Readicide

                Readicide is the second book I’ve read by Kelly Gallagher and I always look forward to what he has to say about education and the various activities he presents. Several of the ideas in Gallagher’s book really stood out to me. The first is the differences he shows between multiple choice questions and short answer responses. Although both can allow the student to get a similar response, students use and develop critical thinking skills when answering the short response question. Multiple choice only asks students to recall information, not using more complex skills.

                One part of the text I found interesting was seeing the correlation between time spent reading and performance on standardized tests. The more time students spend reading each day, the higher they score on standardized tests. Even reading recreationally will help students develop the skills they need to succeed. Students should be given more reading time and access to books in the classroom, as they may not get this at home. If my future school doesn’t offer SSR time, I will do my best to give students the reading time that they need. Not only will this help increase their test scores, it will help instill in them a love of reading that they will hopefully carry through the rest of their life.

                Gallagher mentions that many schools are doing away with novels in order to teach smaller texts and focus more on test preparation. To me, this is an injustice to the students. I don’t feel that standardized tests are the best way to assess a student’s knowledge as there are several varying factors. Schools push tests and test preparation so much because it seen as the way to judge the schools success. To be seen as a more “successful” school, many are doing whatever they can to help students pass the test, even if that means they don’t learn anything along the way. To sacrifice reading time in order to prepare for tests is something that benefits the school and not the student, which should be the primary focus of any learning institution.