Reading is Fundamental for Teachers

There have been dozens, no make that hundreds of books written about education in this country. Some discussed what was right with America’s education process while others wrote about all that was wrong with it and how our nation has fallen behind other developed nations in educating their students. A number of books proposed new theories and revolutionary ideas as to how to change the course of America’s public education. There were those authors too that examined the way that we prepare teachers in this country. Still other academicians dissected the curriculum, arguing about what should or should not be taught . About the only thing that the authors could agree upon was that something needed to be changed.

A recent article in “Educator”, the publication of Temple University’s College of Education in Philadelphia, examined several new works published by its faculty.

One book, “The Bilingual Mind” by Aneta Pavlenko, explored the dominant theories of language and how it affects thought. Another book, “Uncommon Core,” by Michael Smith, Deborah Appleman, and Jeffrey Wilhelm, delved into the Common Core State Standards and noted the importance to retain pre=reading and pre-writing lessons in the curriculum. A third publication “Reading Unbound: Why Kids Need to Read What they Want- and Why We Should Let Them,”(Jeffrey Wilhelm and Michael Smith) brings home the importance of getting students to read and to like what they read. It is just as important have students read the Harry Potter books, as it is to have them read great American classics. The fourth both mentioned in the article is entitled “Autism Spectrum Disorders in Adolescents and Adults,”(edited by Matt Tincani and Andy Bondy). This book is a compendium of current research of how to give support to adolescents and adults who have been diagnosed with autism and related disorders.

You certainly might find a title here to place on your Christmas wish list, but like the topic covered in “Reading Unbound,” it is extremely important to keep up with your professional reading and to gain an understanding of what is trending in American education today.

c.2014  J. Margolis