LEADERSHIP
For Learning
Linking Research to Practice
Introduction
This issue of Leadership for Learning describes
two approaches to improving student literacy
skills in schools with a high proportion of
English as a Second Language learners.
Senator Reid Elementary (85% and Dr. F.D.
Sinclair Elementary (82%) rank second and
seventh in the district where a language other
than English is spoken at home.
“Reading Rockets” at Dr. F.D. Sinclair
Elementary is a ten week intensive reading
program designed to assist primary students
with low reading scores. The reported results
are based on very recent assessments of
reading achievement. Gains in reading skills
have been very significant.
The report on the Senator Reid Elementary
“Noisy Reading” initiative was submitted to
the Leadership Academy in June of 2002.
Principal Hart Schnee reports that “Noisy
Reading” continues to be a weekly occurrence
at Senator Reid. They are currently building on
their success by developing a seminar series
where parents can learn about how they can
work with their pre-schooler at home to help
ready them for Kindergarten.
The Leadership Academy Advisory Board
In This Issue
Action Research Project Reports:
- “Noisy Reading”: An Early Primary
Literacy Intervention
- “Reading Rockets”: Intense Short
Term Reading Support for Grade 2
and 3 Students in a High ESL School
Web Sites: Effective Schools Research,
Wisconsin Centre for Education
Research, The Beauty of Math, It’s a
Nanoworld
Professional Development: National
Education Services (NES)
Leadership Academy Advisory Board
promoting leadership capacity in our schools
An Initiative of the
Surrey School District
Leadership Academy
www.leadershipacademy.sd36.bc.ca
Volume 2(4), March/April 2004
“Noisy Reading”: An Early Primary Literacy
Intervention
SENATOR REID ELEMENTARY ACTION RESEARCH TEAM: Monica Arora,
Mira Breda, Donna Edwards, Glenn Galy, and Chih Kwan
CONTEXT:
Senator Reid Elementary is a large, urban, inner-city school with 650
students. Approximately 75% of the student population receives
English as a Second Language support and a language other than
English is spoken in over 85% of the homes.
A high percentage of the surrounding community is Indo-Canadian
where most families speak either Punjabi or Hindi. Each of the four
all–day ESL Kindergarten classrooms participated in this project.
RESEARCH QUESTION:
The project was aimed at finding out whether weekly Noisy Reading sessions
actually increased parental involvement and literacy acquisition. Research
questions were as follows:
• To what extent has the involvement of parents in Noisy Reading improved
levels of parental involvement in the overall school community?
• How effective is Noisy Reading at improving student and parent attitudes
regarding literacy?
• What effect does Noisy Reading have on student learning?
• To what extent does Noisy Reading improve reading readiness skills?
• What effect(s) has Noisy Reading had on teaching practice in ESL
Kindergarten classes?
ACTION:
Noisy Reading consisted of parents and grandparents reading with
their child or grandchild in the classroom for approximately
30 minutes each week for 6 months. Since a number of grandpar
ents
were found to be illiterate, or lacking a variety of basic literacy skills, a
number of non-text resources and dual language books were provided
to adults for ‘reading’ purposes. Kindergarten teachers met throughout the school year and maintained ‘running’ anecdotal records pertaining to parental participation rates, successes and frustrations as
well as the project’s overall progress. Surveys, which were translated
into Punjabi, were distributed to parents and a focus group evaluation
was facilitated by the school’s Multicultural Support Worker as well as
one Punjabi speaking Kindergarten teacher.
HOW DID IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Generally speaking, this action research project produced three major
beneficial findings.
1. Inviting parents/grandparents into the classroom on a frequent
basis helped the school to connect with parents and ‘reach out’ to
the community.
www.leadershipacademy.sd36.bc.ca
2. Parental attitudes about their role as parents and
‘teachers’ began to change over the course of the
school year.
3. A positive link with, and appreciation of, literacy was
developed.
KEY FINDINGS:
Increased parental involvement in the school was noted
by several of the Kindergarten teachers. This project
served to build and strengthen trust between school and
home and, in doing so, a number of spill-over effects
were noted. For instance, the introduction of a follow-up
Home Reading program was received quite positively
and attendance at an evening literacy outreach presentation totalled almost 40 parents. Attendance at an
Integrated Day was also enthusiastically supported by
parents and grandparents.
For many parents in the Indo-Canadian community, the
school has not traditionally been viewed as an extension
of the home or a place where one tends to become
actively involved. Parents in the Indo-Canadian community, as a result, have traditionally seen the home and
school as separate entities where the school ‘teaches’ the
child and the home ‘provides’ for the child. This project
served to educate parents that the two roles are not
necessarily distinct and that parents can also play a vital
role as teacher, role model, and coach in facilitating their
child’s improved reading skill development. Many
parents, as a result, have come to realize the importance
of supporting the school at home more with their child.
Family trips to the local public library are taking place
more frequently and parents seem much more aware of
the skills needed (e.g. tracking) in reading text.
Interestingly, the participation level and reading level of
both child and parent appeared to improve over the
course of the school year. Teachers, for example, noticed
that students:
a) enjoy having parents read stories to them much more;
b) read out loud more in the class;
c) are becoming more assertive, or enthusiastic, about
selecting certain types of books to read and reread;
and
d) are developing a more noticeable love of reading.
Parents, in turn, have become more confident with books
and more willing to assist their children with books and
reading.
A number of challenges surfaced during implementation. Kindergarten teachers, for example, found it particularly difficult to maintain parental enthusiasm for the
project over an extended period of time. Some parents
appeared noticeably threatened by the experience,
perhaps due to feelings of inadequacy associated with
reading.
Focus Group (conducted in Punjabi) Findings:
1. Parents felt that Noisy Reading was a positive experience because it helped them become more involved in
their child’s life.
promoting leadership capacity in our schools
2. Parents observed that their children were developing
more of an appreciation for reading and books in
general.
3. Parents indicated that they had become more aware of
skill development (e.g. tracking, sight words and picture
clues) and improved English vocabulary.
4. Parents observed their children reading more at home.
5. Parents commented that they had seen their role change
from one of providing clothing and food for their children to one where they also felt responsible for teaching
their children.
INTERPRETATION:
Generally speaking, parents who participated in the Noisy
Reading project found it to be a very rewarding experience.
Children also enjoyed the experience and loved having
family members come to school. Family involvement served
to facilitate positive attitudes toward literacy as well as
school.
Noisy Reading served to foster a love for literacy and to
assist in the development of emergent reading skills. As a
result, children have become more aware of books and book
titles; developed improved listening skills and an appreciation for stories; and become more involved with their athome reading program.
WHAT WAS LEARNED ABOUT LEADERSHIP FROM THIS PROJECT?
Two aspects of this project helped insure its overall success.
One, having kickoff assemblies, special events (e.g. Pyjama
Party) as well as a follow-up Home Reading program
increased parental ‘buy-in’ and/or commitment to the
overall literacy initiative. Two, the support of the school’s
librarian was key in providing additional dual language
books and a sizable collection of easy-reader books.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE DISTRICT? FOR SCHOOLS?
Early literacy programs will likely experience a greater
chance of meeting the diverse needs of a multicultural
community when supported with collections of dual
language books and/or easy-reader, high interest books.
A project which is multifaceted, consisting of several
components (e.g. special events, kickoff assemblies, followup programs), will likely have a greater chance of becoming
successfully integrated into the surrounding community
than one which is isolated in nature.
“Reading Rockets”: Intense Short Term
Reading Support for Grade 2 and 3
Students in a High ESL School
DR. F. D. SINCLAIR ELEMENTARY ACTION RESEARCH TEAM:
Graham Cooper (Principal), Paul Taylor (Vice-Principal), Marilyn
Macdougall, Loretta Buchi, Heather Roberson, Ses Pettovello, Ann
Bryce, and Tracey Tolksdorf
CONTEXT:
Dr. F. D. Sinclair Elementary is an inner city, high ESL school
with 565 students, 82% of whom come from homes where a
language other than English is spoken. In general terms, the
school reading program focuses on phonemic awareness,
www.leadershipacademy.sd36.bc.ca
phonics, fluency, vocabulary development and text
comprehension. The focus of the school has been to
develop the students’ knowledge, skills and positive
attitude related to improving reading and writing skills.
However, it has been found that many of our students
appear to be delayed in their acquisition of the reading
skills that are generally acquired in the primary grades.
RESEARCH QUESTION:
Will a 10-week intensive reading program assist primary
students, with low reading scores, to raise their reading levels
better than the expected growth rate of an average reader at the
same grade level?
ACTION:
Background Beliefs and Assumptions:
1. Effective prevention and early intervention programs
can raise reading skills of 85% to 90% of poor readers
to average levels. (Lyon, 1997)
2. Reading fluency is highly correlated with reading
comprehension. (Shinn & Baker, 1996)
3. Students need to build a positive self-esteem in
regards to reading.
4. Parents must be knowledgeable and supportive of the
programs on which their children are working.
5. The students have a background in phonemic awareness and a knowledge of phonics and word attack
skills prior to entering the intensive reading program.
The Program:
1. Each group participated for 10 weeks.
2. The program was called the “Sinclair Reading Rockets” to give it a positive “spin”.
3. Students were selected by the classroom teacher. The
principal then discussed the program with students
and parents to ensure support.
4. Students were given the Alberta Diagnostic Test to
assess their reading levels.
5. The students read to their parents for 15-20 minutes,
five nights a week.
6. A Special Education Assistant (SEA) worked with the
students in groups of four for 45 minutes per day,
4 days a week using Dolch wor
ds and an SRA kit.
Funding for the SEA was secured from the
“Community Link” Program.
7. The students met with buddy readers from 8:05 to 8:40
for 4 days a week to work on oral reading. Fluency
was stressed plus the students were required to write
two or four sentences about the story they had read.
8. Incentives, in the form of certificates and pizza days,
were used at set intervals. Goals, for each interval,
were established.
9. At the end of the 10 weeks, the students were retested
using the Alberta Diagnostic Test.
10. Parents, with their children, were interviewed after
the program. The results of the assessment were discussed and an opportunity was given to the students
and parents to give their opinion of the program.
promoting leadership capacity in our schools
Operation of the Program
A group of eight grade 3 students (Group 1) took part in
the program from mid September to December, 2003. A
second group of eight grade 3 students (Group 2) worked
on the program from January to mid March, 2004.
FINDINGS & RESULTS:
Following are the results for Group 1 students using the
Alberta Diagnostic Test. Results of Group 2 were similar.
Grade Reading Level as per the
Alberta Diagnostic Test Group #1
Student
PreProgram
Gr. Level
Predicted
Growth
in Years
PostProgram
Gr. Level
Actual
Growth
In Years
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
#6
#7
#8
3.25
1.50
2.25
2.25
1.50
1.75
1.50
1.75
.2
.2
.2
.2
.2
.2
.2
.2
4.50
2.75
4.50
3.75
3.25
2.25
3.25
3.25
1.25
1.25
2.25
1.50
1.75
.50
1.75
1.50
COMPARISON OF PRE, PREDICTED
AND POST TEST SCORES
GROUP #1
HOW DID IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Grade equivalent scores show dramatic gains for both
groups. At the post conference with each parent with
their child, the students reported that they now liked to
read. The parents also reported that they were taking
their children to the local library and that they were very
pleased with their child’s improvement and enthusiasm
for reading.
continued on next page...
Leadership Academy Advisory Board
Dr. Sharon Cohen, Director of Instruction
Bob Coventry, Assistant Superintendent
Peter Drescher, Deputy Superintendent of Schools (Chair)
Dr. Glenn Galy, Principal, Surrey Connect
John Horstead, Principal, Bothwell Elementary
Alan Jones, District Principal, Human Resources
Alasdair MacKinnon, Principal, Queen Elizabeth Secondary
Sherri Mohoruk, Assistant Superintendent
Sheila Morissette, Vice Principal, Fraser Heights Secondary
www.leadershipacademy.sd36.bc.ca
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
All students will be reassessed in
June to see if their new reading level
has been maintained or has further
improved. The parents of each child
will be contacted to see if the
students have the same enthusiasm
for reading and are still visiting the
local library on a regular basis.
From April to the end of June,
10 selected students in grades 2 to 5
will partake in the program to see if
similar results can be attained.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE DISTRICT?
FOR SCHOOLS?
The results certainly appear to be
very encouraging and would appear
to support the findings of Lyon
(1997). It was not expected, however,
that the results would be as dramatic
as they were considering the program ran for only 10 weeks. Besides
repeating the program at Dr. F.D.
Sinclair Elementary, it could be of
advantage to run pilot programs at
other schools to see if similar results
are realized. As the District has a goal
concerning early literacy, this program could relate closely to it.
Although the program was set up as
described at Dr. F. D. Sinclair, it must
be remembered that it was focused to
meet the individual needs of the
students. Consequently, programs at
other grade levels or at other schools
will vary so as to address the needs
of the students involved.
REFERENCES:
Shinn, M.R., & Baker, S. (1996). The use of
curriculum-based measurement with
diverse learners. In L.A. Suzuki, P.H.
Meller, & J.G. Pontero, Handbook of
multicultural assessment: Clinical,
psychological, and educational applications (pp.179-222), San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.
Lyon, R. (1997). Report on learning
disabilities research. www.jwor.com/
research1.htm
Professional Development
NES Professional Learning
Communities at Work Institutes
(National Education Service)
NES offers 3 day institutes throughout
North America, bringing together well
known presenters such as Rick Dufour,
Robert Eaker, Rick Stiggins, Michael
Schmoker, Anne Conzemius, and Jan
promoting leadership capacity in our schools
O’Neill. An institute is being held at
Langley Secondary School August 16-18,
2004. Specific information can be located
at their website at www.nesonline.com.
These institutes are designed to help
educators implement promising strategies for school improvement. Participants will learn specific, practical ways
to help them apply the PLC model in
their own schools, and the three key
ideas that drive Professional Learning
Communities:
Clarity of Purpose: What do you want
your students to learn? How will you
know they’ve learned it? What will you
do if they don’t?
Collaborative School Culture: Students
achieve when teachers are given the
time and support to work together to
clarify what students need to learn, and
how to assess their achievement.
Focus on Results: Programs, policies,
and practices are continually assessed on
how they impact student learning.
Web Sites
submitted by Burt Deeter, Ph.D. Principal, James
Ardiel Elementary
Effective Schools Research
(A review of the literature)
http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/abed/research/esr/
This website resides in the Aboriginal
Education Enhancements Branch of the
B.C. Ministry of Education. It provides a
succinct review of the literature and is
an excellent starting point for anyone
who wants to know more about effective
schools. Where appropriate, comments
are made relating to students who come
from diverse ethnic groups, but the
majority of the content applies equally
to all students. References are supplied
for those who want to go further. Topics
covered include: Introduction; Shared
Responsibility; Parental Involvement;
Teacher Expectations; Recognizing
Cultural Differences; Relevant Learning;
Research-Based Instructional Practices;
Personal Responsibility; Safe, Orderly
Learning Environments; Focus on
Academic Learning; Teacher Encouragement; Frequent Monitoring of Progress;
and Bibliography.
Action Research Reports have been edited
to meet space constraints. Complete
reports may be viewed on the website.
Wisconsin Center for Education
Research
http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/
Established in 1964, the Wisconsin
Center for Education Research
(WCER) at the University of Wisconsin, is one of the oldest and largest
university-based education research
and development centers. Helpful
working papers, such as the Diversity
in Mathematics Educations site or the
equally helpful Research Institute on
Secondary Education Reform are
contained here. Visitors can also sign
up to receive WCER Today, the electronic newsletter which provides
information about new research
reports, working papers, and feature
stories.
Improving Achievement in Math and
Science
(Educational Leadership, January 2004)
To improve student achievement in
math and science, educators must
engage students in a deeper understanding of math and science concepts. The following Web sites provide
content for reflection and tools offering thought-provoking approaches to
math and science education that will
be sure to fire up students’ and teachers’ imaginations.
The Beauty of Math
The illuminations Web site of the
National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics (http://
illuminations.nctm.org) is a good place
to begin exploring the beauty of math.
The site offers many interactive math
tools that add a compelling visual and
instructional element to math concepts
and that teachers can use to create
colorful, interactive lessons.
It’s a Nanoworld
When thinking about the future of
science and technology, think small one-billionth-of-a-meter small. That’s
the scale of nanotechnology, and
researchers claim that it may lead to
the creation of computers the size of a
grain of salt or tiny organic devices
that detect and cure diseases. Visit
nanoworld (www.mrsec.wisc.edu/edetc)
to learn about nanotechnology. Lesson
modules and program descriptions
explain the new technology to K-12
students and teachers.
www.leadershipacademy.sd36.bc.ca