Our Travelogue for "On the Road to Reading Recovery": Report on Jerusalem’s Non-Readers Conference  
by Ellen Serfaty, serf@inter.net.il 
 
 

Our Readers Think:  
The Importance of Time 
Julie Yosefyan, yosefyan@internet-zahav.net 
 

Our Travelogue for "On the Road to Reading Recovery": Report on Jerusalem’s Non-Readers Conference 

Old Scenario:  Anytime in the last five years...an average, heterogeneous, elementary school--sixth grade class...we observe the class mostly on task in a frontal lesson where the teacher is working through a reading text...everyone has their textbook open in front of them...well, almost everyone...one boy is scribbling and doodling in his notebook, but the teacher knows it is useless to ask him to open his book...he never brings it, and can’t read it anyway....child after child is reading from the text...until we get to a girl who is scrunching down in her seat, trying to avoid the teacher’s eye...she is called, says she doesn’t want to answer, and the teacher moves on, knowing that she really can’t answer, because she can’t read...we also see on the periphery that two boys sitting at two different desk grups are throwing erasers at each other, but then again, those two never really get involved in reading anyway...and one little girl is still looking for the right page...while another is trying to read, with her finger following the script, from right to left.  

The scene changes to the teacher’s room where the teacher of the last lesson, stress etched in her face, and almost literally pulling her hair out,  is listing on her fingers the same kids that were not "with the program" during the last lesson, and once again wonders what she is going to do to manage with them. 

New Scenario:  A few days ago, the same class, with the same teacher, with a relatively relaxed demearnor...but we notice as we enter the classroom that there are fewer students...at least 5 or 6 are missing...and as we glance behind us we see those students sitting with another teacher in a closed off “corner” of the corridor, using a different text, working together, while the regular teacher carries on with the lesson.  And today, when we enter that class, it is larger--the two groups are together, working on their reading in their workbooks, but the smaller group is sitting together working in a different, easier version of the workbook.  And they are indeed working... 

 Your reaction...are you dreaming?!  No, I’m wide awake (well almost...it IS the end of the school year).  Utopia?  No, reality...I just left that school an hour ago, and saw it with my own eyes.  Well, so they’re the exception!  No, again...I’m the counselor for 8 other schools in the neighborhood--and I have colleagues all around Jerusalem now who are having the same experience...not in all classes, and not necessarily in the same configurations, but definitely no longer an exception. 

And that’s what a recent meeting of over 60 administrators, principals, coordinators and teachers discussed on May 20, 1998 in Jerusalem for four hours...progress in meeting the needs of (non-readers) reading recovery students...and what we need to do to keep meeting those needs.  This, in light of closures or endings of pilot projects and special fund injections, or budget cuts! 
 Under the leadership of Valerie Jakar, Jerusalem mancha and chief designer of Pisgat Zeev/Neve Yaakov’s Reading Recovery Project; and the sponsorship and dedicated support of the Jerusalem District’s English Inpsector Tzivia Ariel, and Head of Special Projects, Jerusalem Municipality, Avi Sela, this meeting was convened to share information:  

•  among teachers who are reading recovery specialists, to share their tools and tips of the trade
• among experienced reading recovery schools and newbies about how to effectively implement programs
• among those who have succeeded with those who want to succeed on how to set up and maintain reading recovery projects throughout the city
•  among everyone, to share strategies on how and where to get funding

During Lessons from the Field, Robin Braverman, teaching in the Project’s Meuhad school in Neve Yaakov,  shared tips on how to assess students for reading problems and  how to follow-up student progress on a regular basis, and document their progress in individual student files.  Debbie Kraut shared an interesting model being used at Seligberg School, where two teachers work together with 12 students.  Rika Deutsch shared the thoughts of some of her students to help us understand reading recovery students problems on a more personal level.  Marlene Grayevitch, also with Shloshim Yeeshuvim at Mercaz B school in Pisgat Zeev, reminded us that “whole language” approaches are not fruitless when working with non-readers--they are simply combined with accepted, reading recovery approaches for an enjoyable, yet remedial, story-oriented curriculum.  And Ora Lakowsky, principal of Meuhad School, talked about how the institution of non-reader programs in her school has promoted the development of all English language learning students, while reminding us that regular classroom teachers still bear responsibility for helping these students. 
  
The final question/answer/comment section raised some interesting issues: 
 1.   As English teachers, are we expected to advocate within our schools for introducing these programs, or should principals and administrators have the funds available, so that teachers can do what they do...teach!  Many English teachers do not see their role or personality as that of aggressive advocate and policy changer, while those who have assumed that role feel gratified by the successes they have achieved. 
 2.  What avenues are available now that general budget cutbacks, and specifically the end of Shloshim Yeeshuvim funding, threatens continuation of invaluable programs such as these?  The conference appeared to be the starting point for building “think tanks” and convening future meetings--with city and Ministry officials, teacher trainers and teachers--on securing at least partial funding for as many programs as possible throughout Jerualem.  However, it was generally agreed that schools would need to prioritize reading recovery programs by designating a specified number of hours that could be matched by other funding sources. 
 3.  How will teachers receive training and support for their efforts?  It is a given that reading recovery work is hard...with information, curriculum and materials constantly changing.  The Shloshim Yeeshuvim project was successful partially as a result of regular, monthly training sessions, where teachers shared information, solved individual and mutual problems, and brought ideas and materials for group consideration.  As a result of a survey conducted with the project teachers, it was unanimously agreed that training and support groups are a key element of effective specialist teaching, as well as a preventive measure against teacher “burn-out”.  Yet, in a constrained fiscal environment, training and counseling for teachers is often the first thing to be overlooked or cutback.  Preparing manuals of materials and guidelines will perhaps help new teachers...but is unlikely to replace the counseling element. 

 Another outcome of the meeting is that it was a wonderful opportunity for those  working in the same field to share information and enthusiasm, as well as problems.  And that more focused meetings should be held in the future.  Teachers generally agreed that this year’s influx of texts designed for these special classes has indeed been beneficial, and that continued efforts in this direction would be a welcome alternative to the past scenario of specialist teachers designing all of their own materials. 

As school winds down, many of the key players in these projects are just winding up...searching for funds, examining scheduling priorities, looking at new reading recovery texts, doing final assessments of reading recovery and new students to constitute groups for the next school year...and new players at all levels of the system--high school, as well as junior high and elementary classes--are looking forward to implementing new projects in their schools as part of a broader Jerusalem support network. 

We invite teachers , specialists and administrators involved in Reading Recovery Projects to tell us about your work...so that we can share it with others throughout the country.  

Ellen Hoffenberg-Serfaty, serf@inter.net.il 
For further information about the Reading Recovery Project in Pisgat Zeev/Neve Yaakov see the ETNI site: 
http://www.boker.org.il/eng/etni/nonread3.htm 

 As far as having PHDs with all kinds of disabilities in 
the regular classroom, teachers must be very aware of the time issue.  
Many kids with disabilities need time to get organized, find the page, etc.  These kids need special reminders or a secret signal to get them moving and organized. 

 We need to remember that in a lot of processing disabilities and 
difficulties,  a student will take longer to process the question,  then 
process the answer,  and only then respond.  When the other kids are answering the 3rd or 4th question, an LD student  is often just finished processing and ready to answer the first question.  

 One possible solution:  tell the student--in advance,  in any humane and discreet way that works--what question they will be asked.  You are giving the kid advanced notice and he has time for his thinking process to go through the different stages that it needs to. 

 I find that recognition of the time element  is very important for preserving student self-esteem up, promoting class participationand will hopefully help the student to be less frustrated, and therefore less of a behavior problem.  

 Maybe the time element isn't a new idea to lots of teachers, but its 
important enough to be aware of at all times; and important enough so that teachers need to develop strategies that work in heterogeneous classes to deal with the varied amounts of time needs by students to process activities.