This past term, we had six weeks to learn about literacy and all that is interwoven into it. As a teacher candidate, I was overwhelmed. However, after taking a step back, that is precisely how I imagined our young learners feel when presented with all this information. Learning the foundations of a language is exhausting. Looking back at my linguistic knowledge, I definitely took reading comprehension for granted. Unfortunately, in today’s changing world, students who do not have the foundational understandings are at a significant disadvantage. Though the future may look bleak to some, we, as future educators, can help change this. Yes, for children who live in poverty or are from ethnic minorities and attend low-performing urban schools, the incidence of reading failure is much higher than in more privileged communities. However, we now have some of the tools necessary to teach proficiently. If we can understand where each of our learners are, we can find a method that best suits them to succeed. Providing equal and equitable opportunities can also help narrow this gap between students. We want to ensure that our students feel confident with reading and writing comprehension. To effectively address the problem, we must acknowledge science-informed information such as Scarborough’s Rope and understand that trauma affects students’ success and reading ability. We can help those who are struggling. As a teacher candidate I want to make sure that all my students feel confident and safe learning to read and write. Every student deserves an equal opportunity for a successful future no matter where they are starting from.
June 15, 2022