Five pillars for creating readers in high school students and the English teachers’ role

Abstract

This study explores English teachers’ beliefs about their role as educators particularly when it comes to creating personal reading lives in their students. In addition, this research will explore how those teachers who do see engendering personal reading lives in students as part of their role as an educator accomplish that goal and instill a love of reading in their pupils. There have been multiple students at the elementary and middle school level on motivating students to read, but few if any at the highschool level. Even more scarce are studies on teacher attitudes about independent reading and their role as an educator when it comes to helping students love reading. There is plenty of research explaining how to motivate students and incorporate independent reading but very little on whether or not teachers feel that is their role. To determine if teachers’ feel that is their role and how teachers fulfill that role if they do want to help students love reading, teachers completed a survey that included a mix of Likert scale, single selection, multiple selection, and free response questions. After the survey participants had the option of continuing with the research. If they opted in, participants were asked to complete two written responses, one on their teaching philosophy and one as a reading autobiography, and then they participated in a 35 minute interview about their independent reading practices and how they helped their students create personal reading lives. This research determined that there are five pillars to a successful independent reading program and engendering reading lives in students.