Hi, I am Bernice Jacobs. I am a mother of one and I live at Plaisance Park, Pointe-A-Pierre. I teach at the Eckel Village Anglican Primary School. At present, I am a Second Year teacher.I have been teaching for the last twenty years.
I have always been interested in the Language Arts area more specifically in the area of Reading. It is no surprise that I am now pursuing this course. I have always been concerned about children who struggle at reading. When I come across such students I really try my best to help them to become better readers. It is my belief that no child should leave the Primary School system unable to read. I would really like teachers in the Primary System to stop promoting struggling readers to the next class and to do something meaningful to help these children learn to read.
I am really glad to have been chosen to do this course.I hope to pass on what I am learning to my colleagues so that they too can hep make a difference in the life of a child.
Hi Bernice,
ReplyDeleteIn many primary schools it is quite common that no provisions for effective interventions are made for those pupils who are profiled as struggling readers and who must repeat the standard/class.Quite commonly these 'repeaters' spend an extra year and are then promoted, not because they have progressed in reading and writing competencies, but because of age issues.
Bernice, I would also add that in conjunction to the importance of the roles and responsibilities of teachers, one needs to focus on the same as regard the principal as both administrator and educator. I strongly believe that we are trying to implement brilliant ideas and ideals in what appears to be infertile soil.This is certainly not an attack on any principal but I feel our present predicament and educational climate places the onus on us, while shifting from the 'blame game' to look critically at the roles, responsibilities and capabilities not only of teachers but also that of principals. It is my belief that in spite of higher certification, a significat percentage of primary school principals still do not possess the knowledge nor administrative capability to form, nurture and maintain functional teams, intervention programmes that would bridge learning gaps wherever they exist,whole-school reading policies, implement nor institutionalize such policies.
Lemoy Petit-Hunte
All the best in your studies.
ReplyDeleteBernice,
ReplyDeleteI see that you are genuinely interested in the struggling readers.I am also in a Second Year class.In this class, I have four struggling readers. I do individual reading with them. During this time I model the strategies of sounding out words or segmenting words.I have seen improvement but how much time do we get to do the remediation, when there are interruptions. Then these children struggle because they are absent or follow up work is not done at home.Therefore, I think we have challenges to face as Reading Specialists
Hi Bernice
ReplyDeleteThe issue that you raise is very important because in the end if the needs of these struggling readers are not met in the primary school, they are sent to the secondary school where they end up struggling more. I really would like to see intervention programmmes implemented in schools and classrooms to alleviate this problem.
Hi Bernice,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments on my blog. I am in agreement with you we need to share what we are learning with our colleagues.Imagine if ninety something of us begin to share what a chain reaction we will begin. The only problem is that sometimes our colleagues are not interested since they think it is too much work. Let us not give up though. We have to break the cycle and let it begin with us.