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Suggestions for School Leaders

By Rafael Heller, Ph.D.

  • Find ways to accelerate, not remediate.

    Historically, remedial reading courses have tended to be a dead end for the students assigned to them. Today, the catch-phrase is to "accelerate, not remediate." When providing services for struggling readers, the goal must be to help them catch up to grade level as soon as possible.

  • Find time for reading instruction.

    Many schools are now experimenting with ways to squeeze extra time into the schedule for reading interventions, whether by taking time away from elective courses or by teaching reading early in the morning, after school, on the weekends, or over the summer. For example, ninth grade academies — providing intensive, accelerated reading instruction — have become popular, as has the scheduling of extra class periods for literacy instruction.

  • Think hard before investing in commercial programs.

    Over the last several years, commercial publishers have come forward with numerous intervention programs for struggling adolescent readers. However, while they tend to be expensive, those programs have scant evidence of effectiveness. Currently (as of the summer of 2009), the US Department of Education's Institute for Education Sciences is conducting rigorous, ongoing studies of a number of the most well-known interventions, but for the foreseeable future, buyers should beware.

  • Make sure that teachers have ongoing opportunities for professional development and discussion within their content areas.

    It takes time and effort for teachers of math, science, history, and other subjects to figure out how best to help students meet their disciplines' distinct literacy demands. At the secondary level, content area teachers have neglected reading and writing instruction for decades — in order to take on that job, and to learn how to do it well, they'll require meaningful, long-term professional development.

  • If your school has no reading specialist on staff, then consider investing in training for teachers and/or staff who are interested in becoming local leaders on the topic of reading assessment.

    For recommendations of good professional development programs and resources in your area, contact your school district, state department of education, or regional affiliate of the International Reading Association.

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References

References

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