The Affective Filter and Reading Acquisition 1

The Affective Filter and Reading Acquisition: How classroom practices can lower the affective filter and

lead to reading achievement in student’s at risk for reading difficulties.

Carolina Musawwir

North Carolina State University

Abstract

In this paper I explore the possible connection between the affective filter and reading

acquisition in students’ at risk for reading difficulties. It is my position that positive relationships in the

classroom positively impact learning by lowering the affective filter. I specifically look into relationship

building, through home visits and small group instruction/small group projects, to foster classroom

relationships. It is my belief that positive student-teacher relationships and student-peer relationships

have the potential to lower the stress and anxiety which many children who struggle with reading could

experience, thus leading to higher levels of reading achievement for these students.
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The Affective Filter and Reading Acquisition: how classroom practices can lower the affective filter and

lead to reading achievement in student’s at risk for reading difficulties.

Reading is a very complex process that we expect children to acquire at a relatively fast

pace, and while some children take to reading with little difficulty others struggle with the task.

After all, the task of reading springs out of a series of foundational skills that children are

exposed to (or not) since their birth, and the variations of exposure to these foundational skills

allow some children to master the skills much faster and easier than others. This

underperformance is very much noticed by the struggling student and can lead to stress, anxiety

and low self-esteem.

As an ESL teacher I know that the affective filter plays a very important role in the

acquirement of a second language. The affective filter is a term Stephen Krashen coined to refer

to the negative emotional and motivational factor that may interfere with the reception and

processing of comprehensible input. It’s an invisible filter that can cause stress, anxiety and lack

of confidence and that can be raised or lowered as a result of the environment that individuals are

in, interactions with peers and/or teachers, or due to personal factors such as insecurity and

anxiety (What is the Affective Filter, 2017). Learning to read is very similar to learning a

second language, since it’s learning a new code system, and could bring upon the same feeling of

stress and anxiety for students who have to work harder at the task. It is my believe that

beginning readers, particularly those at risk for reading difficulties, could be positively impacted

by lowering affective filters, since high affective filters could impede the students ability take in
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and internalize information. For this position paper I will explore two practices that I believe

help to lower the affective filter in students by encouraging relationship, home visits and small

group instruction/small group projects, and I will investigate what research says about these

practices.

Both of these practices involve building relationships; teacher-student relationships and

student-peer relationships. I will begin by exploring the teacher-student relationship, because I

believe that teachers are role models for the interactions that they want to see in their classrooms.

According to Hamre and Pianta, who did a study in 2001 on Early Teacher-Child Relationships

and the Trajectory of Children's School Outcomes through Eighth Grade:

When teachers form positive bonds with students, classrooms become supportive spaces

in which students can engage in academically and socially productive ways. Positive

teacher-student relationships are classified as having the presence of closeness, warmth,

and positivity. Students who have positive relationships with their teachers use them as a

secure base from which they can explore the classroom and school setting both

academically and socially, to take on academic challenges and work on social-emotional

development.

The power of home visits in developing positive teacher-student relationships

The student that arrives at our classroom door each morning is a product of their home

life. Home visits at the beginning of the year give us great insight about the child as a whole.

After a three year study of 14 schools engaging in teacher home visits for students, researchers at

the California State University at Sacramento (CSUS) found evidence that home visits could
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increase student performance, jumpstart parent involvement, reduce discipline problems and

increase overall positive attitudes toward school (Project). These can be particularly impactful

for the teacher-student relationship at the beginning of the year in order to create trust. Home

visits have the potential to not only lower the affective filter for the child but also for his family.

Immigrant families in particular, due to language and cultural differences many times have high

affective filters towards the school setting that keeps them from reaching out and feeling like a

partner in the child’s academic experience.

These visits yield very important information about the children in our classrooms,

information that we could use as we plan instruction. The more we know about our students the

better we will be at keeping them engaged in learning, because for example, we could bring into

the classroom reading material with topics which interest the children in the class. Choice in

reading material and integration of materials which mirror the cultural and racial makeup of the

children in the classroom are key to fostering reading motivation and engagement. These books

might also mirror some of the experiences and background knowledge of the student, which will

validate their outside experiences and give the student greater confidence in the school

environment. When students are familiar with the topics discussed, their anxiety will decrease

and they will feel more comfortable participating in class discussions. Because home visits give

teachers opportunities to connect with students and their families in the safe environment of the

home, they demonstrate caring, commitment and build trust…all very important in building

relationships.
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Small groups/ group projects to build student-peer relationships.

Another great way to decrease the affective filter, which could have a positive effect in

increasing reading motivation and thus achievement, is through small group instruction/small

group projects. From my experience working with small groups, the intimacy helps relationships

to develop and grow by allowing for all involved to learn more about each other, interact and

participate in more meaningful ways. In an article titled. “Classroom Peer Relationships and

Behavioral Engagement in Elementary School: The Role of Social Network Equity.” the authors

state that:

School research…suggests classroom learning occurs through relationships and

interactions (Hamre and Pianta 2010), with academic behaviors and achievement

heightened when students are connected in positive and productive ways (Johnson et al.

1991; Rohrbeck et al. 2003). Engagement is seen as a social and collective process

facilitated through resource access, shared conversations, and behaviors (Parr and

Townsend 2002; Webb and Palincsar 1996). (Capella et al, 2013).

Students who feel secure in their environment will take more chances, be more vocal and their

brain will be more receptive to take in new information. Small group instruction and group work

help to build classroom community by allowing students to work together for a common goal.

This practice encourages students to rely and learn from each other, sharing experiences and

knowledge. The child that feels part of a community and appreciated as a person will have a

better school experience and according to The Gully in the "Brain Glitch" Theory By: Willis,

Judy:
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Neurochemical neuroimaging analyses show that dopamine release increases in response

to pleasurable and positive experiences…because dopamine is the neurotransmitter

associated with attention, memory, learning, and executive function, it follows that when

the brain releases dopamine in expectation of pleasurable experience, this dopamine will

be available to increase the processing of new information (Willis, 2007).

Thus small groups have the potential to lower the student’s anxiety and promote more risk taking

as students’ approach reading tasks.

In my opinion, and through several studies quoted above, I believe that the practices

noted above could lower affective filters for students’ at risk for reading difficulties. These are

practices that encourage and build relationships and focus on the child as an emotional being. As

we stand today little research has focused on the emotional barriers that hinder academic success,

and even less on professional development practices to lower these barriers. While relationships

hold great importance to the students, they are often under-valued, underexplored and not

encouraged in intentional and systematic ways by school systems. I stand behind my position of

lowering the affective filter as a means to promote success in reading development, although we

could all benefit from further study in this area.

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Works cited

Cappella, Elise et al. “Classroom Peer Relationships and Behavioral Engagement in

Elementary School: The Role of Social Network Equity.” American journal of

community psychology 52.0 (2013): 367–379. PMC. Web. 30 Apr. 2017.

Hamre, B. K., & Pianta, R. C. (2001). Early teacher–child relationships and the trajectory

of children’s school outcomes through eighth grade. Child Development, 72(2),

625-638.

Project Appleseed. Parental Involvement in Public Schools. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2017.

"What Is the Affective Filter." What Is the Affective Filter? N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2017.

Willis J. The Gully in the "Brain Glitch" Theory. Educational Leadership [serial online].

February 1, 2007;64(5):68-73. Available from: ERIC, Ipswich, MA. Accessed

April 30, 2017.