"Literacy is not just about reading and writing..."

"...it is about respect, development and responsibility." So said the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in his annual message for Literacy Day 2009.In his sobering speech, he mentioned that the worldwide scale of illiteracy is staggering with approximately 776 million illiterate adults. Literacy, he said, empowers people. Ban Ki-Moon endorsed a statement by Dr. Lalage Brown, a lecturer, who said that "even the simplest acquisition of literacy can have a profoundly empowering effect personally, socially and politically."

I refer to illiteracy as the invisible handicap which does disable its victims. But we can't tell who they are by casual observation. When I think of the empowering effect of illiteracy, I am really inspired to do my utmost for those thirty-one students who will be sitting in front of me come September morning. I know that the task will be overwhelming but not impossible. Doesn't the Bible say that all things are possible with Christ? When I committed myself to working with remedial reading students, I was wide-eyed when I made my decision. I know that the challenges will be many, including interacting with parents in denial and impatient subject teachers who may be unwilling to go the extra mile for the students who really ought not to be in the Secondary school system (but that is another story). All that I know is that if I want my students to be equipped to face their future then my efforts must be relentless. Let us collaborate, especially using the new technologies to assist each other for support. Together, with God's help and our zeal and knowledge, we can aspire much and achieve much.

Give Them Some Good Ole Lovin'

In her article, Sandra Brooks focuses on what makes a teacher effective. No, it is not the incorporation of technology or well-planned lesson plans, although these are indeed important. It is good ole lovin'. In the article, Teaching Ideas that Work!, Brooks says that the teacher's genuine personal interest in the student and his/her family is a vital element if we want our students to attend in class and be on-task. She says that we must be in tune with the lives of our adolescent students, being compassionate and even sharing, as much as practical, our own personal lives in an attempt to break down barriers. We also need to foster healthy relationships with their parents balancing praise and criticism of their children.

Indeed, it is important for us to remember that in implementing all of the latest teaching strategies, if we fail to be compassionate and patient with our charges, we will not be effective as teachers. We teach students not lessons. These students, in particular, are fragile and must be handled with care.It would be instructive for us to note at least three possible reasons for poor student class participation. They are the lack of parental support, little concern for the student and shoddy lesson preparation. Can you identify any more? So let's pray with and for them, engage in casual conversaions with them. Who know? You may get material for instructional planning.

Brooks, S. Teaching Ideas that Work! The Journal of Adventist Education, February/March, 1993. Vol.55 no. 3 9pp.19-22

Boy oh boy! What's happening with our boys?

Which is it? Is it the ability factor or the interest factor that is responsible for the gender gap in the reading performace? This is a concern raised in an article, entitled "Putting the 'Boy Crisis' in Context" which focuses on the worrisome disparity in reading differences between boys and girls. The article drew attention to the fact that this problem is an international one as indicated by the (2009) PIRLS report which revealed that, in the forty countries where studies were conducted with nine to ten-year olds, the girls outperformed the boys. This alarming situation, which has been with us since the early 1900s, is apparently also based on race and ethnicity.



If the problem is based on ability, says one contributor, it is a matter of administering the appropriate intervention. If, however, the problem is based on interest, then the onus is on the teacher to ensure that the teaching style is appealing to this group. Having learned on Friday that, of the thirty-one remedial students assigned to my school, twenty-two are boys, I have been thinking how I can create a 'boy friendly' learning environment. I need to source reading material that is action-oriented. These students would benefit from more field trips which will be incorporated in the reading lessons. Hoping that the students will indeed be recipients of laptops, I would invest in reading software for them. I know that a great part of my vacation will be spent on creating learning resources for these students so that, come September morning, I would be ready to inspire my charges.


Sadowski, M. (2010, July/August) Putting the "Boy Crisis" in Context. Harvard Education Letter, Vol.26, No.4

Remedial students or remedial parents?

Imagine that! Two hundred and forty remedial students are assigned to one Secondary School. At my school, there has been a 150% increase in the number of remedial students assigned. It is a very alarming situation. From what I have been hearing from other colleagues, there numbers have also been quite staggering. No doubt, there is urgent need for a multi-pronged attack to address this issue. Let's focus on the parental element for now. I am not convinced that many parents are shouldering their responsibility at home with respect to providing the stimulating learning environment. Of course, there are many parents who have not abdicated their responsibility and we definitely highly commend them. I am sure that they reap the rewards of their labour. The number, however, of parents who fail to consistently provide the support is too high.

What can be done at a national level to instil in delinquent parents a commitment to nurturing a home environment conducive to learning/ reading? Does the National PTA body have a programme for this? I will investigate. As individual reading specialists who know the value of family literacy and who would have read the research which supports it, we can do our part in our schools by keeping in contact with our parents and using segments of our PTA meetings to educate our parents. I applaud the efforts of Barbara Bush, whom some refer to as the First Lady of Literacy who established a Foundation for Literacy. Many NGOs are given grants to establish centres where families can visit and be immersed in a learning environment. What else can we do in our country to encourage our parents to partner with us for the benefit of their children, our future leaders?

You can visit barbarabushfoundation.com for more on her incredible work.

My entry into the world of teaching

In this intial blog, I share with you how I became ready to inspire struggling readers and then I will share with you...well, one thing at a time. Here's my story. Just seven years old, Nelly was struggling to read her textbooks. Never having encountered such a situation I was, admittedly, taken aback. Without an iota of teaching experience, it was my task to give this girl evening classes. Her inability to read fluently caused me to seek assistance. I approached Dr. Esla Lynch, the principal of Eshe's Learning Centre, a school for learning disabled students. Unexpectedly, I landed a teaching job at the school within days and it was that move which put me in a position to ably assist Nelly.

As a new teacher, I was impressed with the physical environment and the teaching strategies employed at Eshe's. Colourful charts and learning resources abounded. Block timetabling was the order of the day. Although I had a Standard One class with only nine students, I had them divided into three groups for differentiated instruction.(Of course, I was unaware of that term at the time.) From then, the teaching bug had bitten me. You could imagine my culture shock when, after graduating from college with my first degree in Education, I began teaching in a typical classroom, in another school, with more than twenty students. Since then, my interest in the teaching of Reading, especially, deepened. Needless to say, I am thrilled to be benefitting from this Masters programme so that I can, as a more qualified teacher, be ready to inspire my charges. I do hope that you would visit me on my blog as I share vignettes and reflections on articles and my teaching practice, etc. See you soon.

Read-y-2-Inspire

Hi, I am Heather. In this initial blog, I share with you how I became ready to inspire struggling readers and then I will share with you... well, one thing at a time. Here's my story. Just seven years old, Nelly was struggling to read her textbooks. Never having encountered such a situation, I was, admittedly, taken aback. Without an iota of teaching experience, it was my task to give this girl evening classes. Her inability to read fluently caused me to seek assistance. I approached Dr. Esla Lynch, the principal of Eshe's Learning Centre in Woodbrook, a school for learning disables students. Through a twist of unexpected events, I landed a teaching job at that very school.

As a new teacher, I was impressed with the physical environment and the teaching strategies employed. Colourful charts and teaching resources abounded. Block timetabling was the order of the day. Although I had a Standard One class with only nine students, I had them divided into three groups for differentiated instruction. (Of course, I did not know that term existed.)From then, the teaching bug had bitten me. You could well imaging the culture shock when, after graduating with my BSc in Education, I began teaching in a typical classroom in another school with more than twenty students. Since then, my interest, especially in the teaching of Reading, deepened as I worked with struggling readers at all levels in the Primary School. I am thrilled to be benefitting from this Masters programme so that I can, to a greater extent, be ready to inspire my charges. Please join me on my blog as I share with you vignettes and reflections on my teaching practice and articles in the field of literacy. Thanks for your visit. See you soon.