When school lets out for the summer, students often go on long vacations, traveling abroad or visiting national parks. Others simply stay home and relax in the comfort of their own homes. But all these students, whether traveling or enjoying a 'stay-cation' all most likely have one thing in common: they are happy to be spending time outside the classroom. All students, no matter their grade level, deserve to have a break, but how does a teacher prevent the valuable lessons they've learned from being lost through summertime inactivity? Also, what's the best way for upcoming teachers to prepare their new students for the lessons to come? The answer is simple: summer reading. Unfortunately, without the physical presence of teachers, it is near impossible to actively enforce summer reading, and even if the student is allowed to read a book of their own choosing, their is no sure way of knowing that they will fully read their book from beginning to end. Also not helping matters is the fact that time spent reading among adolescents has gone down. So how does one promote summer reading or, even more satisfactory, revitalize it so it becomes not a chore, but an activity for students to look forward too. While their are many possible solutions worth discussing, I believe the best one lies in a concept I have spent much time discussing in prior blog posts - gamification. Through the introduction of gamification values, students will go of their way to read during the summer, and will compete with one another to read the most pages or books. This healthy competition and desire will further engage them in their reading, allowing them to learn more and better apply what they've learned in the classroom when summer ends.
It's a well known fact that people respond to positive, and not negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement in academic settings can be seen in the form of punishments, restrictions, and probation. While it is believed that these force the student to show desired behavior lest they be punished again, it only promotes resistance in the student. Positive reinforcement, as its names suggest, has to do with positive things such as rewards, granting of privileges, and praise. Teachers should not hesitate to use positive reinforcement when it comes to encouraging summer reading. Students who successfully read a number of books, and are able to show a document signed by their parents as proof that they have done so, should be celebrated and rewarded. Perhaps a student who read more books than required during the summer can be granted a slip that allows them to skip a homework assignment, or be given treats like cookies or candy. When it comes to the gamification side of things, summer reading can be turned into a kind of friendly competition. Along with all the rewards for reading in general, the student who reads the most books can win the overall prize. This can be a special trophy or a ribbon, or even something else entirely. What the reward is depends only on the teacher's imagination. Of course, the reward doesn't have to be a physical object.
When I was in elementary school, there was a reading program that went on during the school year: if students read so many number of books on their free time, they were allowed to join in on a special event where they could spend the night at the school with a teacher, watch a movie, and enjoy soda and snacks. A similar thing can be done to promote summer reading, as long as their are teachers to support such a program. While introducing gamification may be easy, the responsibility of introducing it belongs to teachers who aren't afraid to take the initiative. Many public libraries also host summer reading programs, providing charts and logs for adolescents to record their reading progress, and they'd be happy to help teachers promote summer reading amongst their students. It's up to the teachers though, to reach out and make the necessary connections. Also, school librarians are in a prime position to introduce gamification to summer reading, and can use their connections to network with other libraries and information professionals, exchanging ideas on how to best gamify summer reading.
Time flies by fast, and summers are constant reality for schoolteachers. They must hurry to introduce gamification if they want to see its rewards. To learn more, I've linked some articles that I highly recommend reading to better understand gamification and summer reading.
Links:
On different kinds of reinforcement: https://bcotb.com/the-difference-between-positivenegative-reinforcement-and-positivenegative-punishment/
Article about gamification for summer reading: http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2014/07/02/gamification-of-summer-reading/
Libraries and gamification: https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/blogs/the-scoop/gamification-teens-college-students/
It's a well known fact that people respond to positive, and not negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement in academic settings can be seen in the form of punishments, restrictions, and probation. While it is believed that these force the student to show desired behavior lest they be punished again, it only promotes resistance in the student. Positive reinforcement, as its names suggest, has to do with positive things such as rewards, granting of privileges, and praise. Teachers should not hesitate to use positive reinforcement when it comes to encouraging summer reading. Students who successfully read a number of books, and are able to show a document signed by their parents as proof that they have done so, should be celebrated and rewarded. Perhaps a student who read more books than required during the summer can be granted a slip that allows them to skip a homework assignment, or be given treats like cookies or candy. When it comes to the gamification side of things, summer reading can be turned into a kind of friendly competition. Along with all the rewards for reading in general, the student who reads the most books can win the overall prize. This can be a special trophy or a ribbon, or even something else entirely. What the reward is depends only on the teacher's imagination. Of course, the reward doesn't have to be a physical object.
When I was in elementary school, there was a reading program that went on during the school year: if students read so many number of books on their free time, they were allowed to join in on a special event where they could spend the night at the school with a teacher, watch a movie, and enjoy soda and snacks. A similar thing can be done to promote summer reading, as long as their are teachers to support such a program. While introducing gamification may be easy, the responsibility of introducing it belongs to teachers who aren't afraid to take the initiative. Many public libraries also host summer reading programs, providing charts and logs for adolescents to record their reading progress, and they'd be happy to help teachers promote summer reading amongst their students. It's up to the teachers though, to reach out and make the necessary connections. Also, school librarians are in a prime position to introduce gamification to summer reading, and can use their connections to network with other libraries and information professionals, exchanging ideas on how to best gamify summer reading.
Time flies by fast, and summers are constant reality for schoolteachers. They must hurry to introduce gamification if they want to see its rewards. To learn more, I've linked some articles that I highly recommend reading to better understand gamification and summer reading.
Links:
On different kinds of reinforcement: https://bcotb.com/the-difference-between-positivenegative-reinforcement-and-positivenegative-punishment/
Article about gamification for summer reading: http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2014/07/02/gamification-of-summer-reading/
Libraries and gamification: https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/blogs/the-scoop/gamification-teens-college-students/
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