October 2000

A close look at diagnosed reading levels reveals weakness in the system

Betty Carter's point ("Formula for Failure," July 2000, pp. 34-37) that diagnosed reading levels have no place in libraries is strengthened by looking at the plight of ESL students on a diet of proficiency-graded reading texts. The language in these "simplified texts" is often less comprehensible than natural language because it leaves out natural cohesive devices such as anaphora. It also misleads learners into false expectations about texts. Libraries that offer choice to ESL students acknowledge that students bring personal experiences to bear on their judgment. My goal with low-proficiency learners in the library is to replicate the sparkling in the eyes of a beginning ESL fourth-grader when he came to thank me after he had read The Skeleton Man by Jay Bennett. When I reminded him that it had been his own discovery, he said, "But you didn't say no!"

Jacqueline Leigh
Sentinel English Language Institute
Freetown, Sierra Leone

Left-Wing Not Always Right
I was bothered by Chris Crutcher's feeling that the Ten Commandments shouldn't be in a school because not everyone is capable of living up to them ("Eyes Wide Open," June 2000, pp. 42-25). There will always be those who want to replace good things in schools with "feel good" approaches to education. Students should look at the Ten Commandments as a goal. Let's encourage them to seek help from educators.

Patrick Hlavaty
Computer Lab Manager
Brumby Elementary School
Marietta, GA