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POCATELLO - A new reading program is being hatched every few weeks, it seems, and there are more to come.
Literacy is a cultural value that generally goes unquestioned in the modern world. Unlike cultures that developed heavily around oral traditions, the American education system depends upon the ability to read.
About two years ago, Superintendent of Public Instruction Marilyn Howard launched her "Dinner and a Book" program encouraging parents to talk with their children over their evening meal, then spend a few minutes reading to them or listening to them read.
The Department of Education tests K-3 children with the Idaho Reading Indicator twice a year so teachers can identify and help students not reading at grade level.
Most elementary students in Pocatello spend time on Accelerated Reader, a computer program that tests students for comprehension, and District 25's purchase of the Compass computer program increases student comprehension.
Parents concerned about their children's reading skills will be pleased to note that yet another reading program is taking place in District 25. Teachers will be enhancing their repertoire of teaching skills thanks to a new grant sponsored by the J.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation. The foundation invited teachers and administrators in the district to participate in The Open Book Initiative (TOBI) - intensive training in scientifically-proven methods of teaching reading.
"The first prong is teacher professional development," said Principal Lyla Wolfenbarger, Tyhee Elementary. "Presenters include some high class national speakers over the summer and throughout the school year."
Speakers familiar to educators include experts in research, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension and remedial instruction: Anita Archer, Jan Hasbrouk, Gail Adams, Kevin Feldman, Joe Dimino, Keith Lenz, Vicky Vachon and Frank Smith. Another prong in the program is to further inform parents of the importance of reading to their children. "It's so important from the time they're in the womb," said Blossom Van Houten, Title I reading teacher at Tyhee. Title I provides additional reading time for students who are reading a grade or two below level. "Parents need to talk to their kids, pay attention to them, read to them," Van Houten says. Van Houten sends books home with her students along with activity sheets for parents to do along with their children.
The foundation designed TOBI to assist schools in reaching the goals of
the federal No Child Left Behind Act approved in January 2001. No Child Left Behind. The No Child Left Behind Act is an attempt to "clean up" education, says Regan Grandy, grants coordinator for School District 25.
"By 2006-2007 everything is supposed to be changed, schools are supposed
to be on track or else," Grandy says. "Or else what? Nobody knows, but
we're sure driven by it (the threat)." Grandy's job is to aggressively seek grants to supplement funding for programs in the district, a job that's become increasingly important in these times of cutbacks and budgetary shortfalls.
The NCLB Act was passed by the U.S. Congress without providing additional
money for implementation, Grandy says.Idaho is fortunate, Grandy says, the Albertson Foundation stepped in with TOBI to assist districts in reaching their reading goals. TOBI's goal is that 90 percent of a school's student body be reading at grade level after completing an 18-month cycle of teacher training and student reading.
About two-thirds of District 25's elementary and middle school teachers will benefit directly or indirectly from the training, in particular Hawthorne Middle School and its feeder elementary schools: Tyhee, Wilcox, Ellis and Chubbuck.
The foundation also pays for a Reading Fellow, a full-time specialist who will coordinate TOBI for the district.
"I think the outcome is that teachers will use more effective strategies, scientifically proven ones," said Gloria Noble, director of elementary education. "They'll be teaching a blended approach of sight words and phonetics."
Noble says students will spend more time discussing meaning and content in the books they read. Students will work in small groups with teachers' aides or with partners.
Many classrooms are already arranged according to a small group model.
Penelope Reedy covers education and entertainment for the Journal. She can be reached by calling 239-3135 or by e-mail at penelope@journalnet.com.
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