I am so fed up with the way our school systems use, or, rather, misuse, the Accelerated Reader (AR) testing system.
I work with struggling readers daily, kids who dislike reading because it is challenging for them to do so. I view my job as a teacher to help alleviate the pain of reading while encouraging the child through their difficulties. Somedays it’s a very fine line between success and frustration for the child, and myself if I’m being totally honest.
Giving a child the tools to break apart our language can be daunting. If you think about all of the sounds and all of the rules that go along with figuring out words, then throw in words that follow absolutely no rules, think how overwhelmed a six, seven, and eight-year-old child can become. Now toss a challenge like dyslexia or auditory processing disorder to the mix and it complicates matters even more.
The AR Program
Insert the AR program here. Renaissance Learning created this program to motivate reading, not stifle it. Yet, I know that many districts in my state misuse this system to inflate reading grades. Additionally, students must obtain a certain number of points each quarter to participate in a special activity or achieve a specific grade, which can create a dislike for reading, especially if the child is already struggling.
When I talk to kids about reading, very few will tell me that they will sit down with a book, of their own accord, and read for pleasure. Even the ‘good’ readers get a bad taste in their mouths when AR goals are mentioned. And the struggling readers? Even if, and that’s a huge if, modifications are being made, most readers who are already challenged will tell me that they hate reading.
This makes me so very sad, since I came from a time where reading was absolutely magical, and I still believe, even as an adult, that reading for pleasure can transport me away from reality.
So, what do we do when we don’t agree with the system? Well, I usually buck the trend, but I don’t know of many teachers who have the time or, especially, the leftover energy to raise a fuss about something of this nature.
How to Use AR Effectively
So if you must follow the AR system, here are three things you can do to make a ‘peaceful protest’, especially since protests seem to be a popular thing as of late:
- Establish your stance on the AR system with your team and attempt to negotiate lowered goals for your grade level. If you get to establish your own goals, lower the bar a bit to focus on quality instead of quantity.
- Ensure modifications for your struggling readers. These kiddos have to read for a really long time, like the rest of their lives, and our job is to instill a love of reading, not an aversion to it. Modifications can be as simple as having the student read the test questions aloud to you, or, if there is an IEP, ensuring those modifications are implemented.
- Give adequate time for students to prepare for their AR tests. Instead of having the reading take place at home, allow class time for the student to read and take the test as soon as the book is completed.
We need to make sure we are being the cheerleaders in our classrooms, enabling more successes than failures.
How does your school use the AR system?
I never cared for the AR program when it was implemented in my school. Thankfully, due to small class sizes and rising costs, we no longer have it!!! My office sat right next to the library, and I hated how often students would find a book they really wanted to read, but put it back because it “wasn’t their level” or “didn’t have enough points”. Enough already!! It is hard enough to get kids to read without placing these types of barriers in front of them. I know that most of the issue came from improper use on the teacher’s part, but it happened non the less. As a special education teacher I don’t care if they are reading a book, magazine, newspaper, or the phone book, as long as they are reading!! My own daughter struggles to read. She reads cookbooks. Not exactly on the AR list, but she loves finding new recipes to try, she is reading, and is now great with fractions! So happy to know I am not the only one out there that dislikes this program.
Why makes me crazy is when good readers read for points not pleasure. They are seeking the prize of highest points in the school and doing so by reading lots of low level and low point books to do so.
My district uses AR as early as Kindergarten. They keep up with all the data. SGPs points ect… ridiculuous
My son (4th grader) came home last week and told me that his quarter 2 report card reading grade will be based on hitting his AR goal for the second quarter (now raised from 48 to 53 points). His neighbor has a goal of 29 ( received an A in the first quarter @ 25 points) We checked with his teacher and were told “this is the way it has been since she founded the program 20 years ago” So now I am online attempting to find a rulebook / regs of some sort. Please tell me this is a mistake.
Our school has been using AR for years. For my son he liked getting the points and winning certificates but he is also super competitive. They have been using it since 2nd grade. My daughter is recently diagnosed dyslexic and the reading has always been a struggle for her. Initially it wasn’t too bad but seeing others reviews I’ve come to understand it is the program AND how it is implemented. My son has gone from reading the entire Harry Potter series in 3rd & 4th grade to hating to read. This year they combined it with BOB (battle of the books) and the reading list was awful so none of the kids were enthusiatic. You add in that if the kids don’t reach their goal at least 2 of the 3 trimesters, they don’t get to attend the end of year party it takes something bad to awful. I was just getting my daughter to enjoy reading last year and now both my kids hate it!