Throughout much of my research on decoding and through required readings for this course it has become unfortunately clear that many students do not like to read. Students are simply not reading for pleasure. This is a fact that I feel very sad about. I love to read. Throughout my PME journey, I have developed a list of more than five books I can’t wait to read when I am done reading for the courses. Some of these books would be considered professional development (“The Next Step Forward in Guided Reading” by Jan Richardson) while others are for pleasure (“The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog” by Bruce Perry). My niece is just over three years old and is so blessed to live in a house with a huge collection of books. Some days when I go over for a visit, my sister will be sitting at the table all alone. When I ask where my niece is, my sister will smile and point to her daughter’s room. Inside I will find her sitting by herself surrounded by a circle of books scattered around the floor. She will be flipping through her story books unprompted and without encouragement to stay focused. Sometimes she will ask me to read them to her while other times she is content making up her own stories that match the pictures. I am overwhelmed with happiness and I am so proud of her (and my sister) for finding a way to make reading enjoyable. I try very hard in my classroom to make learning to read fun. While it sometimes feels stressful and as though we are making little progress, I try to take a step back and remind myself of the longterm goal - to develop lifelong readers. We do not want to teach kids to read just so they can pass their reading tests at the end of the year or meet some provincial goal. We want students to become readers for life. We want students to lose themselves in a good book and experience adventures along side their favourite characters.
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My background knowledge on executive skills prior to the readings was very limited. I can relate to the examples given on the first page of the assignment, the Grade 4 class, the Grade 11 student, and adult life. I feel as though I am often multitasking, always thinking of things that need to get done, and trying to prioritize them the best I can. However, I never considered this organization as executive functioning which I guess is the point. We want find ways to develop our executive functioning skills so that our brain can think and act quickly.
The first reading I started with this module was 7 Actions that Teachers can Take Right Now (Hiebert, 2012). When I consider text complexity and executive functioning together, I believe students must be able to develop executive functioning skills and strategies that will assist them in reading increasingly more complex texts. Hiebert (2012) outlines 7 actions that teachers can take to work towards supporting students with complex text. 1: Focus on knowledge provided by text. This can be done through a read aloud or through independent reading depending on grade and ability level. 2: Create connections between the text and existing knowledge. While the teachers role should be limited in this connection, I do believe we have a duty to direct and assist connections when necessary. This can likely be achieved by asking questions that require students to think deeply about their prior knowledge as well as the text. 3: Activate students’ passion, find books they want to read or will be interested in. 4: Develop vocabulary - connect more difficult or unique words to words students already know. Sometimes I even have to take the time to look up a word or find a synonym for it. If we prepare students to read the complex texts they will more likely persevere through the challenging words instead of losing motivation. 5: Increase the volume or amount of time students are reading. “Students only get good at reading indecently if they read texts that engage them” (Hiebert, 2012). 6: Build stamina so students can read and remember/comprehend longer texts. 7: Identify benchmarks “used to gauge the appropriateness of instructional texts for particular students and tasks” (Hiebert, 2012). We use benchmarks in the lower grades to identify when a student is displaying the reading skills for a higher reading level. Sometimes I will show my students a Fountas and Pinnell level G book in September and tell them that this is what they will be reading by the end of Grade 1. Their eyes get really big and they laugh in disbelief. Then all of a sudden they will recognize a word on the page like “said” or “the” and they get so excited. They may recognize that the book is too difficult for them right now, that they can’t do it YET - one day they will be able to. One area that still stands out to me from this reading is accessible text vs. dumbed-down text. Accessible texts are complex texts with a moderate number of rare words. In first grade we are just learning how to read. I wouldn’t consider the books we use during guided reading or small group learning to be accessible or complex. I do not like to use the term dumb-downed, but explained in the short video on the website http://textproject.org/topics/text-complexity/, the books my students are currently reading are texts with short sentences for readability and texts with phonetically regular/decodable words. We experience complex texts during read-a-louds or through the chapter book they listen to during snack time. Hiebert (2012) touches on this in Action 6: Build Up Stamina. She brings up the term “academic emotions” and students’ willingness or lack-there-of to complete tasks that they do not feel they are good at. When we are reading a book together during guided reading or when students are engaged in independent reading, there must be a balance between interest and ability. Teachers want students looking at books that interest them yet there is a time and a place for levelled readers. References: Hiebert, E. H. (2012). 7 actions that teachers can take right now: Text complexity. Santa Cruz, CA: TextProject. Retrieved from http://textproject.org/teachers/7-actions-that-teachers-can-take-right-now-text-complexity/ http://textproject.org/topics/text-complexity/ My focus this last week has been on writing my individual research paper focusing on decoding. While the topic of my paper is extremely interesting to me, I have been struggling to write my ideas down in an organized and meaningful way. There is so much information about there about decoding and why students may struggle with it. My job is to organize the information into six, double-spaced pages!
A few contributing factors to decoding struggles that seem to give me writers block are dyslexia and working memory. Throughout this course we have read multiple 20+ page papers on these topics. While they have a strong impact on a student’s ability to decode simple words, how do I bring up such lengthy topics without steering away from my main topic: decoding. I worry that I am too vague on some subjects leaving me with a six page paper that just barely skims the top of such an interesting and meaningful topic. I also find myself thinking more and more about the students in my classroom. Are they “struggling” or are they just learning. We do not use the RTI model in kindergarten at my school so first grade is the start of any literacy intervention. We just finished our 28th day of school, and while I feel I have identified my weaker decoders I have not yet determined if they will struggle throughout the year or if with proper intervention we can get them caught up to their peers. I am looking forward to finalizing my paper over the next two weeks. With continued research and editing I am sure I can put some of my concerns to rest. I will also continue to monitor our classroom progress as we move closer to the end of the first reporting period. As a first grade classroom teacher, my role in RTI falls in the first tier: high-quality classroom instruction. Classroom teachers are in charge of providing students with the everyday lessons to teach and build literacy skills. One way teachers can ensure they are reaching the needs of all of their literacy learners is to utilize differentiated instruction.
Differentiated instruction is grounded in the philosophy that students learn at different rates and through a variety of different ways. By using a variety of teaching methods we are ensuring all of our students’ needs can be met. When teachers use differentiated instruction and students understand the need for it, an environment where learning differences are valued is created. One way teachers may use differentiated instruction is to provide different levels of difficulty for the same overall assignment. Teachers may also provide different supports, such as text-to-speech technology, depending on their students’ needs. Classroom teachers must also identify those students who are at-risk for literacy skills. By identifying these students who may struggle in the future, we are moving away from the wait-to-fail model that has been used in the past. We do not want to wait until students are two years behind their peers, we want to assist students when the gap is still small. One way we can ensure we are identifying students correctly is by using assessment for learning. We may screen students based on their phonemic awareness, letter recognition, or on their sight word knowledge. From this data we can group students according to the RTI tier that can best support their needs. This is one area that I am curious to learn more about as we move through this course. I would like to focus on understanding the area of assessment and identifying those students who require more support. “There is currently no universally accepted protocol for the early screening, identification, and assessment of specific learning disabilities” (Harrison, 2005). What is the best approach for identifying at-risk literacy students in my school? Is the system we use now effective or can it be improved? Once we have identified those students who are considered at-risk, we must design flexible groupings that are dynamic and forever changing throughout the year. RTI requires frequent assessment to ensure students are making progress and if they are not, what changes need to be made. Formative evaluation of the RTI model should also take place, teachers need to reflect on their instruction or groupings and determine what needs to change. RTI cannot be completed in isolation, we need to collaborate and connect with other staff members and those working with students at the Tier 2 and 3 level. After completing the readings for this week I am proud of some of the things I am doing well. I am making sure my lowest readers are working with the most educated teachers. I am also attempting to give my higher students more meaningful, independent work. RTI is not just about kids who struggle but it supports those that are gifted too. We need to make sure we are giving each, individual student what they need to succeed. Through the use of the RTI framework, I believe teachers can provide the best learning experience for all students in the classroom. References: Averill, O. H., Baker, D., & Rinaldi, C. (2014). A blueprint for effectively using RTI intervention block time. Intervention in School and Clinic, 50(1), 29–38. DOI: 10.1177/1053451214532351 Fuchs, D., & Fuchs, L. S. (2006). Introduction to response to intervention: What, why, and how valid is it? Reading Research Quarterly, 1, 93-99. Harrison, A. G. (2005). Recommended Best Practices for the Early Identification and Diagnosis of Children with Specific Learning Disabilities in Ontario, Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 20, (1/2). 21-43. DOI: 10.1177/0829573506295461 http://www.readingrockets.org/reading-topics/response-intervention http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/what/whatisrti Response to intervention (RTI) is described as a three-tier framework used by schools to identify and assist struggling readers. The three tiers are: 1. High-quality classroom instruction 2. Targeted, small group instruction 3. Intensive, individual instruction I believe the school I work at currently implements this framework from a more general approach. I have never heard the term RTI used nor has anyone referred to our system as a tier but when I read through the RTI information, I can make many connections. We currently do not have a system for math support but I can see many similarities between RTI and our current Reading Support Room - called Reading Club by my students. In September, my grade one students are all tested based on letter and sound recognition, sight words, and phonemic awareness. From these results, we can identify students that are more likely to struggle with literacy throughout the year. In small groups of 3-5, students are given a Reading Club time where they receive instruction based on their needs. Most often, groups are made up of students from the same grade level, however we have mixed ages based on need when required. Our tier-2 Reading Club follows a Standard Treatment Protocol approach where the students identified as at-risk for literacy success receive standard treatment on a daily basis. These students are grouped together and work with the literacy teacher for 20-30 minutes every day. The teacher focuses on phonemic awareness, sight words, decoding, comprehension, and reading instructional level texts. Where I feel our literacy support system falls away from the RTI model is in tier-3, individualized instruction. I will blame it on the budget cuts our province is facing but our reading specialist position was cut to .75 this year. This took away over an hour a day of reading support for our students. Unfortunately, where we have been forced to cut back is on these students who would do best with one-on-one intensive instruction. These students are forced to stay in their small group at the tier-2 level. I am optimistic as we move forward, and with a new administrator in our school, we will see resources and funding put back into literacy support. I believe strongly in the importance of reading and literacy success and need to hope that we are working towards a full-tiered intervention program. References: Fuchs, D., & Fuchs, L. S. (2006). Introduction to response to intervention: What, why, and how valid is it? Reading Research Quarterly, 1, 93-99. http://www.readingrockets.org/reading-topics/response-intervention http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/what/whatisrti I love the idea of using assistive technology, specifically text-to-speech technology (TTST), to help support struggling readers. One conversation we often have in my classroom is regarding wants vs. needs. For example we may need to teach that “You may “want” to sit on a wobble chair because your friend is, but your friend actually “needs” it to learn.” TTST to me is very similar and can be used both as a want and a need. If introduced properly, TTST shouldn’t be seen as unfair, privileged, or even stigmatized. It should be viewed as giving each student what they need to be successful.
The move from learning to read to reading to learn is huge for students. We expect them to gain new knowledge from their reading. But what about those students who struggle so long with decoding that most comprehension is lost? Is the learning goal to read a passage successfully or to take the knowledge and apply it to the assignment? When students struggle to decode written text, they cannot be expected to perform as well as their “decoding peers” on assignments. TTST provides struggling students with the efficient decoding skills necessary to be successful and confident in the classroom. I like to consider myself a confident reader, I read often and for enjoyment. However, during my undergrad years at university I would use a form of assistive technology to help me study. I would record my study notes being read out loud. I would then take the recording to the library and study with my headphones in, following along with my notes and pictures while listening to myself speak. I found this to be extremely helpful in retaining the information. While I do not always need assistive technology, I found a time where it was useful. I believe this is how TTST should be viewed in the classroom. Available for those who need it at different times and for different things. References: Parr, M. (2011). The voice of text-to-speech technology. One possible solution for struggling readers. What Works? Research into Practice, Ontario Ministry of Education Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat and the Ontario Association of Deans of Education. The framework outlined by Cain demonstrates the complex process of reading in a simplified way. I appreciate the simplicity of the framework as it may be easier to place students on the grid where they fit in terms of language comprehension and word recognition. However, determining why students fit where they do and how teachers can better support their learning is the more difficult part.
When I think of the majority of students I have taught in my classroom, I believe they would fall either in the top right or the bottom left - good word recognition and good comprehension or poor word recognition and poor comprehension. I can envision a few in the past that had greta word recognition and decoding skills yet when it came to discussing important parts of the book they seemed to draw a blank. The framework goes to show that despite the connection between comprehension and decoding, students may struggle with one but not the other. Through a variety of strategies we must determine where the problem is arising and how we can better teach each individual student according to their needs. References: Cain, K. (2010). Developmental dyslexia. In K. Cain (2010). Reading Development & Difficulties (pp. 121-146). Toronto: Wiley. Definitions:
Developmental Dyslexia: reading difficulty that is unexpected in relation to the individual’s intelligence and level of reading instruction. Acquired Dyslexia: word reading difficulty that arises as a result of brain damage German Dyslexics: are typically good at reading and spelling, considered slow readers - German writing system is more consistent than the English one, easier grapheme-phoneme correspondence allows children to read the majority of words accurately Phonological Deficit Theories: dyslexics have problems at the level of phonological representation One area of the article I found very interesting was on that of distinctness. Many of my students will ask during their writing, “How do I spell goin’?” or “what says “uh” like I have uh dog”. They recognize the different words they say but do not realize they are not saying them “properly”, goin’ and uh have become part of their everyday language. I find it difficult to correct some of these errors as it can often sound hurtful. I remind them of the proper word but do not focus on their mistake. If this pronunciation has been going on for their whole speaking-life, will I be able to change it? Rapid Auditory Processing Theory: proposes an auditory and nonlinguistic basis, dyslexics have a deficit in the perception of short or rapidly changing sounds learning to impaired phonological processing Magnocellular Theory of Dyslexia: dyslexics perform poorly on a range of visual perception tasks Cerebellar Theory of Dyslexia: dyslexic individuals have a dysfunctional cerebellum, affecting i) speech articulation or ii) automatization of letter-sound correspondence Phonological Dyslexia: problems with the reading of non words, are able to read exception words Surface Dyslexia: problems with irregular word reading, are able to read non words Matthew Effect: the phenomenon that poor readers tend not to catch up with same-age good readers Throughout this reading it was made clear that dyslexia is not a one-size-fits-all label. Dyslexic individuals struggle with different skills at different time and to varying degrees. Despite the different abilities, phonological processing plays an important role for all dyslexic individuals in the development of adequate word reading. It has been a very long time since I was learning how to read. I do not remember much of the process and it is something I have taken for granted. It seems as though I have always known the sounds letters make and how to string the sounds together to create a word. Reading through this article, I was able to make sense of the words written including the detailed research terms, the nonsense and exception words. It makes me realize how important phonological skills are in reading success and how we must engage in activities that help strengthen these skills. I hope as we work on daily phonetic spelling, rhyming, and syllable segmentation, my Grade 1s will develop the skills necessary to become fluent, comprehending readers. References: Cain, K. (2010). Developmental dyslexia. In K. Cain (2010). Reading Development & Difficulties (pp. 121-146). Toronto: Wiley. I started watching the interview with Maryanne Wolf while I was doing dishes this Sunday morning. I quickly realized I couldn’t multitask through this video, her message was so moving and beautiful it required my full attention.
I knew I would love Maryanne Wolf’s interview after the first minute. “The brain was here before reading” and “A beautiful brain that happens to be disadvantaged” were two quotes that I find to be very, very powerful. I haven’t had the opportunity to work with a child with dyslexia yet so my background knowledge on the subject is very weak. However, growing up a friend of mine who was a few years older had dyslexia. I wouldn’t say that he had a negative educational experience, he was well-liked by his peers and his teachers. He also participated in many school sports and activities. I do recall though statements being made about his inability to read and spell properly because of his dyslexia. The words I can remember were said by his friends after receiving a mixed-up text, I cannot remember if his teachers made remarks about it at school. Taking what Maryanne Wolf said throughout her short interview, I think we had very little knowledge and understanding of his learning disability. Wolf states that a dyslexic brain is still a fantastic brain that can learn, teachers just have to figure out how that brain learns best. I think the same can be said for all of our students, our job is to figure out how they learn best and how we can support that learning. However, I believe it is even more crucial for dyslexic learners. Wolf also talks about professional development. In my small school, I have never heard anyone talk about PD on dyslexia. I am not sure if that is out of ignorance or that it feels as though it is not needed. I, however, am quite intrigued! Most people think they have an understanding of what reading is but when we think about dyslexia being here before reading was, I don’t think we have a full understanding of what reading truly is. I would love to attend a PD session that focuses on reading and the fact that reading and intelligence do not go hand-in-hand. Definitions explained by Wolf: Phonology: understanding of sounds Meaning: the semantic system Syntax: how words work in sentences and stories Morphology: how parts of words play really important roles Orthography: how our understanding of letter patterns hooks up to the language system Reference: Embracing Dyslexia: The Interviews with Maryanne Wolf, Ed.D., a prominent Dyslexia Researcher Video found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyxRIVfrxJs I am beginning to explore articles related to my individual research paper. The article I read this morning was “The Early Catastrophe” (2003) by Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley. This article focused on the vocabulary of 3-4 year olds. Their study found that children from low-income families had smaller vocabularies (and their vocabulary grew at a lower rate) than children from high-income families. This vocabulary growth was strongly related to language skills and reading comprehension scores of the students later in life. The early years experience for children is incredibly crucial to their later achievements in the school years.
While I believe this research and similar studies to be accurate, I also find them slightly frustrating. I find it disheartening that income has so much to do with a child’s educational success. Hart and Risley’s article also mentions that despite the family income, children were all raised similarly, with love and discipline (2003). It appears that regardless of how much love you give your child, if you are in a lower-socioeconomic standing, your child will develop vocabulary skills at a lower rate. Family income is not something a child can choose nor is it something that is easily changed by the parents. On the other hand, we are also looking at research that states all students can achieve grade level reading by the end of first grade (Allington, 2011). I believe students are capable of this achievement, but I also believe students are not entering their school years at the same starting point. When there is a 30 million word gap (Hart & Risley, 2003) by age 3, we can not assume that all children entering first grade are displaying the same ready-to-learn skills. When I think of literacy in my classroom, the students with the greatest success also seem to be the ones with the most home support. They do their nightly reading, visit the public library, and practice spelling words at home. Children have more than one teacher, their parents and family members are just as important (if not more-so) than the classroom teacher. Teachers cannot do it alone, they need home support to help students reach grade level reading scores. We cannot undermine the affect family involvement has on educational success. Regardless of income, we must find a way for all families to become involved in their child’s educational experience. References: Allington, R. L. (2001). Research on reading/learning disability interventions. In S. J. Samuels and A.E. Farstrug (Eds.), What research has to say about reading instruction (4th ed.) Newark, DE: IRA. Hart, B. & Risley, T.R. “The Early Catastrophe:The 30 Million Word Gap by Age 3” (2003, spring). American Educator, pp.4-9. |
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