What Does It Mean to Follow a Reading Program?

Tim Shanahan

Blast from the Past: This blog entry first posted on May 5, 2018, and re-posted on April 20, 2024. The reason for this re-post is twofold: I received the letter below from an educational consultant who was troubled about how some school districts were using commercial reading programs and wanted my take on it. Also, recently, some critics have been making claims about the appropriate design of commercial reading programs if they were to be used successfully to enhance literacy achievement – unproven design claims that seem to come out of the same camp that this letter was reacting to. Given that I have reprinted the 2018 blog entry, but have added research references, several new paragraphs at the bottom, and a link to an even older blog that carries additional relevant information. The original blog post generated a great deal of discussion, so be sure to follow the link at the end to see the 62 comments. I think readers will find those to be thought-provoking as well.

Teacher question: I am currently working in two large school districts that have purchased certain commercial programs and materials that claim to be SOR. Both districts insist that all schools implement these programs with ‘fidelity.’ The schools within these districts vary enormously. Some serve majority ELLs and recent immigrants, some serve mostly children from professional families, some serve a majority of low-income families. I cannot understand how it could make sense for teachers in such widely varied settings to read the same words from the teachers’ manual, present the same information with the same materials to expect the same outcomes. The notion of fidelity seems very confusing to me. What am I missing?

Shanahan response:

Years ago, I was invited to coach some teachers. I’ve done a lot of that over the past almost 50 years. I watch a lesson, and the teacher and I sit down and discuss how it may be improved.

But this was going to be a strange situation.

The school had adopted a curriculum program I’d developed. They hadn’t told me that. Now I was to critique teachers who were using my lessons. Uncomfortable territory.

The principal assured me it would be fine since the classes using my stuff were doing well—better test scores than in the past. I wasn’t so sure.

Two teachers were using the program: one was experienced but she’d never taught reading before, and the other was a rookie.

I watched the first teacher, had the follow up meeting… nothing remarkable.

But then I sat in on the neophyte’s class. She wasn’t a superstar—yet. But she was darn good, one of those lessons that probably couldn’t get much better. What she may have lacked in artfulness, she more than made up in fundamental teaching chops. Heinemann probably wouldn’t sign her to a book contract, but you’d be pleased if she were teaching your kids!

During that lesson I started to think I was pretty wonderful. Here was a fresh-faced beginning teacher, a greenie, working with a challenged bunch of kids and outperforming past teachers… using my program. Magic!

Then I came to my senses.

READ MORE...