In general, one could say that one of the primary reasons for many of the overall failures in the American educational system is that teachers routinely speak to their students, in all subjects, using rates of words per minute that exceed the capacity of high school students to understand them.
There is data on this. Studies give slightly varying rates, but the conclusion is the same: adults speak too rapidly for children – even high school students – to understand fully. And this is in the native language.
The average adult speaks at about 170+ words per minute with many adults speaking faster than 200 words per minute in conversation or when feeling hurried. Oral reading speed is slightly slower, but not much.
The average 5 to 7-year-old understands at about 120 words per minute in her native language. Even high school students average about 140 words per minute in comprehension. That’s still only about 75% of what is being said in L1. Imagine trying to understand a new math concept when you can comprehend only 75% of what is being said in your native language. The problem compounds exponentially for second language learners.
Mr. Rogers was loved by children in part because they could understand everything that he said: he consciously spoke at about 124 words per minute.
If all of this is true for students in their native language, imagine how much more difficult it is for students in a second language. When we learn to speak SLOWLY enough, our students can understand and they feel secure.
Add to that an accepting and supportive attitude on the part of the teacher, and you have a combination that the student almost never encounters in a school setting – slow instruction that is easy to follow in a loving and supportive environment. What a difference that can make in a student’s day!
Hmmm… maybe all teachers should spend some time in Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood. (Numbers above taken from an article entitled Speech Rates in the Wichita Eagle, 2008.)
