Overview
When your child is struggling at school and has fallen behind at school it can be difficult to know what questions to ask your school/teacher. You may feel overwhelmed or even inadequate, after all they are the experts but you can and should become your child’s advocate for intervention. If they have fallen behind, don’t assume they will catch-up without intervention, do become curious about the teaching methods being used and whether they are effective for your child.
Why We Need Evidenced Based Approaches To Teach Literacy
One of the most important things to understand is what approach or program is being used by the school to teach reading and writing.
Questions To Ask School
So what can you do? You can start asking some questions to better understand the approach being used at your school. Here are some specific questions to help you get started:
1. Teaching Instruction
Is there a specific program in place for literacy, what is it and is it evidenced-based?
Are teachers and support staff trained and qualified to deliver the program and do they follow it with fidelity?
How do teachers differentiate instruction for students at different skill levels?
2. Assessment and monitoring
How do you assess students’ reading and writing skills?
What specific assessments have been done for my child?
How often are students assessed, and how is progress monitored?
3. Support and Interventions
What intervention or support program is available for students struggling with reading and writing?
Is the intervention or support program evidenced based?
Are the teachers and support staff trained in the program being used for intervention/support?
How often will my child receive this additional support, and for how long?
4. Progress Communication
How will the school communicate my child’s progress in reading and writing?
How often will I receive updates, and in what format?
5. Individual Education Plans (IEPs)
If applicable, does my child have an Individual Education Plan (IEP) for literacy support?
How are goals set and reviewed for my child’s IEP?
6. Next Steps and Long-Term Support
If progress is slow, what are the next steps?
What long-term support is available if my child continues to struggle with reading and writing?
Summary
By asking questions, you gain insight into how your school plans to catch your child up. How they plan to monitor progress and how they plan to keep you informed. You may feel overwhelmed or even inadequate early in this process but as you become better informed, I promise, you will be better placed to advocate for your child and will make better decisions about what they need to succeed in reading and writing.
The most important question in my opinion is “does the school use an evidenced based literacy program and are teachers and support staff trained in that program?”
Melbourne Speech Pathologist Alison Clarke set up www.spelfabet.com.au ten years ago to promote evidence-aligned teaching of early reading and spelling skills. She explains in this video how we ended up with a broken system for teaching literacy in our schools and offers some excellent resources for parents at home, including decodable readers.
