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Extensive Reading in the Second Language Classroom

Article in RELC Journal · December 1998

DOI: 10.1177/003368829802900211

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EXTENSIVE READING IN THE SECOND LANGUAGE
CLASSROOM
Richard R Day and Julian Bamford
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998, 238 pp.
Reviewed by
Willy A Renandya, George M Jacobs and Vivienne Wai-Sze Yu

What is extensive reading (ER)? What is an extensive reading approach

to second language reading instruction9 Are the learnmg benefits large
enough to justify the inclusion of ER in the curriculum? How do we go about
planning, implementmg and evaluatmg an ER program? How do we select
appropnate readmg matenal? How much readmg do students have to do?
How can ER be integrated into the existmg reading course? These and many
other theoretical and practical questions pertammg to ER are addressed m this
book Richard Day and Julian Bamford’s comprehensive treatment of the
topic makes the book an important contnbution to our field

Summary Of The Book

The book, comprising 15 chapters, is divided into three mam parts The
first part is the more theoretical, beginning with an explanation of what ER
and various related terms, such as free voluntary readmg, mean. The next
chapters m this part situate ER m light of theones of the readmg process,
discuss the importance of affect and how ER can improve learners’ attitudes
toward reading, review research on ER, and consider the place of ER in the
second language curriculum.

The book’s second part discusses a crucial issue regarding materials for
use m ER programmes The authors argue for the use of what they call
language learner literature, i.e., works written or rewritten especially for

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language learners (e g, simplified versions of well-known works), which
they emphasise should be an established genre m its own nght like young
adult literature and children’s literature They point out that good language
learner literature should be ’a fully realized, complete-m-itself act of
communication between author and audience’ (p 64) as m all genume
writing Unfortunately many publishers and editors view a graded reader
primarily as part of a senes, resultmg m the content takmg the back seat and,
therefore, the production of uninterestmg books
The last and longest part of the book describes the nuts and bolts of
runnmg ER programmes, including setting up the programme, findmg and
organising the matenals, onentmg the students to the programme, creatmg an
on-gomg commumty of readers, evaluating the programme, and, last but not
least, the role of the teacher They conclude by emphasising that although
successful ER programmes differ in many regards, they all have one element
in common teachers who put their heart, soul, and mind into making the
programme a success

What Is ER? <

ER can be defined as the independent readmg of a large quantity of

material for information or pleasure The pnmary aim of ER programmes,
accordmg to Day and Bamford, is &dquo;to get students readmg m the second
language and liking it&dquo; (p 6) The book lists the following as key
charactenstics of a successful ER program (p 7-8)

1 Students read large amounts of pnnted matenal,

2 Students read a variety of matenals m terms of topic and genre;
3. The matenal students read is within their level of comprehension,
4. Students choose what they want to read;
5 Reading is its own reward,
6 Students read for pleasure, information and general understanding,
7 Students read their selection at a faster rate,
8 Readmg is individual (students read on their own);
9. Teachers read with their students, thus serving as role models of good
readers;
10 Teachers guide and keep track of student progress

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 Point 1 above, in particular, is one of the key features that distinguishes
ER from other readmg programs. Readmg extensively means readmg lots and
lots of print material Although we don’t know how much readmg is needed
to produce the most learnmg gain, we do know that the more learners read,
the more benefits they get (Renandya, Rajan & Jacobs, ms )

Fmdmg the materials to support Points 1, 2, and 3 above can be

difficult, especially where fundmg is insufficient Day and Bamford
acknowledge that settmg up a library that houses a large collection of
matenals be very costly They suggest that one way to get around this
can

problem isget teachers and students to write stones for use m their ER
to
program Another excellent way is to collect material, as illustrated in the
Philippmes context by Lituafias (1997), involving fellow teachers, past and
present students, and community groups m the ER material collection
campaign.

Point 5 above is also worth commentmg on The authors do not seem to

consider postreadmg activities as a critenal element in an ER program
Although they offer a number of postreadmg activities, they maintain that
&dquo;Ideally, no postreadmg work should be required, the act of readmg bemg
its own reward&dquo; (p 140) We agree that students should see readmg as a
rewardmg expenence m and of itself, but we feel that postreadmg activities
have an important role m ER. Yu (1993) states that postreading tasks may not
be needed for students who are already good readers, but for most of our
students who have not developed good reading habits, short postreadmg
activities can become a very useful tool for teachers and students to monitor
progresss

Why Aren’t We All Doing ER?

Although many of us would readily acknowledge the educational
benefits of ER, how many of us are actually implementing ER in our second
language program? Accordmg to Day and Bamford, one of the most
important reasons is that many teachers believe that intensive readmg alone
will produce good, fluent readers In intensive readmg, students spend lots of
time analysing and dissectmg short, difficult texts under the close supervision

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of the teacher The aim of intensive readmg is to help students construct
detailed meaning from the text, to develop readmg skills, and enhance
vocabulary and grammar knowledge. This overemphasis on the teachmg of
reading and language skills leaves little room for implementmg other
approaches This approach by itself, Day and Bamford argue, will produce
skilled readers but not skilled readers.

Conclusion

The view that people learn to read by reading is shared by a growing

number of applied linguists Eskey (1986 21, cited on p 4), for example,
says that &dquo;Readmg must be developed, and can only be developed, by
means of extensive and continual practice People learn to read, and to read
better, by reading &dquo; The benefits of ER, however, extend beyond the
acqwsition of reading fluency After reviewing hundreds of research studies
in both first and second language learning contexts, Krashen (1993: 23, cited
on p. 38) has this to say:

Reading is good for you. The research supports a

stronger conclusion, however. Reading is the only way,

the only way we become good readers, develop a good
writing style, an adequate vocabulary, advanced
grammar, and the only way we become good spellers.

Inconclusion, we agree whole-heartedly with the Day, Bamford, and

many others, that ER can have a very important role on our learners’ second
language development We also agree with the authors that, while research
in ER should contmue, the time to begm an ER programme m our school is
NOW. This book can help us both begm and improve our ER programmes.
Happy reading’

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References

Litua&ntilde;as, P. M. 1997. Collecting materials for extensive reading. Successful

strategies for extensive reading, ed. by G. M Jacobs, C. Davis, & W A.
Renandya (pp.25-29) Singapore. SEAMEO Regional Language Centre.
Renandya W A., B. R. S Rajan and G. M. Jacobs. Extensive reading with
adult learners of English as a second language. Manuscript submitted for
publication
Yu, V 1993. ER programs: How can they best benefit the teaching and

learning of English? TESL Reporter, 26, 1-9

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