May 2008 — News
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Struggling Readers Perk Up under New Program
Nave said she thinks that several components of the Read Now program have helped make it a success at Carbondale, including its focus on small groups, the use of strategies that are repeated over and over, and the motivational aspects offered by the computerized portions.
"It's set up so that you read a novel or small trade book together in small groups," Nave explained. "The computer part is interwoven." Since Carbondale often does not have enough computers for each student in a classroom, half work at a computer while half use paper to perform the same sorts of tasks.
"We feel like our results have been phenomenal," Nave said, with dramatic reading skill jumps so far. Students have already shown half a year's growth in reading skills in the first semester, Nave said, which is expected for an average student, but "amazing" for these students--the most reading progress many have seen for any full year since starting school.
Training for teachers consisted of half a dozen two-hour stints of online training, using a conference call line and a computer controlled by a Read Now instructor, which Nave found an effective way of saving on travel and time away from the classroom. The training was capped by two days of onsite training during the summer. Two Read Now instructors helped Carbondale teachers set up the classrooms and computers, and then reviewed reading progress reports once school started, offering guidance.
Read Now Power Up! is sold for a fixed price as a classroom package for the first year of use, plus an annual subscription cost per student, with prices based on specific needs of schools. According to the vendor, Read Now Power Up! qualifies for federal funding under No Child Left Behind, including Title I, Reading First, Comprehensive School Reform, and various potential state, local, and private funding sources.
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About the author: Linda L. Briggs is a freelance writer based in San Diego, CA.
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