The reading interests and experiences of 214 teachers

Abstract

The makers of reading textbooks have, for many years, used excerpts from interesting parts of books of established literary merit. Most adults can recall that in this way they read such favorites as Death of Little Nell, Mr. Pickwick Learns to Skate, and many others. Did this fragmentary contact cause the reader to want to know the rest of the book? With that question as a starting point, the material in this article was gathered. The following questions were presented to 214 members of English classes in a summer session of two teachers colleges. The students who replied range in rank from freshman to graduate level. With few exceptions all were experienced teachers. Only a few men were included, and therefore no attempt was made to see if there are any sex differences. The students were instructed to answer yes if one or more teachers in their elementary school experience had done what the question asked for.