The need for literacy programs in high school is obvious. The 2008 national testing exams indicated that 38% of graduating seniors were reading below the standard basic level. An international comparison of reading comprehension and performance showed that in the United States, students in grades 11 and 12 scored close to the bottom, trailing students in Brazil, Indonesia and other developing countries.
Many teachers were not surprised at these findings. They said it confirmed that even students who read well enough in the lower primary grades may encounter some trouble with reading later. In both middle schools and high schools, teachers usually consider themselves to be “content specialists” and believe that elementary school teachers are the ones who should be helping children to improve reading skills. One method of turning that around is to secure ongoing development by working with a literacy specialist who will coach the teachers on the best way of infusing literacy instruction while teaching.
There have been some steps taken to improve our educational system, including the NCLB, (No Child Left Behind Act) that was signed into law in 2002. This generally requires states to develop assessments to determine the level of literacy, which will be given to all students in certain grades if the school wishes to receive federal funding. In addition, there are several states that require high school students to pass an “exit exam” in order to graduate.
If you need further proof that a standardized literacy program is needed for students, then consider the fallout from poor writing and reading abilities in post secondary circles as well, as 73% of employers have rated the reading and writing abilities of recent graduates as “fair” or “poor.” Over a third of the undergraduates needed remedial writing and reading courses during the first year or two in college.
In the high school literacy programs the teachers are asked to make the reading portion of a student’s curriculum more interactive, or “visible.” This program encourages students to gain more insights into the reading process, to read for recreation and to help with their problem solving abilities. School personnel have studied assessments and current research that is available on the reading process and realized that asking students to “read to learn” is difficult to do without supplying the proper tools for them to achieve this successfully. Many of the pilot literacy programs are set up to include a secondary literacy specialist who will split their time between classroom teaching and mentoring other teachers. The student’s progress is continuously monitored to ensure the program is working properly.
Beth Kaminski is the co-author of Curing Your Anxiety And Panic Attacks which detailed treating panic disorder as well as tips on the various medications for panic disorder available at anxietydisordercure.com.