<<On 10/26/07, Mary Lynn Simons <macsimoin at hotmail.com> wrote:  
Three of the GED tests are reading. If the teacher is talking a lot and if students are talking a lot, students are not reading. Reading is a skill.  The reason most people read poorly is that they don't read much. The reason people type poorly is that they don't type; the reason people do not play the guitar well is that they don't play, and on and on and on. I say, "Shut up and read.">>
 
And here lies my problem with many GED programs. There are a lot of students in GED programs who don't know HOW to read well - as a result of poor schooling or possibly a physiological learning/processing disability. They will not successfully pass the GED if we don't teach them reading strategies, information processing and (the aforementioned) critical thinking skills.  I would never insult an adult student by saying "shut up and read" - it makes the assumption that anyone can do it and if they're in GED in the first place, maybe the reason is because they have a deficit in their reading skills.  When we speak of metacognition, learning styles and strategies for processing materials in class, there is better comprehension, retention and higher scoring on the GED when they take it.  Learning the vocabulary required for each content area is another area that boosts comprehension, so we mix decoding strategies with content area vocabulary.    It takes the same amount of time to frustrate students and reinforce their lifelong humiliation in school as it does to help teach and reinforce the reading and critical thinking skills for success. I choose the latter.
Thanks,
Mary Lynn Carver
ABE/GED Instructor
College of Lake County
Building 4, Office 405
19351 W. Washington Street
Grayslake, IL  60031
Phone:847/543-2677
mlcarver at clcillinois.edu
Fax: 847/543-7580
 
"Blessed are they who laugh at themselves, for they shall be constantly amused" -- Unknown
 
We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change. And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn. --Peter F. Drucker 

 
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