Like many elementary educators, I’ve lived with the Accelerated Reader (AR) program for the last decade. I’ve gone from using AR to define my reading program to using it flexibly as just one tool in my instructional toolbox. But this year I won’t be using it at all. Because of recent changes in the way AR operates, my school has decided not to support the program. We can continue to use it until a problem arises, but there won’t be any tech support. I’ve decided to abandon it altogether and just go cold turkey into a new year without AR. Why do I feel like I’m jumping off a cliff into unknown waters, not just changing my reading program?
Tomorrow is the first day of school. I wonder what my students will think when I announce that we will not be using AR this year? I can just imagine their shocked faces. No AR???? Some will stand up and cheer, but others will feel lost without the program. I have similar mixed feelings. On the one hand, I know that the AR program does not produce joyous readers. On the other hand, I’ve found it to be a useful tool for tracking reading progress. It does get results, but at what cost? Face it - how many adults would enjoy reading if we knew we had to pass a test after finishing each book?
Luckily, I just finished reading a wonderful book called The Book Whisperer that will help me make sense of my decision to abandon AR completely. The author, Donalyn Miller, would probably be horrified that I found any value whatsoever in AR! She uses a “reading workshop” approach to deliver instruction, and passionately advocates for student choice in reading. She believes that to become better readers, students need to read more during the school day and become engaged with their texts in meaningful ways.
I guess in my heart of hearts I’ve known for a long time that AR was nothing more than a security blanket. It was an easy system for tracking progress, but it didn’t do much to foster a lifelong passion for reading. Promoting the joy of reading is a worthy goal; however, in today’s climate of accountability, it’s also important for students to perform well on standardized tests.
This year I’m on a mission to do both - promote the joy of reading AND increase reading achievement. I hope to inspire my students to grow as readers, challenging them to tackle increasingly difficult texts and a variety of genres. We’ll establish a climate where independent reading time is treasured and student choice is respected. I’ll create mini-lessons to teach skills, but mostly I’ll encourage my students to read, read, read!
AR won’t have a place in my classroom this year. It’s past time for me and my students to grow up and leave that security blanket behind!
I can't imagine life without AR. Please follow up and let us know how it goes. What you say makes me think. The same may happen to my school, times are a-changing and really... we need to always think of what is best for our students. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI think you will love using a Reading Workshop approach. I am in a district that has, until just recently, relied heavily on basal readers. Despite this reliance, I have incorporated reading workshop for the last two years and have seen my students reading enjoyment skyrocket! It is amazing to watch fifth graders read for fun and learning every day! I can't wait to see how it goes in your classroom! I'm a big fan of your site! Thanks for putting it all out there for us to use!
ReplyDeleteI found http://www.bookadventure.com/ to be just as useful and better yet it's free! They have great prizes and the kids seemed excited about taking the quizzes and they have a huge selection of books.
ReplyDeleteJust a quick follow-up to my message last night. Today when I told my students that we wouldn't use AR this year, they acted just as I expected. Some cheered, about half looked shocked and upset, and a few started to cheer but then looked at me like I was playing a trick on them. They just didn't know what to think. One boy even said, "What??? What's the point in reading if there's no test to take?" Now that's sad! I obviously have a lot of work to do! I'll keep you posted!
ReplyDeleteI use both AR and a workshop. I only ask my third graders to earn 5 points each grading quarter, just so I have a report to show if they can choose a book they can read and understand all on their own. Not much to ask, I don't think. I do use the reports to help guide their reading when I conference with them about scores. Gives me a good opportunity to ask "What affected your comprehension on this book?" or "What strategies did you use while reading that helped you get such good recall of facts?" A springboard for conversations about a few choices of their own.
ReplyDeleteIt would be an GREAT discussion board topic to have: How do we hold our students accountable for their reading? I would find it so valuable to hear from other teachers ... to find out what they do.
ReplyDeleteLast year I had my kids write a review after each book they finished. I would then read the review and give them a sticker that was placed on a chart. While learning how to write a good book review is good ... it's not that authentic to write one after each book read. Not to mention, I got sick of reading all the reviews.
I am definitely looking for a better ... more interesting and authentic way to keep them accountable.
Please ... any ideas? Thank you!!!
I love AR and have found many ways to motivate my students to read using it. I can't wait to hear about what your class is like this year without it...please keep us posted!
ReplyDeleteI have gone through the same change. What I came up with is a book review page on our class website. It is fun for the kids, involves writing, and parents can get involved in the sharing, also. We love to read them in class, it really turns on and hypes up kids who normally don't read much. Check out our page at:
ReplyDeletehttp://mrdifioresclassblog.wordpress.com/mr-ds-class-book-reviews/
It works!
I have NEVER used AR and can't imagine doing so. I too am in a district that is moving away from basals to a reading workshop approach in which guided reading and strategic reading groups are utilized while individual students read independently. As a teacher, I have mini-conferences with students every few days to see how they are progressing. I keep anecdotal records on each student, and each student has a reading binder. Last year was the first year and our state test scores went up. I'm a newcomer to your site but look forward to hearing about your year.
ReplyDeleteThe age old question from an administrator's point of view. How do we promote lifelong learning to include reading as a lifelong skill without consequences or appeared punishment for those who cannot keep up. Would love to talk with you about it and admire your quest to find another way. Adele
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Readicide by Kelly Gallagher this summer, I am not going to encourage AR in my classroom this year.
ReplyDeleteThere are some interesting studies mentioned in the book that indicate that readers actually read less after having been in an AR program than students who have never been in AR before.
After having to use chocolate as a reward last spring for all 80's, 90's, and 100% AR scores, I knew something was very wrong. I am a huge reader, and I want children to love books and have reading be its own reward.
You will be fine without AR once you get through withdrawal. I went to a Tony Stead workwhop this summer and am using his approach to SSR and non-fiction reading with frequent student conferences to check their accountability for what 'they' want to read. So far they LOVE it and I can already see a healthy break from fiction many needed.
ReplyDeleteI think you will enjoy sharing the love of reading with your students through Readers Workshop. I feel guided reading from K-2 gives kids a strong start to developing the mechanics of reading. However, if we want to motivate kids to become life long readers with a love of reading we need to give them individual choice when it comes to selecting individual reading material. After all we are aiming to foster independant readers with a love of reading not, testing robots?
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I support the Reader's Workshop approach and support my students. I meet with them weekly to discuss their reading choices & challenges as they navigate their way through self selected reading materials. Discussing their reading choices and checking comprehension in this way gives me a 'clear window' into each readers' interests and challenges. I keep anecdotal records on each student from our conferences which gives me the assessment tool I need to be accountable when writing reportcards and setting future goals with each student.
I think you will enjoy sharing the love of reading with your students through Readers Workshop. I feel guided reading from K-2 gives kids a strong start to developing the mechanics of reading. However, if we want to motivate kids to become life long readers with a love of reading we need to give them individual choice when it comes to selecting individual reading material. After all we are aiming to foster independant readers with a love of reading not, testing robots?
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I support the Reader's Workshop approach and support my students. I meet with them weekly to discuss their reading choices & challenges as they navigate their way through self selected reading materials. Discussing their reading choices and checking comprehension in this way gives me a 'clear window' into each readers' interests and challenges. I keep anecdotal records on each student from our conferences which gives me the assessment tool I need to be accountable when writing reportcards and setting future goals with each student.
My question is...why are you letting AR control your reading instruction? I use AR but totally as a motivational aspect of my reading workshop. My students love to read and almost all like to take the quiz at the end to see how they did. I don't take grades or stress percentage scores. I have a point club board that I post who is in what point club, but AR does not tell me how to get kids to love reading. Book talks, Read Alouds, and Book Clubs do that! The only report I pull is the Point Club Summary report. I meet with my kids weekly in Groups and one-on-one conferences to determine how they are progressing in reading. Also, be wary of assigning book reviews and projects after books. You have just replaced AR with another assignment. Those are worse than taking a quick quiz after reading a book. Don't require AR, let the kids decide whether they want to take a quiz to earn points. Let your kids READ!!! The only way to improve reading is to READ!
ReplyDeleteGood points! I totally agree with the one-on-one conferences and the other strategies. Perhaps I should let kids take AR tests if they want. However, in my opinion, any type of recognition for AR points sends the message that I value AR points and I'm proud of kids who are getting more points. It would seem that kids who are teacher-pleasers will still pick books based on points rather than on their personal interests. That's why I'm going to try not using it at all.
ReplyDeleteAs a 5th & 6th grade reading specialist, I too fully embrace the reading workshop and believe individual conferences are one of the best ways to hold children accountable for their reading. Half of the battle (if that's an appropriate term to use) in getting them to actually read is managed for you if you allow them more self-selection of reading materials. There is great benefit in conducting literature circles, say once a grading period, to get them used to interacting with someone besides the teacher, and it can give you a break from the individual conferences as well. In short, the most effective approach is one that is research-based (and conferences and literature circles certainly are) and that the teacher can truly maintain (if you are quick to wear out from it, you will be tempted to revert to less-effective and less-motivating methods). We want our kids to learn to do what we do with books, which is love them and share that love with others. Thank you, Laura, for your great insights and web site, and everyone else for great discussion.
ReplyDeleteI applaud you for abandoning AR. This is something I have been contemplating myself. It is hard because I find myself struggling for the 2 grade per week for reading that our district requires as a numeric grade. How do you all equate your conference notes/book talks/responses into numeric grades? AR was being used as 4 grades per nine weeks. Any help would be appreciated-this is my 3rd year teaching and I am radically different than my colleagues who still use the "eek" basal for all reading instruction. Thanks so much Laura for a great forum!
ReplyDeleteI have never been a fan of AR. I have taught in a variety of schools with and without AR. I think the best reading environment has a balanced literacy approach where there was time for self selected reading which gave the teacher time to conference with her students and ask why they choose the book they choose.
ReplyDeleteYou are a fabulos teacher with wonderful ideas (it shows in your webpage & newletters). I know you willl find a way to keep records of your students reading progress!
Happy Reading !
I think this is an excellent idea. For far too long, AR has been the emphasis in our system's reading instruction. I have it set-up in my classroom for those that wish to participate. They are encouraged to meet their AR goal, but I have nothing more to do with it than that. I have noticed that the teachers at my school who emphasis AR do not have students who do as well on the standardized tests or even love reading as much as the students of teachers who don't use AR. Let us know how this year ends up going for you. :)
ReplyDeleteThank heavens you have finally come into the 21st century! You are a professional who can do better than rely on the antiquated AR system. I have seen it ruin reading for far more students than it has helped. The worst situation is to tie AR to their grades. You will do great on your new system. There are so many good ideas for reviewing books. What about the hamburger or sandwich ideas? What about rerwiting the ending? What about having reading discussion groups and no they don't all have to have read the same book to ask each other questions. Then they might actually get each other excited about books they might not ever have otherwise considered.
ReplyDeleteIf others decide to drop AR they should be sure to let the librarian or technology person at their school know that it is sitting idle because it ain't cheap and there are many other ways to use the subscription. FYI: Most schools pay per classroom.
ReplyDeleteThe decision not to use it was made at my school. I agree that if someone decides not to use it they need to discuss that with their administrators or at least the librarian. Now I have found out that we can let our kids use it if they want to do so. I will probably let mine use it if they want, but I won't offer incentives or even mention AR points at all.
ReplyDeleteLaura, I was so excited when I visited your web page and saw that you had also read the Book Whisperer. I shared this book with my school principal and she also loved it. We are trying to get more teachers in our school to read the book. I really want someone to share thoughts and things they are trying in their room. I am not using AR in my room this year even though teachers in my school swear by it. Over the years I have seen some of my strongest students not do well on the tests even though we spent at least 6 weeks on these books in class. It was upsetting to see students fail these low level comp. tests and then I had to wrongly use these as a portion of their reading grade. In my room this year, I give them the option of AR Banner.I told them they do not have to take the test but if the they want the AR points for their books they can look them up on arbookfind.com. They will be responsilbe for keeping their own points. None of my kids want to take the tests and all of them are excited about reading 40 books this year. They write a weekly letter to me in their reading journal and I respond to them asking high level questions about their books. I also have them find 3-5 vocab. words they select from their book and they write the definition, draw a picture and use the word in a sentence. I have also started a Lunch Bunch group. Where students from my class and former students of mine,if they have read the book I have selected, we all meet for lunch and either discuss the book, act it out, or play- By the Book Game. The kids love it!! I also have them work on simple, yet high level thinking, in class book projects and teach reading skills in small groups. In the first 9 weeks of school, nearly all of my students have read 10 books. I plan to come up with my own rewards in my room for the number of books my students read in each advisory. I really hope this works because I love seeing my kids really into their books. I already have several parents asking me what I have done because their child wants to read - sometimes all night. I really enjoy the closer more personal connnections I have with each of my students by their letters and conversations we share about their books. Nine weeks into this and I already love it!!!!
ReplyDeleteOur middle school uses AR, and I use it in conjunction with my Scholastic Read 180 Program which includes the Reading Counts Program, a program comparable to AR. It is based on lexile scores and has quizzes as well. I believe it is also less expensive than AR. If you still want a program that generates reading reports, you might give Reading Counts a try. It can be found on Scholastic.com. Go to search and type in Reading Counts. I would be willing to share how I utilize this in my classroom if anyone is interested.
ReplyDelete