Every school must have a remedial reading program to ensure students’ mastery of the different reading skills.

            Remedial reading is an integral part of any school-wide reading program.  Generally language teachers are capable of helping students who are corrective readers even wihout extensive training.  However, a school must determine the different characteristics of an ideal reading program.  According to Cutiongco, the following are the characteristics of a remedial reading program: 1) In the remedial reading program as a rule, there is no immediate conscious endeavor to get the child up to ‘grade level’ or somearbitrary standard.  He will read materials which he can read with some degree of success regardless of his grade placement. 2)  The teaching-learning atmosphere will be more permissive than in a regular reading classroom.  The child will never be labeled a failure, as he will be accepted as a person.  Even though the objective is to read, pressure on the child to read will be lessened.  As a result, he will be less threatened by the reading situation. 3)  In the remedial reading program, more attention might be focused on the reasons for failure, thus revealing some other factors which may have to be dealt with concurrently with the actual reading program. 4) There will be conference with parents if it appears that the child is under pressure and tension at home. 5) A great variety of materials will be available and students will be permitted to choose what they want to read.  They will encouraged to read books they can read, not necessarily books at their grade level ; 6) The teacher will know a great deal about the child and she will know exactly his reading achievement as well as his instructional needs; 7) There will be time for individual instruction as needed and each child in the group will require such instructions; 8) In the remedial program, there may be more emphasis on “motivators” in the regular program, only very few students need this kind of instruction in order to learn;  9)In the remedial reading, the psychological needs of the child are more important.  He is encouraged to set goals he can achieved and is praised for any acxcomplishment; 10) In remedial reading, children never feel as if they are in a reading competition with others.  They may compete with their own previous performance, but they do not have to measure up to some arbitrary standard.

            So reading and language teachers, always be prepared in identifying students who need remediation.

References:

Cutiongco, E. C. Remedial Reading in Today’s School. A Paper Read in the RAP Convention,                  (2005)

Dechant, E. (ED), i971. Detection and Correction of reading difficulties. NY: Appleton-Century               Crofts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By: Lilian L. dela Rosa | Teacher III | Samal National High School | Samal, Bataan