Reading Motivation Matters [But Is Often Ignored]

The resurgence of the science of reading as a movement has brought forth some very important reminders.  Some of those reminders are seen everywhere, like the importance of teaching phonics in an explicit and systematic way. Or that phonemic awareness skills are a  building block of reading success. Other things are mentioned, but not quite as much as others, like the important role background knowledge and vocabulary play in reading comprehension. But there are also some things that are supported by research and are tantamount to reading yet get little to no attention. One thing the voices of the “science of reading” movement seem to be quite ignoring? That reading motivation matters.  A lot. 

In fact, I’ve seen social media posts that decry the role that motivation plays, saying things like “it doesn’t matter if a child likes to read, it just matters that they can read.”  

But to say this is denouncing some important science behind reading.  

There is science behind motivation and the role it plays in reading.  A lot of science, actually.

When Jennifer Serravallo came out with her first edition of The Reading Strategies Book in 2015 (note that this is now a decade ago), she explained that there’s a hierarchy of skills involved with reading. Motivation is at the top–before character work, vocabulary instruction, and main ideas.  Because, as Serravallo put it, “Without engagement, we’ve got nothing.”  She goes on to explain why, and cites quite a lot of research dating back from 1988 that led her to that statement.

“[S]imply put, if they don’t like to read, they won’t.”

Jennifer Serravallo, 12/2//24 blog post

Even big names in the “SOR” field have long noted the importance of reading motivation. Along with Leigh Ann Martin, Elfrieda Hiebert wrote about it way back in the Reading First years.  This was the SOR movement that we last went through  in the early 2000s.  The book, Opportunity to Read:  A Critical but Neglected Construct in Reading Instruction, is still well worth the read today. There are many parallels to what we’re hearing a lot about right now. (The first chapter of it is available here.)   

I so appreciate how even back then, Hiebert and Martin share something crucial to keep in mind when it comes to the science of reading:

That there’s more to the science than we often hear about.  

One very interesting point in the book that is tied to reading motivation is how important it is that kids can actually read the texts. 

The authors point out that many of the basal curricula used in classrooms in those days were filled with texts that kids just couldn’t access without heavy scaffolding…exactly like what we see today.  The authors say, “…students may not be highly engaged with text and have little stamina for reading. The manner in which consistent experiences with accessible texts, starting from kindergarten entry, support students’ engagement in reading should be one of the foremost research questions on the national research agenda.” 

Kinda sounds like it’s important that kids have substantial experience with the kinds of texts that are at appropriate levels for the reader, doesn’t it?

I also love that Hiebert and Martin point out that unsupported independent reading, as in the 80’s version called SSR (sustained, silent reading) that I experienced as a child is not all that helpful for students.  Rather, as many of us know, independent reading that is supported by the teacher acting as coach is enormously beneficial.  Not only is the teacher’s support during independent reading paramount, this is also where, the authors point out, kids develop their sense of selves as readers.  

“When the selections are constrained and fail to offer a broad set of choices of topics and genres, nothing supports students in becoming more skillful in their selection of text. To become truly engaged readers, students need to be exposed to a range of genres and topics over their school careers.”   

Elfrieda Hiebert & Leigh Ann Martin

In other words, book selection must be taught. Without that crucial teaching and support, Heibert and Martin say, kids will “simply pull books off the shelf” with no reasoning, intention, or interest.  Leading to…you guessed it–lack of reading motivation.  This is why great care and consideration must be made when setting up the classroom library.  

Need more proof?

More recently, Drs. Dixie Massey and Margaret Vaughn include a large section on why reading motivation matters in their 2024 book, Overcoming Reading Challenges: Kindergarten Through Middle School.  They discuss their book on the Teaching Literacy Podcast, which I highly encourage you to listen to. 

In their research for the book, they focused on the idea of student agency, which so often gets lost in today’s world of mandated, scripted curriculum.  Massey and Vaughn point out that in everyone’s focus on increasing reading scores, reading motivation and agency play a significant role.  “We found that kids that had a higher reported level of student agency also had higher reported levels of reading comprehension on state reading assessments.”

Which is exactly why I anchor to Duke and Cartwright’s Active View of Reading.  Like Serravallo, these leading reading researchers understand that reading motivation is the foundation on which everything else stands.  They explain the Active View and motivation’s role in reading in this ILA article, and also share more science to support it.  

The title of Duke and Cartwright’s article says it best: The Science of Reading Progresses.  Because when we consider what’s best for our readers in terms of research and evidence, we must consider all of it.  It goes well beyond the Simple View, and even beyond Scarborough’s Rope.  

If we as a nation truly hope to move the needle for reading success, then we must consider all of the science. 

Even hard to quickly quantify things like reading motivation.  It all matters.

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Could you use a thinking partner in helping your students become more motivated as readers?  Reach out for a coaching call! !  I’m here to help you think it through and put some plans in place. 

Who is Coach from the Couch??  I’m Michelle, a 25-year veteran educator, currently a K-5 literacy coach.  I continue to learn alongside teachers in classrooms each and every day, and it’s my mission to support as many teachers as I can.  Because no one can do this work alone. I’m available to you, too, through virtual coaching calls!