 |
||||||
|
||||||
|
 |
|
|
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
Find out in this Q&A with the author of Speech to Print: Language Essentials for Teachers, Second Edition, and Speech to Print Workbook: Language Exercises for Teachers |
|
About the author
 Photo © Don Monteaux Louisa Cook Moats, Ed.D., is President of Moats Associates Consulting in Hailey, Idaho. She began her career as a neuropsychology technician, teacher of students with learning disabilities, curriculum director at a residential school, and education specialist in a hospital learning clinic. After completing her doctorate, she spent 15 years in private practice as a licensed psychologist, specializing in evaluation and consultation with individuals who experienced learning problems in reading and language. Dr. Moats has served as a Visiting Scholar in the Sacramento County Office of Education, where she helped obtain a $1-million grant to write teacher training materials for California's reading initiative. She served as site director of the NICHD Early Interventions Project in Washington, D.C. . This large-scale project, conducted through the University of Texas, Houston, under the direction of Barbara Foorman, investigated the causes and remedies for reading failure in high-poverty urban schools. Dr. Moats remains focused primarily on improvement of teacher preparation, certification, and professional development. Questions? Customer Service: |
Q: Can every child intuit language structure? What does it take for those children who struggle to become good readers? A: At least two of every ten children struggle with language structure, and depend very much on systematic, explicit, cumulative, and sequential teaching to learn everything from sound-symbol correspondence to how an essay is structured. Nevertheless, average or "regular" kids also benefit from direct teaching of these skills. Q: Why are well-developed reading skills so critical? A: In today's world, it is harder and harder to find productive employment that does not require reading, writing, and technological skills. Q: What is the most dramatic change you've seen since the first edition of your book Speech to Print published in 2000? A: The Report of the National Reading Panel and the funding of Reading First occurred after the first edition was published. When Reading First was funded, and states received support for a six-year capacity building effort, there were significant improvements in student reading skills by the end of 3rd grade where the tenets of the grant were implemented. That was encouraging. Also, there have been many excellent publications in the last decade that summarize and translate a huge body of research for practitioners. More people understand the relationship between language and literacy. Q: What have most teachers in the classroom today been taught about teaching struggling readers? A substantial group of studies focused on teachers and teaching shows us very clearly that most of us, when we were licensed to teach, had no opportunity to learn the kind of information that I put into this book [Speech to Print, Second Edition]. Certainly, I did not; I had to learn it piecemeal over a long period. Teachers who are asked to implement instruction without a good understanding of reading development, reading or language difficulties, language structure, and research-supported practices are often overwhelmed and disillusioned. They often feel as if they have to do a job for which they are not well-prepared. So, in turn, many students struggle unnecessarily or remain unaware of how their language works. Expertise in instruction could help all students improve—even the more capable ones, who may be able to read but whose vocabulary and writing skills could be a lot better. Q: Are you seeing a change in teacher training to better reflect the sort of instruction that reading research shows struggling readers need to succeed? A: It is difficult to know what is occurring everywhere, but my impression is that teacher preparation is the slowest to change. The International Dyslexia Association has adopted standards for teacher training and practice; these are being used to endorse certifying, accrediting, and licensing programs that have rigorous content instruction and supervised practice requirements. The National Council for Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has done periodic reviews of teacher preparation programs in relation to very basic content standards. Some states, such as Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Colorado, are trying hard to set standards for licensing and certification programs within the states. It's an uphill climb, but I think the efforts to change the status quo are having some effect. Q: Reading scientists now estimate that 95% of first-grade students can be taught to read with skillful teaching of critical language skills through direct, systematic, sequenced lessons. For a classroom teacher who never learned how to teach those skills, what can you recommend? A: Study of the content [found in Speech to Print]; practice with the [Speech to Print] workbook exercises; faithful implementation of a well-designed program of instruction; viewing of model instruction on video; collaboration with master teachers such as those you find through the International Dyslexia Association. Q: What about children in middle and upper grades who have poor reading skills ... can they be brought up to grade level? A: It's much harder, but these kids can improve their skills significantly with sustained work, up to 2 hours daily, for one to two years. Their programs should address all components of reading, however, or they will tread water. Q: Many classroom teachers believe in the value of differentiation—adapting instruction to the various abilities of students in the class, but feel overwhelmed in practice. Is there a process a teacher can follow to become more fluent/fluid in delivering differentiated instruction? A: This is a complex question for which there is no formula. If you want to teach kids with real problems, you need clinical expertise that comes from a meaningful certification program requiring supervised practice from a qualified instructor. I have learned that short-cuts to expertise lead nowhere. Q: How did your own interest in reading instruction develop? A: I worked in a neuropsychology clinic where the kids came for help. I didn't have a clue what to do after they were tested. It's taken me a long time to learn what I put in this book. But it's a fascinating problem: why is reading so hard for so many when it is so easy for some? Q: In your book, you mention that funding mechanisms and policies are starting to catch up with what research tells us works ... what development would you most like to see over the next 10 years to ensure that more students become successful readers? A: Alternative teacher education programs with rigorous standards aligned with those proposed by the International Dyslexia Association. I'll be happy when there is an expert in every school—no, every classroom! |
|
|
|
|
|
