A group of 21 second graders from Trenton’s Monument School benefited from a reading program introduced this year.
During one hour after-school sessions, elementary school teacher Erin Thompson led students computer games designed to teach skills required for reading mastery.
Not only did the software tracked students’ progress, it also alerted Thompson when a student needed additional explanation or instruction.
Trenton Chapter of the NAACP, the MIDJersey Chamber, Growth Partnership of Central Jersey and other groups sponsored the after school reading project.
Results of the project exceeded the expectations of the sponsors. Testing done early in the school year showed that students in the project, like a majority of their second grade classmates, were reading at kindergarten level.
Reading assessments completed in May showed that, with two months of daily supplementary instruction, the class average went from five percent “on target” and 95 percent “at risk,” to 43 percent “on target” and 47 percent “at risk.”
Students in second grade are at a critical point in their schooling. By the end of third grade, more and more of classroom learning depends on the ability to read increasingly difficult texts.
Columbia University sociology professor, Hugh Cline, served as adviser and evaluator of the project. He said the the results of the Monument students show hope for their future academic success.
“(The results) show that deficits in reading skills, which cause so many youngsters to fall behind and ultimately drop out of school, can be remedied and at a modest cost to the community,” Cline said in a statement.
