We Need to Find Proven, Cost-Effective New Ways to Teach Children to Read Quickly
What would you pay to teach a kindergartener to read multisyllabic words in a few short months? Most agree that education is key to a child's future success, no matter the child’s background. There are many studies that have shown the importance of the
ability to read and comprehend at an early age, and charitable organizations are putting considerable resources towards helping students achieve basic literacy by grade 3. United Way of Northern Nevada, for example, has decided to devote
100% of its funding to support grade-level reading by 2020.
But which projects should be funded? Effectively teaching reading to young children, particularly those for whom English is not their first language, is decidedly labor-intensive. We need to identify, encourage and document cost-effective
new ways of effectively teaching young students to read as the first step towards literacy. We then need to publish these results in the academic literature so that other teachers may become aware of those methods that work, and integrate
them into their classrooms.
The Project
We have identified a novel and low-cost approach to teaching young children, particularly those in kindergarten and first grade, how to learn to read multisyllabic words quickly. The Pinnacle Reading Advantage (PRA) program
was developed by a Nevada elementary school teacher, who has been informally testing its efficacy, and who has observed considerable success in his students as documented through standardized test results. We believe that this program is
an elegant solution to a pressing problem, and that the way to let other teachers know about its success is not through a marketing campaign, but by using solid scientific research in the classroom to generate verifiable and publishable results.
Using StartSomeGood crowdfunding, our non-profit, evidence-based learning center will introduce this program to four Reno-area kindergarten classes of about 20 students each this fall. Students will range from English Language Learners
to the gifted and talented to demonstrate success across several levels of ability. We will use a pre-test/post-test format to evaluate improvements in students’ reading abilities after participating in the PRA program, which
will be taught by their regular classroom teachers from now until January 2015. We will also be videotaping each student, and making these clips available online so that donors can watch students progress in their word attack skills.
In addition to the considerable advances in reading ability that these children will experience, the final product of this project will be a peer-reviewed, published paper that will let teachers know of this effective means of teaching reading,
and the impact it can have on their classrooms. We hope to provide evidence of this program’s success to United Way and other sources of funding so that the program can be implemented on a much larger scale and help many more students.
What You Can Do
* Fund this project to the best of your ability
* Keep track of the results online as we videotape our students' progress over the coming months.
* Let others know you have donated and ask them to participate as well.
* Take pride in knowing you have contributed greatly to the literacy of several dozen kindergartners, and to an academic paper to publish the results.
* Come visit the students in their classrooms so they can thank you personally at our class parties in January.
* Find other deserving kindergarten teachers and classes who would welcome a jump start in reading.
* Start Some Good for these motivated kids!
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