Saw this on the librarians’ list serv…
Teachers assign goals to their students based on their reading level and the amount of time they are reading daily and post congrats as kids reach percentages of their goals. So the whole competitive aspect is turned into competition with your goal, not your hyperlexic neighbor.
THis might be something to pass on if AR is just discouraging the LD kids.
Re: For ACcelerated REader people
For student’s with LD how can anybody say that a program that has you read a book and answer 10 multiple choice questions at the end of it can help with comprehension, recall, or main idea and supporting ideas! AR is great for the mid-range student when used properly by the teacher but is useless to Highly Capable students and students with LD because the LD get frustrated that they are never attaining their goals. In order to get the “points” from the computer program you must answer 8 or better of the 10 questions. Often by time the student gets done readiing the book the comprehension is gone. We all know it takes longer for our students to read a book. That is why AR works for mid-range students, they read the book in a timely fashion and can recall the information. For LD is takes too long to finish the book and for Highly Capable the questions are closed ended and too easy.
I’ve seen wonders with A.R. when under the auspices of professionals. I’ve seen horrors when those out for a quick, easy fix go at it.