Guest Post by Jamie Menard, MA in Reading

Over the years, most elementary schools have made it a priority to assess students' reading skills and, if students are below grade level expectations, to administer more detailed assessments that helps them figure out exactly what's going on, so that they can provide those students with appropriate interventions.

A vast majority of elementary schools have administered computer-based screening tools to their students. Many even have a team of Reading Specialists that assess students in beginning, middle and end of the year benchmarks. Some elementary teachers are thankful that assistants and volunteers offer to administer both formal and informal assessments. This assistance results in teachers breathing a sigh of relief because it seems as though part of their heavy work load has become lighter. However, there is a possibility that teachers are in turn doing themselves a disservice and in turn struggle to understand why their students are indeed below grade level.

After students are assessed, teachers receive data sheets that place their students into specific categories. The students are identified as below, at or above grade level. They are almost always given a number or score and sometimes even a color. Teachers often do not know how to successfully recognize the meanings of these scores and placements of their students. They are left with data and graphs and many questions. The teacher often wonders did the student read quickly and skip over words. If they are at grade level, did they comprehend the text they read? Were they able to read all grade level sight words? Which phonics skills did they use to help them figure out unfamiliar words? Is the child aware of the silent –e or possibly even the adjacent vowel phonics rule? Teachers are left unequipped with essential information and have to begin their guided reading groups based off of these scores.

If a teacher takes the time to listen and assess each student they are able to learn about each and every one of their students and therefore can tailor their teaching in order to meet the needs of each student immediately. They can begin finding students that have similar needs and place them into small guided groups.

Some information that teachers want to take note of would be whether or not the student…

• is aware of print concepts such as tracking left to right (for beginning readers)
• stops at punctuation/ending marks
• recognizes when a word does not make sense
• uses context clue
• knows how to read dialogue
• uses decoding/phonics skills (if not, give a phonics screener to determine which skill to teach)
• can decode multi-syllabic words
• self-corrects
• maintains fluency

Before a classroom teacher can effectively begin tailoring their teaching to meet the needs of each and every student in their classroom, they have to take the time to listen to each of their readers. The internet offers a wide variety of ideas for obtaining valuable information about students reading abilities.

Dedicated teachers want to be the best educator they can be for each child in their classroom. The time and preparation it takes to meet individually with every reader and zero in on their reading abilities is very great however, the end result is well worth it to both the students and the teacher.

Jamie Menard
Masters in Reading
Taught Kindergarten for 2 years
Taught Second Grade for 2 years
Worked as Reading Specialist for 4 years in grades K-4

Courtesy of NEIRtec.org

Phonemic awareness, typically a focus in grades K and 1, is the ability to notice, think about, and work with the individual sounds of spoken words---for example, to know that "cat" consists of three sounds, /c/, /a/, and /t/; that the first sound matches the first sound of "cake" and that the last two sounds match those of "hat", "rat", "bat", and "that."

Understanding that words are made up of speech sounds, and being able to compare sounds in different words, divide words into constituent sounds, and blend sounds together to form words, all form an important foundation for learning to read.

Note that the word "phoneme" refers to the individual sounds of language, and that "phonemic awareness" is about awareness of speech sounds separate from written forms of language. One could have phoneme awareness without ever encountering a written language.

Computers can present a variety of phonemic awareness practice activities and provide feedback to students and reports to teachers about students' progress. Multimedia presentations can address many different learning styles by integrating sound, text, and moving images. These presentations can also accept input from a variety of sources by letting students enter responses by pointing, typing, or speaking.

For example, many software programs for young children incorporate matching activities in which students are asked to match a sound with pictures of objects that start with that sound, a sequence of sounds with the word they form when blended together, or pictures of objects with names that start with the same sound or which rhyme.

If you are looking for a reading software program there are some key questions to consider regarding the effectiveness of the technology to teach children to read and subsequently raise reading test scores.

1. Is a process established in your school or district for reading specialists, technology specialists, classroom teachers, and special educators to collaborate on reviewing the possibilities and recommending uses of technology to enhance reading instruction?
2. What technologies (hardware and software) are available in your school or district to support reading instruction? How are they currently being used? How are teachers prepared to use them effectively?
3. Which of the five components of effective reading instruction (phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension) need to be strengthened in your school or district? Which technologies can enhance these components?
4. How is your school providing reading instruction to students who are reading below their grade levels? ESL students? Special needs students? How can technology support teachers in helping these students?
5. Is information being provided to parents about how technology can help their children learn to read both at school and at home?
   

Technology is redefining how we teach children to read. How has technology transformed your classroom?

As efforts to better understand how to implement an effective RTI program escalates, I thought it would be helpful to provide a one-stop-shopping list of websites that can give you current information, tips, and trends.

http://www.fcrr.org/
To conduct basic research on reading, reading growth, reading assessment, and reading instruction that will contribute to the scientific knowledge of reading and benefit students in Florida and throughout the nation.

http://www.ncld.org/
Our Mission: To ensure success for all individuals with learning disabilities in school, at work and in life. Check out their Parents Guide to Response to Intervention and Tiers without Tears documents.

http://www.casecec.org/
CASE is an international professional educational organization which is affiliated with the Council for Exceptional Children whose members are dedicated to the enhancement of the worth, dignity, potential, and uniqueness of each individual in society. Under the resource section of the website, you will find downloadable PDF Response to Intervention Blueprints for Implementation documents, case studies, and PowerPoint presentations.

https://dibels.uoregon.edu/
The University of Oregon is the heart of DIBELS. The use of data in setting education goals for students is the primary mission of this research and support website.

http://www.readinghorizons.com/rti/index.aspx?rti
Happy Tiers: Response to Intervention, a Three-Tiered-Model
View a special documentary highlighting Iron Springs Elementary and their implementation of Discover Intensive Phonics in all three tiers of the RTI model.


Other recommended RTI websites include:

National Center on Response to Intervention

Intervention Central: Your Site for Response to Intervention Resources

RTI Action Network

The long arm of the law in Arizona is getting serious about creating proficient readers in K-3. Starting in 2013-14, all third-graders in Arizona must prove that they are reading proficiently. If they fail, they will not advance to fourth grade.

Last year, the Arizona Legislature passed House Bill 2732 called Move On When Reading, which is modeled after a 2002 Florida law. Massachusetts, Indiana, and Utah also have similar laws.

Unless educators get “moving” on reform this year, it’s going to be a tough job to get the more than 4,000 third-graders who are classified as “far below” their grade level reading standards up to par.

A report last year by Voices for America's Children found that states, including Arizona, are exaggerating students' reading levels. It found that too many students are passed through the school system even though their scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress show their comprehension often lags. It found that two-thirds of the nation's fourth graders are not reading at grade level.

Starting early is key. Not only must a student learn to build words explicitly and sequentially but, additionally, they need the right online reading solution and direct instruction, coupled with progress monitoring.

So, while Arizona is scrambling to pull together more reading specialists, encourage additional reading at home, and look for other ways to bring reading levels up, we couldn’t be more astonished that no one has grasped this simple concept – every teacher, in every grade, in every school should be trained to be a reading specialist… armed with a qualifying, easy-to-learn phonics program and assessments.

Accountability in education for many states now means online assessments, accessibility, and direct instruction. Learn more about our reading solutions here>

Here’s what one customer had to say about helping struggling K-3 readers:

“As a teacher of reading since 2000, I was introduced to and used several different programs for teaching struggling readers. Needless to say, I was frustrated with the slow progress and no one program was flexible enough to help a wide range of students. Then one day, I happened upon Reading Horizons. I have loved it! Thank you Reading Horizons for saving me as a teacher, but most importantly, for giving hope to those students who thought there was no hope left.” – M.S., Austin, Texas

Today’s educators are constantly bombarded with higher expectations, less say about what to teach students, and fewer resources. Never before has the task of an educator been so challenging. Consider progress monitoring, RTI, AYP proficiency, Race to the Top, and other government mandates.

Recently eSchool News asked its readers: “What are the qualities of an effective 21st-century educator?”

Listed below is a summary of results.

1. Anticipates the future.
“Good 21st-century educators are always pushing the envelope to ensure that their students are not left behind in the wake of progress; in particular, he/she is one advocating constantly for change in educational thinking and planning to ensure that a district’s sub-group kids (minority and/or students at the poverty level) are not being left behind for lack of access to proper resources to allow them to compete with their suburban counterparts. Lastly, good 21st-century teachers are not teachers in a vacuum; they are progressive in pushing for systemic change via curriculum sequencing, prioritization of dollars, and prudent, strategic scrutiny of decision-making to ensure that the preparation of today’s children is always focused on preparing them for the world(s) in which they will live and work—not the current world in which the teachers have to navigate and dwell.” —Amy Baldridge, secondary curriculum supervisor, Xenia Community Schools

“The 21st-century educator must be a fluid thinker, ready to look at situations with fresh, creative eyes. He/she must go beyond the obvious to see the underlying patterns and core issues of a given circumstance. And—most importantly—an understanding of chaos theory is essential: The butterfly flaps its wings and 3000 miles away the weather changes.” —Donn K. Harris, executive director, artistic director, Oakland School for the Arts, Oakland, Calif.

2. Is a lifelong learner.
“A great … educator will embrace not only technology, but be willing to learn from colleagues and students.” —David Brandvold

“I believe that a good 21st-century educator should be able to pose open-ended questions to students without having to know one exact answer. This educator fosters students so that they become the captains of their own learning.  Learning becomes purposeful and meaningful for students as they work through real-world activities.” —Jonna Wallis, 6-12 Language Arts academic coach, Professional Development Center, Scottsdale, Ariz.

3. Fosters peer relationships.
“In this technology-driven era, it is more critical than ever that we foster relationships with and between our students. We must model and demand courtesy, we must model and demand communication, and we must model and demand respect and cooperation—our students need us to show them how to treat each other. They may have 500 friends on Facebook, but do they know how to be a friend? Technology can foster isolation, therefore interpersonal relationship skills must be taught in our classrooms so that our students can go on to be effective in the workplace and fulfilled in their lives. Helping students learn life’s lessons is becoming increasingly more important—interpersonal relationships, letting students know teachers genuinely care for them—and will help students be more successful in life.” —Julia C. Bernath, District 7 board member, Fulton County Board of Education

4. Can teach and assess all levels of learners.
“To be an effective 21st-century teacher, a teacher must first possess the very same 21st-century skills that their students are expected to have. And, in addition to those skills, they must be able to help all of their students obtain and develop 21st-century skills.” —Mamzelle Adolphine

5. Is able to discern effective vs. non-effective technology.
“School-age children are by far the fastest adopters of communications and information technologies. The education system doesn’t need to teach them how to use these technologies, but it should recognize that technologies can help students learn more and faster. Classroom technologies can also make more efficient use of a teacher’s time, whether it’s with tools for lesson preparation, lesson presentation, lesson feedback, grading homework assignments, assessments, or grading. The effective 21st-century teacher will need to be adept in judging the educative and non-educative use of technologies made available to them and to their students at school and at home. The potential downside of technologies is their potential for non-productive use—wasting time and resources. The upside though, is significant if used properly.” —Doug Hatch, president & CEO, Core Learning

Our addition? Reading Horizons company president, Tyson Smith, said it best, “Technology should augment what students are learning through teacher instruction and allow students to move at an appropriate, individualized speed. [Reading] software that is created solely for student practice and that is not tied to teacher instruction produces questionable results.”   

To learn more, sign up for a free, no-obligation online workshop for teachers and educators.