On Reading

School Library Journal

Ken Goodman's research on learners and language is well known to most educators. In this book, Goodman explores the nature of language and the science of reading. He does not discuss how children learn to read or how reading is taught. He is interested, instead, in the process of reading itself. Goodman emphasizes that reading involves deriving meaning from and making sense of a text. I was particularly caught up in chapter four, "How Proficient Reading Works." Here Goodman stresses that in reading, what you think you see is more important than what your eyes actually pick up. The reader, he says, continually monitors the sense of the text. And as the experiments cited show, efficient readers derive meaning using the least amount of time, energy, and visual input. Goodman's exploration of the nature of language will lead many librarians to think about their own experiences in working with children and the reading process. We need to understand what competent reading and writing is, and build on what children already know. While perhaps too theoretical for some, this book will make interesting reading for educators who need and want to find out more about what readers do when they read.Marilee Green, Essexville-Hampton Schools, Essexville, MI