Journal Entry 6

A teacher should at first identify what kind of readers the students are. As introduced in Brown, four scenarios are presented that demonstrate the Reader Involvement Model in action. The first scenario is with a capable reader; the second, an at-risk reader; the third, a bilingual reader; and the fourth is a dialogue between two teachers. Well I thnk that young adult literature (YAL) can help a teacher to meet the students needs in terms of reading. In the first scenario which we have a capable reader where this is a student who does not often read nor does he enjoy reading. So how does a teacher initiate interest for this student to start reading? The teacher can ask about his or her interest or hobbies so that the teacher can recommend a book which caters to the hobby of the student. The teacher would set discussion groups or pair work and journal entries so to make sure that the student keeps on reading. He might read because it was a compulsory thing to do and later the interest may develop later.
While for an at-risk reader, the teacher might have a student who does not show any interest in reading but later after much persuasion he or she might choose a book because of the title. This student can relate to the title because it is a reflection of his or her own self. So the teacher should have a postive view on the student and although he or she might have some setbacks about reading but in the end his or her involvement in reading might be fruitful.
In the third scenario the teacher involves the billingual reader by choosing a book with ethnic connection and similar experiences to the student. The foreign student might not know what to choose so it is better to choose a title which is familiar to the reader. The student can make connections to his or her own heritage and experience of moving into a new place. In the end the student realizes that books can provide vicarious experiences.
Lastly, is the dialogue between two teachers. Teachers who want to use literature to teach should discuss the selections with other teachers who are more experienced. Teachers can do their homework and be more prepared. Teachers can ask their students' opinion about what they want to read.
In my opinion YAL can help a teacher to create a reading environment for the students. By recognizing different types of readers and always sharing ideas with other teachers would help a lot. The work might be difficult at first but what is most important is that a teacher gets students to be involved in their reading process and learn that all the interactions are meaningful in the end. Hopefully in the end even if we don't get a whole class to really have the passion in reading but at least we have planted in them the seeds of reading.