posted September 4, 2008
HCDE has implemented a program that requires teachers to spend an extra 30 minutes a day, outside of the literacy block, with very low readers.
Let's do the math. My child is a good reader in a class of 22. There are three children in her class that are required to receive extra reading instruction for 30 minutes every day. What do the other 19 children do while the teacher is spending this precious time with those three? That's 2 1/2 hours a week. Ninety hours a school year. (About 18 instructional days- at about five hours of instruction time a day.) Wow!
No- this is not an urban school. No funds are provided for reading interventionists. I don't believe my child should sit there and do independent, busy work for 30 minutes every day, unable to interrupt the extra reading class that is going on. She should be doing work that challenges her, and that requires someone to be there to answer her questions. That someone is busy with others that seem to her, more important.
Ron Matthews
Chattanooga
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Dear Mr. Ron Matthews,
How foolish is it for a teacher to waste a little extra time to help a child who may be a slow reader? But what do we do with the children who might be a little behind their classmates? Send them to the farm? Put them on the streets?
Not everybody learns at the same rate. Yes, if a child has a chronic learning disability, they should probably have a special education teacher to help them. But if a child is merely a slow reader, why single them out? Why waste the extra money? "Do the math."
Einstein was a slow reader, poor student and couldn't balance a check book. One of his teachers even suggested that he quit school and become a laborer.
Search your soul and give an honest answer: If your child was one of the ones who needed that little bit of extra help, would you complain?
Ed Bradley
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I am responding to Mr. Matthews question "Do HCDE Parents Know" to say yes, I am fully aware of the extra 30 minutes required for teachers to help those with reading difficulties. My son, happens to be one of those students who requires the extra help. Quite frankly, 30 minutes is hardly enough time. Unfortunately our schools don't have the resources to provide reading interventionists who can spend this time so our teachers can focus on the rest of the class. Most schools rely on parent volunteers and homeroom moms to come in and assist.
Reading with my son, I noticed he was having difficulties. I didn't know if these difficulties were normal (he's all boy) or if he had a learning disability that hadn't been diagnosed. So, I had him tested for special ed to rule out any disabilities. I was relieved to find out he didn't have a learning disability, but was quite dismayed when told something to the effect "We know he's having problems. We don't know what the problem is and he doesn't qualify for special ed services. Sorry, we can't help him." This did not set well at all with me. I found out that the school had implemented a special after-school reading program intervention for kindergarteners who were having problems, but they weren't offering anything for the older students.
My family ended up going to Sylvan for assistance. They tested him and found right away that some of the building blocks he needed early on in reading weren't there. He's gone twice a week for four hours this summer and has cut back on his hours some since school started. He's making progress, which is more than he would have with the 30 minutes a day routine the schools are required to do. Sylvan isn't cheap but the results are worth the cost if it means my son reads better.
Be thankful, Mr. Matthews, your child is a good reader. Our educational system leaves much to be desired. My son's teacher did her best with the 30 minutes she had to work with him, but it just wasn't enough. He needed more than the school could provide.
Chris Counts
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