This paper reports on a small-scale pilot project on developing oral reading fluency, a teaching strategy rarely seen in any of the 59 adult literacy classes observed for the NRDC Effective Practice Study in reading (Brooks et al. 2007). Research from the US (Kruidenier 2002) suggests that oral reading fluency is an effective strategy for adults and indeed it is widely used there both in schools and in adult education. Practice in this has been shown to assist reading comprehension and improve confidence. There seems, however, to be some reluctance on the part of teachers in England to put their adult learners under this kind of ‘pressure’, usually on the grounds that it might have inappropriate school connotations or simply be too embarrassing for them. In most cases, these fears proved unfounded, and the strategy turned out to be popular with both teachers and learners.
Burton, M. (2007) Oral reading fluency in adults NRDC: London