Issue 3
May 2011
 Parent Progress Log Comments and Data
 Side by Side Test Data
 Computer Literacy and Community Outreach
Family Literacy Center Stakeholders Report 2010-2011
Alpine School District English Language Learner
Literacy Center Families Commended for
Commitment to Education
The highlight of the 2011
completion ceremony was
the recognition given to 13
patrons and their families
who have consistently participated in the Family Literacy Center program for
three years. Raymundo M.,
one of those dedicated students, stated that he continues to study at the FLC
because he thinks it is an
excellent resource to help
him and his children learn
English at the same time.
67 patrons and 26 children celebrated their progress in an evening
of recognition and entertainment.
Data Summary
Patron Comments
Students were interviewed
regularly about their efforts
to help their children be
successful in school and
their own progress in the
program. See next section
for detailed comments.
Patron Progress Logs
The patrons completed
weekly logs regarding their
participation in their children’s education. The report will focus on the frequency of a variety of activities and gains in participation as compared to the
2009-2010 data.
Side by Side Language
Testing
Patrons took oral and written English exams when
they were placed in their
classes and when they completed the program in April.
The results of these exams
will be discussed.
Computer Literacy
A bilingual computer specialist developed and taught
a weekly computer skills
class in English and Spanish. Key aspects of this
course will be shared.
Community Outreach
The Community Garden
Project group connected
with the Family Literacy
Center to combine efforts
in creating a neighborhood
garden.
Family Literacy
Curriculum
In addition to the lending
library that was introduced
last year to provide patrons
with literacy materials,
teachers also taught a curriculum that promoted parental participation in the
schools. Teacher feedback
and recommendations for
these materials are summarized in the report.
Page 2
FAMILY LITERACY CENTER STAKEHOLDERS REPORT 2010 -2011
Patron Interview Comments
Learner Progress
said he [has] fun [in Latinos
in Action].
Shula, a third year student,
said, “Each year is better because I feel less nervous to
express myself and I speak
more [fluently] in English.”
“Thank you
for helping me
understand my
kids more”
-Eligio
Alvaro is helping his daughter
learn numbers and letters in
English and likes to read with
his children every day.
Gloria commented that her
classes help her communicate
better with her co-workers
and her family has noticed
that her English is improving.
The childcare workers observed significant English
language gains for five children who consistently attended the childcare center.
These children spoke only
Spanish at the beginning of
the year and now feel confident speaking with their
teachers in English.
Parent Involvement
After writing a letter to Latinos in Action, Maria commented, “today I find out
that my son is part of this
group in his school and he
Lidia talks with her daughters
about homework daily and
checks their progress on Skyward. She feels a responsibility to help her daughters do
their best in school.
Tania appreciates the FLC
because she used to have a
translator to talk to teachers,
but now she can talk about
her children’s needs with
their teachers.
Patron Progress Log Data
Participation Log
Frequency
1,400
1,200
r old
asks questions about words and the book and her 7 year
1,000
800
helps
to answer the questions. year old asks questions about
600
400 and the book and her 7 year old helps to
words
200
0
old
answer the
questions.
Julia T.
1
2
3
4
5
6
Activity
2010
7
8
9
10
11
2011
Figure 1 Comparisons of 2010/2011 parental participation in school activities
Activity
1. Homework
2. Read
3. Volunteer
4. School Activity
5. PTA
6. Parent-Teacher Conference
7. Talk to Teacher
8. Read Newsletter
9. Check Grades
10. Visit Library
11. Other
% Increase
59%
25%
99%
121%
113%
171%
303%
147%
175%
45%
-36%
Total Increase
449
199
128
159
125
197
360
494
505
144
-254
Table 1 Increases in parental participation in school activities from 2010 to 2011
Figure 1 is a comparison of the total number of instances
patrons reported participating in 11 educational activities.
in 2010 and 2011. It should be noted that the 2010 data
collection methods were adapted from patrons tracking
up to four weekly participation goals for each child to
patrons recording weekly participation in all 11 activities
for individual children. Additionally, teachers submitted
patron logs monthly instead of at the end of each semester, which also increased the amount of reported data as
compared to the previous year.
Figure 1 shows that the most frequent activities are (1)
helping children with homework and (2) reading with
children in both 2010 and 2011. Table 1 illustrates the
number and percentages of significant increases in reported activities in a color-coded table. Activity (7) talking
with teachers increased by 303%. Activities (9) checking
child’s grades and (8) reading school newsletters also went
up by 175% and 147% respectively. These percentages
appear to represent real increases in parental participation
in education, especially (7) which is substantiated by numerous comments from patron interviews and teacher
reports regarding patron’s increased confidence in communicating with children’s teachers as a result of FLC
English classes. Activity (11) decreased by 36%. This
activity was altered from 2010 logs to allow parents to
write other activities they did with children. An explanation for this decrease may be that students with lower
literacy skills avoided writing additional information on
the log.
ISSUE 3
Page 3
Side by Side Pre and Post-Test Data
Proficiency Test Results
100
80
60
Pre - Total
40
Post-Total
20
0
Figure 3.1 Literacy
2 3 materials
4 5 6user7responses
8 9 10 11
Figure 2. 11 patrons’ test results of Side-by-Side oral and written exams
Level
Foundations
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
Sample Size
Test Taker
Average
Increase
3
3
3
1
1
1-3
4-6
7-9
10
11
11
24
11
5
10
An oral and written English pre-test was given to place
students in the appropriate proficiency level when they
started the program. While the same test was administered at the end of the second semester to 46 participants, this report only shows the pre and post-test data
available for the 11 patrons who completed the oral
and written pre- and post-tests.
Figure 2 demonstrates that all 11 patrons had language
gains as measured by the test and that the most significant increase occurred for three Level 1 patrons who
improved their post-test scores by an average of 24
points. This average was increased dramatically by test
taker 4 whose score changed by 33 points, putting the
patron in the range of Level 4 students.
Table 2 shows the sample size and average increase for
test-takers by FLC class levels. The average increase
between the pre and post- test for all patrons was 14.73
points. A larger sample size of pre-post scores could
provide more data to support the patterns of language
gains observed for each level.
Table 2. Patrons’ test results analysis
Computer Literacy and Community Garden Project
Computer Literacy
The FLC computer literacy course
was highly successful this year with
a weekly average of 18 participants.
The instructor developed a practical
curriculum in Spanish that focused
on developing computer skills to
help patrons find work, help children with homework, practice Internet safety, use the keyboard and
email, and search for community
information. Brant Lloyd, FLC
Computer Lab Instructor, observed
improvement in “students’ abilities
to follow instructions, use time
wisely, and help other classmates
that are struggling.”
The childcare center continued to
provide opportunities for patrons’
children to attend the computer lab
several times a week to develop
computer literacy skills using a reading software called Lexia. A new
software program will be available
for the childcare center participants
in 2011-2012.
English class teachers and patrons
also utilized the computer lab regularly for language development activities. Additionally, many parents
who were unfamiliar with the District’s Skyward system received
training on how to log-in and access
their children’s information.
Community Garden
FLC patrons joined with the Community Garden Project group at
Lakeridge Junior High to establish a
community garden. Six FLC families
have helped prepare, plant, and care
for the garden. This collaborative
effort is another important contribution that the FLC families are
making in the Orem community.
FAMILY LITERACY CENTER STAKEHOLDERS REPORT 2010 -2011
Literacy Curriculum
Lending Library
This literacy resource was introduced
to patrons at the beginning of the year
and they were encouraged to check
out books to read with their children
at home. According to teacher feedback, a few patrons read books with
their children and some read them
alone. The Foundations instructor
created scaffolding for basic learners
to promote reading texts by reading
them in class. Recommendations for
providing literacy materials will be
considered.
Family Literacy
Curriculum
Instructors integrated eight leveled
family literacy lessons to help parents
be more successful in interfacing
with teachers, schools, and administrators. FLC instructors indicated that
lessons 1-3 were most applicable for
parents, especially taskd that focused
on talking to a child’s teacher. Some
lessons had vocabulary that was too
challenging for the Foundations class
and had to be adapted for levels 1-3.
Level 4 enjoyed discussing advanced
topics such as school boards and legislation. See teacher suggestions regarding literacy curriculum.
2011-2012 FLC Program Recommendations
Based on observations, interviews, and data analysis the
following recommendations may be considered:


Continue to promote student retention by offering
book prizes for consistent attendance. Prizes may
be donated by Canyon View Jr. High Latinos in
Action or the BYU Bookstore
Review other possibilities to increase retention:
adopting new English curriculum, providing
CASAs assessments, or offering a business English
class for advanced level or altering the semester
schedule

Consider collecting additional data based on EGS
evaluation report

Administer both written and oral placement tests to
students for additional data collection. Use 2011
post-test data for returning students pre-test data

Continue to collect parent progress logs monthly
to ensure data collection. Data should be analyzed
regularly to highlight patron progress in a newsletter to reinforce program objectives

Encourage advanced computer students and English classes to collaborate to create FLC newsletter
as authentic language project

Utilize District’s computer literacy curriculum to
establish objectives and skills patrons need to develop

Continue to provide Skyward training for patrons
during first and second semester

Consolidate lending library to create complete sets
and use as in-class reading materials for lower levels

Consider providing subscription reading materials
to enhance lending library for more advanced levels

Focus on content and skills for family literacy lessons 1-3. Teach during semesters 1 and 2

Establish standard discipline and expectations for
all childcare classes to ensure consistency for participants and staff