No Two Students Are the Same: Changing Lives Through Individualized Learning

NO TWO STUDENTS ARE THE SAME

C H A N G I N G L I V E S T H R O U G H INDIVIDUALIZED LEARNING

Teaching your scholar to become an active reader early has multiple benefits and is the key to their academic future. The first three years of schooling are a critical time to learn the necessary skills to tackle an advanced curriculum, yet many who enter fourth grade struggle with reading. In the U.S., 65 percent of fourth-graders read at or below the basic level, and as the curriculum advances, these children will fall behind.

GARRETT AND SARAH HOHMAN-MORALES OF SAN ANTONIO were faced with a difficult situation when they noticed their son Heath was struggling with reading.

“Heath was in the first grade and was having a difficult time with reading,” Sarah says. “We wanted to know what was going on and felt that he could have been doing better with his reading. We brought our concerns to the school, but we felt like our voice wasn’t being heard. That’s when we decided to find another school for our son.”

The family lived near one of the state’s most poorly-rated school districts and was looking for a school with strong academics and a good track record of success.

“We live in one of the worst school districts in the state, and sending him there was not an option,” says Garrett. “IDEA Monterrey Park was less than a mile from the family home, and once we visited the campus and spoke with the principal, we fell in love with it.”

“We liked that IDEA has high goals for their students and are pushing them to be the best they can be. I liked that about the school,” adds Sarah.

Heath was tested by IDEA at the end of his first-grade year to measure his skill set before entering, and his family received some upsetting news.

“IDEA informed us that Heath was reading at a kindergarten level and suggested retaining him for one year to strengthen his reading skills and prevent him from falling behind,” recalls Sarah. “But at this old school, they told us he was doing fine and could pass to the second grade.”

The family was worried but knew something needed to be done immediately to prevent Heath from falling even further behind.

“It was heartbreaking, to say the least,” says Sarah. “I blamed myself for not pulling him out of that other school sooner, but my son deserves the best, and that school didn’t cut it.”

Above: Hohman-Morales participating in independent reading during class. Middle: Hohman-Morales works with IDEA Monterrey Park co-teacher Gloria Davila on an in-class assignment. Below: Hohman-Morales is now reading on grade level and enjoys graphic novels by authors like Lincoln Peirce and Dav Pilkey. 

As Heath prepared to enter IDEA and repeat his first-grade year, the Hohman-Morales’ met with IDEA Monterrey Park’s principal and knew this was the place that would give their son a fighting chance.

“We learned about IDEA’s individualized approach to student learning and how they planned to tackle his reading deficiencies through direct instruction,” says Garrett.

Direct Instruction (DI) is a model for teaching that emphasizes well-developed and carefully planned lessons designed to teach in small increments with clear and precise teaching techniques.

Through DI, students are grouped with others needing to work on the same skills. Groups are organized by the level of the program that is appropriate for students, rather than grade level.

During the program, instruction is modified to match each scholar’s rate of learning. Skills are introduced gradually, giving children a chance to master and apply them before learning a new set of skills. Skills and concepts are taught in isolation and then integrated with other skills into higher-level learning applications. In addition, a major component of House Bill 3 is a new requirement for elementary school teachers and leaders to attend "Reading Academies" and learn the science of teaching reading. These requirements were based on research that IDEA has implemented for years, which shows that direct instruction and a phonics-based curriculum is the only proven approach to teaching reading.

“IDEA Monterrey Park knew what they were doing. They had a plan and were confident that we would see results,” says Sarah. “It was hard work, but he loved his teacher, and after being enrolled for a while, we began to see a real improvement in his skills, and it made a difference in him.”

“I really liked my teacher Miss Tysor because she was nice and helped me learn how to read,” says Heath.

After completing first grade at Monterrey Park, Heath is now in the second grade and reading at grade level thanks to the hard work and commitment of his teachers and family. His favorite books are from the Dog Man series by Dav Pilkey.

“There was responsiveness from the school every step of the way,” says Garrett. “They let us know how he was doing and where his skills were. Beyond that, they wanted to set us all up for success. They helped explain to us how the homework worked and even helped us set things up for Heath to set up his Accelerated Reader (AR) software from home. We just really appreciated that.” Today, Heath is a good student who enjoys reading in his spare time, and his parents are satisfied with his progress and excited about his future.

“Just a year ago, he was in his second year of first grade reading at a kindergarten level, and today he’s reading for fun, and he’s back on track where he needs to be,” says Garrett. “We feel fortunate that we found a campus that stepped up and did the work when his other school was ready to pass him along.”

“It is about the children and doing what’s best for them,” adds Sarah. “Sometimes, it’s hard. You have to make hard choices, but what wouldn’t we do as parents to guarantee our child’s success?” ♦

DIRECT INSTRUCTION OPERATES ON FIVE KEY PRINCIPLES INCLUDING:

All children can be taught.

All children can improve academically and in terms of self-image.

All teachers can succeed if provided with adequate training and materials

Low performers and disadvantaged learners must be taught at a faster rate than typically occurs if they are to catch up to their higher-performing peers.

All details of instruction must be controlled to minimize the chance of students' misinterpreting information and to maximize and reinforce learning.

Hohman-Morales credits IDEA Monterrey Park ELA teacher Mary Tysor with helping him become a stronger reader. 