Procedures for Setting Up a Remedial Reading Program in the Secondary Schools

Abstract

The need for a more comprehensive education in the secondary school is a need which no one will deny; and as reading is the primary means through which most formal education takes place, the need for expert readers is ever-present. The tragedy of so many high school students graduating without having mastered the skill of reading reminds us that schools are not succeeding in its task of educating. One important area where secondary schools can improve their attempts at reaching the students who are passing through without learning is to set up a reading program designed to help those students master their ability to read and learn. Setting up a reading program is not an easy task, however, and quite often it is a task that never gets done. Administrators push for a program, indeed, they often clamor for a program; still·nothing ever gets done outside of the English teacher attending a summer workshop. to learn how a reading program should be set up. The returning English teacher, with a handful of notes, a few addresses of publishers, and some confused notions how to get a reading program started, is content to incorporate more reading into his classes. This is not enough, however. A reading program must be set up separate from other content area courses. The demand of creating a new and different class is a challenge that can be met by the hapless English teacher, or by any other teacher who gets assigned to this project. The teacher will have to have some imagination, perseverance, and strength; the rest will fall into place if he follows some important steps, steps recommended by the reading researchers, experts, and experienced teachers. Each of the steps provide for the needs of the reading program, administrators, fellow teachers, parents, and ultimately for the students themselves. The steps include surveying the reading status of the school to determine the type of program that should be set up, whether it should be a developmental, critical, or remedial reading program. The second step is to schedule a reading program into the existing programs of the school\u27s curriculum. The program can take many shapes in order to fit into the school\u27s plan and to meet the needs of the students. Once the program has been slated for the coming term, the teacher can begin to set up a classroom that will serve as the purposes of the program. This does not mean the teacher will need much money, but it does mean he will have to have organization and be very resourceful. As soon as the physical demands of the class are met, the content of the course can be decided upon. The teacher may decide among skills that should be taught, textbooks that will best prepare the students for the reading skills they must learn, and drills that best reinforce the skills actually taught. The program, now ready to begin, must have a standard by which its effectiveness may be judged. The teacher may determine how he will evaluate his program, either through a series of tests, through records, through grades, or through the visit of a reading specialist who may of fer helpful suggestions for improving the program. Each of these steps, when followed methodically and with much thought, will provide the teacher the greatest amount of success in helping those students who are now unable to read the simplest assignments