They're doing one part of the complex process of reading which is decoding, but they haven't achieved the most critical part of reading-comprehension. There could be any number of reasons. One could be something we've done. With good intentions, perhaps we've used running records or similar methods of gathering information about a child's fluency level. We've sat beside a child and have coded each error, correction, omission, and insertion.
Kids are often painfully aware that their oral reading is being scrutinized.
That's what my teacher thinks is most important. We must be careful not to over-emphasize precision and correctness in oral reading. Another common practice associated with running records is over-administering this diagnostic, evaluative tool. Some teachers attempt to complete running records as often as each week. Kids just don't change that often in their fluency level or in their application of reading strategies.