Perhaps a reason not to have SSR at SBP

During the 1990s SSR; Drop Everything And Read (DEAR); and Uninterrupted, Sustained Silent Reading (USSR) were commonly used as the independent reading block in many schools. During SSR, the teacher is expected to read and be a role model for students. Students read materials of their own choosing for a specified amount of time. In SSR, there are no accountability measures and there is no required follow-up activity (Pilgreen, 2000). The rationale for SSR was to have students practice reading at their independent reading levels to develop fluency, increase vocabulary, enhance comprehension, and improve wide reading (Krashen, 1988; Pilgreen, 2000). We were well aware of the strengths of SSR but equally aware of possible weaknesses. Students often read inappropriate reading material (too hard or too easy), and many students were fake reading during this time. The lack of response or feedback left some students without a purpose for reading. And in our situation, many students were unable to engage in their text because they lacked strategies needed to monitor comprehension. They viewed reading as decoding words and answering questions when they were finished (Beers, 2002; Wilhelm, 1997). Likewise, the National Reading Panel (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000) reported that it was unable to locate many studies on the efficacy of independent reading programs such as SSR.

Kelley, M.J. & Clausen-Grace, N. (2006). R5: The sustained silent reading makeover that transformed readers. The Reading Teacher, 60, 148-156.