Chapter 1: Introduction. Chapter 2: A History of Reading. Chapter 3: A Scientific Eye of Reading. Chapter 4: Reading Comprehension. Chapter 5: Reading Barriers. Chapter 6: Reading in the Subject Disciplines. Chapter 7: Practical Strategies for Closing the Reading Gap. Chapter 8: Next Steps. Appendix. Bibliography.
Alex Quigley is a former English teacher and school leader, of over 15 years' standing, who now works for the Education Endowment Foundation, supporting teachers to access research evidence. He can be found on Twitter @HuntingEnglish and blogs at www.theconfidentteacher.com. His previous books include Closing the Vocabulary Gap and The Confident Teacher.
In this engaging book, Alex Quigley explores the knowledge and
skills expert reading teachers need to teach reading and to nurture
pupils’ desire to read. If you are developing the school reading
curriculum, this accessible and timely text, which is packed with
practical strategies, will be a valuable asset. In opening up the
complexities of reading in an appealing and conversational manner,
and paying particular attention to metacognition, Alex offers the
profession evidence-informed tools to re-consider reading and six
steps to close the reading gap. A book worth buying.Teresa Cremin,
Professor of Education, Open University, UKThe science of reading
was never a part of my teacher training and I'd have loved a book
like this. Alex Quigley's Closing the Reading Gap is everything I
hoped it would be; a wonderfully enlightening follow-up to his
brilliant vocabulary book. For those seeking to understand how
reading works, alongside some of the associated debates, Alex gives
us the in-depth research-informed analysis we’re after. He also
delivers the accessibility and range of practical strategies busy
teachers need to support children to read more fluently and to
learn more through reading. Chapters 3 and 4 capture the key
concepts we need to understand the complex processes of decoding
and comprehension; it’s packed with wisdom and insights. Chapter 7,
outlining an array of practical strategies for schools and
teachers, is a magnificent reference for everyone working in
education. I can see this book having a very significant impact.
Tom Sherrington, author and education consultantWhen over a quarter
of 11-year-old pupils do not reach the expected standard in
reading, Closing the Reading Gap is a welcome and much needed
addition to our understanding of the process and difficulty of
reading. This wide compassing book takes us through the history of
reading and identifies some of the barriers for many of our pupils
and offers many suggestions which professionals can support them in
this vital aspect of provision.It is laden with important insights
such as ‘we are better off with concentrating on the relatively
slow, deliberate process of reading for meaning and to understand
the subtle difference between reading speedily and reading with
fluency.’ And when we ask ourselves the questions posed by Alex, we
are likely to get better at this important aspect of our practice:
what are the ‘Goldilocks books’ for year 2... year 5 and year 9;
how will we mediate their complexity, whilst keeping an eye on the
detail of our pupils’ reading development; how often do we assume a
text that has been read has been understood? And what resonated
powerfully for me is the idea that it is important that pupils read
extended texts if they are to grow more sensitive to text
structures. If they are predominantly reading power point slides
with condensed phrases, sentences and images, they will not gain
experience in tracking more extended text structures.
Paradoxically, by making the curriculum more accessible in the
short-term, we can make it harder to access curriculum reading in
the long- term.An important read for all teachers, across all
phases and subjectsMary Myatt, education adviser and writer, author
of The Curriculum: Gallimaufry to CoherenceThis book should be a
core text for all teachers, whether trainees or experienced
professionals, whatever their subject or key stage specialism.
Reading success is essential for young people to access any
academic curriculum and this book draws together research and
effective practice across all subjects and age groups. But not only
does it identify and evaluate the symptoms of reading challenges,
it provides practical advice and support to 'close the reading
gap.' Exam success is underpinned by effective reading tuition, and
this book will help every teacher gain a greater understanding of
how to teach reading constructively so that academic achievement is
attainable for every pupil.Alison Wilcox, author of the
Descriptosaurus series
In this engaging book, Alex Quigley explores the knowledge and
skills expert reading teachers need to teach reading and to nurture
pupils’ desire to read. If you are developing the school reading
curriculum, this accessible and timely text, which is packed with
practical strategies, will be a valuable asset. In opening up the
complexities of reading in an appealing and conversational manner,
and paying particular attention to metacognition, Alex offers the
profession evidence-informed tools to re-consider reading and six
steps to close the reading gap. A book worth buying.Teresa Cremin,
Professor of Education, Open University, UKThe science of reading
was never a part of my teacher training and I'd have loved a book
like this. Alex Quigley's Closing the Reading Gap is everything I
hoped it would be; a wonderfully enlightening follow-up to his
brilliant vocabulary book. For those seeking to understand how
reading works, alongside some of the associated debates, Alex gives
us the in-depth research-informed analysis we’re after. He also
delivers the accessibility and range of practical strategies busy
teachers need to support children to read more fluently and to
learn more through reading. Chapters 3 and 4 capture the key
concepts we need to understand the complex processes of decoding
and comprehension; it’s packed with wisdom and insights. Chapter 7,
outlining an array of practical strategies for schools and
teachers, is a magnificent reference for everyone working in
education. I can see this book having a very significant impact.
Tom Sherrington, author and education consultantWhen over a quarter
of 11-year-old pupils do not reach the expected standard in
reading, Closing the Reading Gap is a welcome and much needed
addition to our understanding of the process and difficulty of
reading. This wide compassing book takes us through the history of
reading and identifies some of the barriers for many of our pupils
and offers many suggestions which professionals can support them in
this vital aspect of provision.It is laden with important insights
such as ‘we are better off with concentrating on the relatively
slow, deliberate process of reading for meaning and to understand
the subtle difference between reading speedily and reading with
fluency.’ And when we ask ourselves the questions posed by Alex, we
are likely to get better at this important aspect of our practice:
what are the ‘Goldilocks books’ for year 2... year 5 and year 9;
how will we mediate their complexity, whilst keeping an eye on the
detail of our pupils’ reading development; how often do we assume a
text that has been read has been understood? And what resonated
powerfully for me is the idea that it is important that pupils read
extended texts if they are to grow more sensitive to text
structures. If they are predominantly reading power point slides
with condensed phrases, sentences and images, they will not gain
experience in tracking more extended text structures.
Paradoxically, by making the curriculum more accessible in the
short-term, we can make it harder to access curriculum reading in
the long- term.An important read for all teachers, across all
phases and subjectsMary Myatt, education adviser and writer, author
of The Curriculum: Gallimaufry to CoherenceThis book should be a
core text for all teachers, whether trainees or experienced
professionals, whatever their subject or key stage specialism.
Reading success is essential for young people to access any
academic curriculum and this book draws together research and
effective practice across all subjects and age groups. But not only
does it identify and evaluate the symptoms of reading challenges,
it provides practical advice and support to 'close the reading
gap.' Exam success is underpinned by effective reading tuition, and
this book will help every teacher gain a greater understanding of
how to teach reading constructively so that academic achievement is
attainable for every pupil.Alison Wilcox, author of the
Descriptosaurus seriesI enthusiastically recommend Closing the
Reading Gap with five shiny Schools Week stars. I know it’ll
genuinely change significant aspects of my classroom practice for
the better when school finally resumes, as it is already
influencing my online teaching.Douglas Wise, Schools WeekThis is a
very readable book, supported by easy-to-read print in well-spaced
sentences – good considerations for all readers and individuals
developing their reading skills.I find the range of information in
this book of just 201 pages, including extensive references at the
end of each of its eight chapters, encouraging. Each chapter
captures many important points for everyone involved in teaching
and developing students’ reading, to acknowledge, learn, and put
into daily practice.Dr Jenny Moody, Dyslexia ReviewOverall, this is
a really useful introductory text. For those who are new to
teaching or literacy support this book contains most of the
knowledge it might take several years of practice to obtain. It is
a rich resource both in terms of its exhaustive list of strategies
and its broad introduction to the key ideas you will need to
familiarize yourself with. These are written in a clear and
engaging fashion, and it is apparent throughout that Quigley cares
deeply for his students and their school experience. K Ingham Roy,
Child Language and Teaching Therapy
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