The first suggestion is to take away the options that students receive which take the place of the readings. Instead of assigning a class to read a text book and then give them handouts and movies to watch, assign the books, that is all. This would force students to have to read the entire book and get every single detail involved instead of skimming over handouts or watching movies which provide the same material in a shorter version. Second, teachers should not discuss the reading until after the test. Quite often students are assigned to read a book and before they take the test class discussion is held.
Students are able to grab information from the class discussion and use it on the test.
Unfortunately since teachers usually head class discussion students already know what the test will be about. Lastly, we in the Courier feel that it is necessary for the college to administrator a reading test for all students before they graduate. This way students who may have gotten by through college without reading are forced to use their knowledge and reading skills in order to graduate. While these suggestions may seem harsh to students now, it is something necessary to get our students back on a reading level which is acceptable for college students.