Krashen, 2004).
Using rewards that are unrelated to reading, or coercing students to read, is not a productive way to develop reading motivation in students. Judicious use of extrinsic factors, though, such as praise or encouragement, or even rewards such as books or bookmarks, can be an opportunity to increase students’ motivation to read. Librarians, teachers, and parents should work together to determine a system for utilizing rewards, so that there is consistency across the community and
the focus can be on developing intrinsic motivation to read. Impact and Implications Reading motivation is essential to the development of lifelong readers, and there is no question that libraries and librarians play an integral role in nurturing a love of reading in students, and helping them to develop intrinsic motivation to read. One of the most important impacts librarians can have on reading motivation is to provide students with access to books. As stated previously, some students, particularly those in low-‐income areas, simply do not have access to books at home. Similarly, classroom teachers may not have the resources to develop robust classroom libraries. This is where school libraries can have an impact; students with access to better school libraries read more books (Krashen, 2004), and students have indicated that access to more books had a positive effect on their reading motivation (Edmunds & Bauserman, 2005). School librarians can come up with a schedule that allows for frequent library visits. While some libraries may have a fixed schedule, particularly at the elementary level, librarians can also offer open library hours, when there are no classes, for students to come down individually to choose books, or open after school one day a week or one day a month so that students can visit the library with their families to check out books. Additionally, librarians can work with teachers to help them develop classroom libraries with books on topics of interest to students.
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/holtsman/4599750201/ In addition to access, almost every piece of literature related to reading motivation mentions student choice as a primary factor in student motivation (Edmunds & Bauserman, 2005; Hunter, 2005; Krashen, 2004). Libraries are in an excellent position to impact reading motivation in this regard as well. Libraries should contain a wide variety of non-‐fiction and fiction materials that correspond to the interests of the students in the school, as well as the school curriculum. Because “light reading” material still helps develop literacy skills (Krashen, 2004), reading material should not be limited to books, but should include comic books, graphic novels, and magazines as well. Librarians should ask students for their input on what books to order, and get those books into circulation as quickly as they can. By doing this, libraries will be sure to include books in which students are interested, and students will be able to make choices about reading, which will have a positive impact on their reading motivation. Librarians are also in a position to impact the amount of time devoted to FVR. They can make the case to
teachers about the benefits of FVR and providing students with time to read, and, at the very least, if teachers and administrators will not implement FVR, they can offer the library as a safe, comfortable place for students to read during study halls or other free time. At the elementary level, if there is a fixed schedule, librarians can set aside fifteen minutes during each library class for SSR. While school libraries can help students develop more intrinsic motivation to read by offering more access to books and more choices in reading material, they can also have an impact on extrinsic motivation. Given the conclusions reached about extrinsic motivation, librarians could lead workshops for teachers presenting this research, explaining why it is best to avoid providing incentives that are unrelated to reading, and offering alternative ideas for increasing reading motivation. At the same time, librarians can model this for teachers by limiting extrinsic rewards and, if any contests or competitions are done through the library, by providing only reading-‐related rewards, such as books or bookmarks. Reading motivation can also have an impact on libraries. When students are motivated to read, libraries are used more frequently, reading materials are circulated more often, and library programs are better attended. Libraries need to be equipped to handle the greater demand on resources and facilities that an increasingly motivated population of students could require. This could mean seeking grants in order to acquire more books for the collection, or different furniture in order
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to create a comfortable space for FVR. Similarly, a student population consisting of motivated readers will have better developed literacy skills and will be more likely to do better on standardized tests and assignments in general. This could also result in more resources for the school in general, including the library. Students are unlikely to turn into lifelong readers if they do not have the motivation to read. School libraries are in an excellent position to impact reading motivation, and increased reading motivation could have positive implications for school libraries as well. Story of a First-‐Year Librarian Julie Brown recently began working as the librarian at Smithville High School in Smithville, New York. Her school is relatively small and located in an isolated area; of the 600 students, about half qualify for free and reduced lunch, and about ten percent are minorities. As a new librarian, Ms. Brown was excited to begin working with students, helping them to develop information literacy skills and nurturing their love of reading. She was disappointed to discover that not many people in the school utilize the library; teachers rarely bring their classes down, and students visit during study halls, but only to watch YouTube videos on the library computers. One day, about a month into the school year, Ms. Brown decided to ask Brian and Sara, some of the study hall regulars, why they never checked out any books. “I hate reading,” Brian responded. “It’s boring and it takes
forever.” Sara was more enthusiastic, but still somewhat wary: “We have a lot of assigned reading to get through for classes,” she said. “I don’t really have time to read for myself.” Ms. Brown was disappointed to hear this, and decided that she needed to do something to get more students excited about reading. She knew, after all, that all reading, not just the classics, helps develop language skills like vocabulary and grammar. Ms. Brown went around to each English class and gave students a survey, asking them what their interests were and if there were any books or types of books they’d like to see in the library. After she used some of her budget for the year to place an order for new books, she returned to English class, books in hand, to do some book talks. She thought talking to the students and getting them excited about new materials might bring some new faces to the library. After her book talk visits, a few students began to check out books, but they were some of the study hall regulars. Ms. Brown was still concerned, so she decided to have a meeting with the English teachers. She asked if they would bring each of their classes down for a library tour, and suggested that students take a break from assigned reading and have the opportunity to do a project on a book of their choice. The English teachers were reluctant to agree to this; they had a lot of material to cover before the state test in June. They did agree to bring their students to the library, though. Ms. Brown spent the rest of the week preparing; she created displays
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featuring some of the new books she’d ordered, showcasing the library’s graphic novel collection, and making signs indicating where certain types of books could be found, based on the survey she gave. She also scoured the school and a nearby thrift store for any comfortable furniture she could find, and spent Friday afternoon turning one corner of the library into a reading nook, with lots of colorful pillows and a few old, squishy chairs.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vblibrary/6716836931/ Monday morning, her first class came for their library tour. They entered the library looking apathetic, and Ms. Brown didn’t have high hopes for a successful visit. Slowly, though, as she began to talk about the materials, she saw some students perking up. “I didn’t know the library had THOSE,” she heard one student whisper as they passed the graphic novel display. She
saw one student lingering by the shelves with car books as she continued her tour. The next day, a few students came in and asked about some of the books she’d done book talks on. Instead of leaving right away, they sat down in the newly redecorated reading nook and began to page through their books. Ms. Brown smiled; she had reached a few students, and she still had to give tours to over half of the student body! Ms. Brown knew her work wasn’t done, but she was happy to have opened the eyes of some of the school’s students. For now, she would focus on her library tours and getting some of those books circulating, but she had big plans for down the road. She wanted to lead a workshop for the teachers on reading motivation and reading for fun. She hoped she could convince them that students should get to choose some of the books they read, and maybe even implement a sustained silent reading program. She also wanted to get students more familiar with and interested in the books in the library by starting a bookshelf bingo project (with books for prizes, of course). But for now, she was just happy that students were reading. Resources For more information on the topic of reading motivation, please look at the following resources: -‐Free Voluntary Reading, a slideshare presentation by Jamie Winchell
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-‐The Power of Reading, by Stephen D. Krashen -‐Raising Students Who Want to Read, by Phyllis S. Hunter -‐Reading for Pleasure: A Research Overview, by Christine Clark and Kate Rumbold -‐What Teachers Can Learn About Reading Motivation Through Conversations With Children, by Kathryn M. Edmunds and Kathryn L. Bauserman References Chen, P., & Wu, J. (2010). Rewards for
reading: Their effects on reading motivation. Journal of Instructional Pedagogies, 3, 1-‐8. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/759646856?accountid=14214
Clark, C. & Rumbold, K. (2006). Reading
for pleasure: A research overview. Retrieved from http://www.scholastic.com/content/collateral_resources/pdf/i/Reading_for_pleasure.pdf
Colker, L.J. (2007). When children read
because they want to, not because they have to. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_When_Children_Read/
Edmunds, K. M., & Bauserman, K. L.
(2006). What teachers can learn about reading motivation through conversations with children. The Reading Teacher, 59(5), 414-‐424. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/203281155?accountid=14214
Gambrell, L., & Marinak, B. (2009).
Reading motivation: What the research says. Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/29624/
Hunter, P.S. (2005). Raising students
who want to read. Retrieved from http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/authors/pdfs/Raising_Students.pdf
Krashen, S.D. (2004). The power of
reading: Insights from the research. Portsmouth: Heinemann/Libraries Unlimited.
Tilley, C. L. (2009). Reading motivation
and engagement. School Library Monthly, 26(4), 39-‐42. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/237136377?accountid=14214
