Next to requests made by parents for help with struggling students, the second most frequent type of request I get is from adults who want to help other adults learn to read better. Some come from volunteer tutors, but many are from people who are not involved with a specific program. Instead, they have a friend or loved one struggling with illiteracy. Sometimes there is no access to a reading program or literacy agency. At times, transportation or scheduling is a barrier. Sometimes the illiterate person refuses to pursue assistance through a program. Whatever your situation, you CAN help an adult learn to read better. There are no magic answers, and the process is accessible for any adult who already knows how to read. Whether you are tutoring in a formal program or helping a friend, the procedure is much the same.
The first step in the process is to examine the foundation with which you are working. Start by examining your own strengths and attitudes. It is vital that you express patience, faith in your student’s ability to learn, and confidence in your own ability to read and to teach. Many, if not most, adult students arrive at this point in their lives with a great deal of frustration over the process. Adults who are learning to read English as a second language (ESL) may be exceptions to this, but most students have already tried and failed to learn to read. Many have tried and failed repeatedly. Sadly, these students may feel the task is insurmountable and many will have been labeled as stupid by peers, coworkers, and sometimes even teachers. A lifetime of such experiences truly does damage to self-esteem and makes teaching very difficult. You, as teacher, will need to be consistently encouraging and nurturing to overcome these feelings.
Examine your own strengths, as well. It’s important to uncover your own learning style. Do you learn best by seeing, hearing, writing, or doing things? All of these are wonderful ways to learn and to teach. Chances are good, however, that you will tend to teach in the same way that you prefer to learn. If you learn best by listening, you are likely to teach by talking. The important message here is to intentionally match your teaching style to your student’s preferred learning style. Have the flexibility to match your teaching style to the ways in which your student is likely to learn best.
The third part of the foundation to begin reading lessons is understanding your student. You will need information about his or her present skills and knowledge of your student’s goals. These two aspects will help you design effective and motivating lessons that will capture interest and lead to a sense of accomplishment.
What does your student hope to accomplish by improving reading skills? For some, it is simply opening doors to other parts of life, such as enjoying a book that friends or peers recommend. Sometimes adult students want to improve literacy skills to get better jobs or to further their education. Some parents or future parents feel a need to learn more about reading so they can help their children succeed in school. Whatever the reason, all students have some goal in mind. Find out what it is and you will be able to help your student move closer to it.
To find out about your student’s present skills, you will need to do some experimenting and fact-finding. This can be tricky if your student is reluctant to participate or if your student has had previously upsetting experiences with the process of learning to read. The direct approach, where you simply have him or her try different tasks, is definitely easiest and most efficient. You may, however, have to rely on covert observation at first to get the information that you need to get started.
It will be helpful to discover how much your student understands about letter sounds and letter sequence. Find out if he or she understands syllables, prefixes, and suffixes. When your student comes to an unknown word, what strategies does he or she use to tackle it? Many do well with beginning sounds but get lost in the middle.
It will also be important to gauge comprehension. How well does this student get meaning from words? These skills must be in place for words your student hears before they can transfer to reading skills. You’ll want to know if the student’s vocabulary is adequate and whether he or she can remember details. Does your student see main ideas and make inferences? Reading the words without understanding them is not truly reading, so you’ll want to be sure that your student is getting the meaning from things that are read.
For details and suggestions for uncovering information about reading skills, please visit these additional informative articles:
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Assessing Your Student’s Decoding Skills
Finding Out About Comprehension
Assessing the Reluctant Student
Teaching another person to read can be a long and difficult task, but there truly is no greater gift that you can give. Your friend, loved one, or student is severely limited without the ability to read, and you, as a literate person, are in a position to help. Why not get started today?
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© 2006 Sandra Fleming
