EleMental Learning Blog

What's On Your Mind?

finance@elemental-learning.com — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:00:00 GMT

This blog thread is YOUR space to let us know what educational topics are on your mind! Please jump in and share your thoughts with us.

All Day Kindergarten: Follow Up Discussion

finance@elemental-learning.com — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Follow up Discussion regarding All-Day Kindergarten programs

Free 'No Child Left Behind' Tutoring Continues To Face Scrutiny About Its Effectiveness

finance@elemental-learning.com — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 07:00:00 GMT

The article published below is further reinforcement of the EleMental Learning philosophy that the mass marketed curriculums (typically comprised of worksheets and repetition) offered by national tutoring chains cannot possibly be applied universally to a broad cross section of students. This is why EleMental Learning has stayed out of the NCLB tutoring scene. We refuse to mass produce "a program" that will be generically fed to students. We think the students deserve individual attention, a customized program, and recognition that not all students think and operate in the same way. In short, they deserve better than what NCLB and the national 'tutoring chains" that staff the NCLB after school programs can offer.

If you or somebody you know has a child who has participated in a No Child Left Behind after school program, please add a comment below with your thoughts on the effectiveness of the program.

-L.S.

----

Free Tutoring Failing to Help Needy Kids
USA Today, March 26
NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Federally mandated public after-school tutoring isn't always reaching the children it's intended to help, research suggests -- and when it does, it doesn't always help as much as it could. Findings from three cities presented here Tuesday before the American Educational Research Association support previous research on the free tutoring that schools must offer under the No Child Left Behind law if math and reading levels don't rise for three years.
But new data from Los Angeles, Pittsburgh and Milwaukee find that few children take up the offer. In Milwaukee, 90% of students who registered in 2003 attended sessions. By 2006, only 34% did. In Milwaukee, researchers found no rise in scores. One reason, says Patricia Burch of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, could be that, in many sessions, tutors used "uninspired practices," such as handing out worksheets. Researchers in L.A. found similar results, though children tutored for several years did better; in Pittsburgh, tutors got better results grouping students by achievement level rather than grade level.
Charles Barone, who analyzed the findings for the Citizens' Commission on Civil Rights, says some of the programs "are terrible and should be terminated." But, he says, others are working and should be supported. Barone, a former congressional staffer who helped write No Child Left Behind, adds, "It's kind of a high bar for an after-school program, to have to improve academic achievement." He notes that a Clinton-era program was lauded for keeping students safe and occupied after school. "I'd say this is a higher bar than what we've previously had for after-school." http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2008-03-25-tutoring_N.htm

Perspectives From An Educator: All Day Kindergarten

finance@elemental-learning.com — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Perspectives From An Educator: All Day Kindergarten

By Lori Skurka, M. Ed.

In November 2007, the IPSD District 204 board of education outlined its intention to standardize all-day kindergarten instruction across the district beginning with the 2008-2009 school year. According to the board, their enthusiasm is buoyed by a successful pilot program which has been running within the district, as well as research which supports the notion that all-day kindergarten enhances a student’s self-confidence and independence, leading to higher progress in social and learning skills.

The move represents a significant departure from the traditional half day kindergarten routine (which, in actuality, is not even a half day), which was intended to provide youngsters with an introduction to their elementary years and where they could engage in a few hours of age-appropriate social interaction. That being said, a significant percentage of districts both state-wide and nationally have embraced all-day kindergarten. And certainly we’ve all heard about Saturday school and other examples of academic rigor placed upon young students abroad, particularly in the Far East. It is worth noting that this practice is alive and well in Naperville within certain ethnic communities through their civic and religious centers.

Thus arguments are frequently heard regarding the necessity of “starting earlier” and “working harder” so that our students can simply remain competitive in the global landscape. But is asking a five year old to spend 30+ hours a week at school too much to ask of them? We examine both sides of the issue.

On the positive side, the primary overarching intention of all-day kindergarten is to better prepare students to succeed. The definition of success is of course in the eye of the beholder: an enhancement of learning capabilities, an increased score on some future standardized exam, or the ability to more effectively socialize with peers. Whatever the definition, there is certainly a body of academic research which supports the claim that today’s five year olds are mentally able to endure the additional time in the classroom and derive a lasting benefit from it. And there are parents who have put their kids through all-day kindergarten who will heartily vouch for the benefits it provided.

Furthermore, it is certainly true that children from some families where a certain degree of nurturing is not available will actually benefit more, socially and psychologically, from additional time in the classroom where age appropriate stimulus is available. For these students, extra time at home may just result in more television, more video games, or in some cases more neglect.

And, as alluded to earlier, we are a nation which is becoming a net outsourcer of skilled labor. Countless thousands of American jobs have been shipped overseas to harder working and better trained workforces who are able to provide more value for less money. If the United States hopes to maintain its status in the global marketplace, then we must impart academic rigor on our youth as often—and in this case as early—as possible.

But all-day kindergarten has its detractors as well. Academic research published by Rand Education, The Goldwater Institute, and other reputable institutions cites empirical studies which posit that the boost received by an all-day kindergarten student may be short lived, with much of the benefit dissipating within a few years.

So, not surprisingly, there is credible research available to support both sides of the debate. However, in researching this topic we found that detractors cite plenty of practical objections that strike closer to home and resonate even more than academic research.

First, many parents question whether their children (typically boys, whose psychological development takes a more roundabout path) are “ready” for all-day kindergarten. They have seen their children slowly adapt to the pre-school environment, which for most kids translates into just a few hours a day, three days a week. They just don’t foresee their child being able to transition to the additional time commitment of all-day kindergarten. For these parents, a half-day 5 day per week kindergarten seems a more logical way of bridging the gap from preschool to elementary school.

Next, some parents believe that the additional parent child “quality time” available when a child is in half-day kindergarten is of more benefit than all-day kindergarten’s additional academics. These parents prefer to spend the additional time with their children bonding and visiting destinations such as the zoo, the children’s museum, the YMCA, or local parks. For these parents the kindergarten year represents a way of preparing their child, and frankly themselves, for the transition to all day schooling.

And on a local level, there are parents who have expressed that our schools are too crowded to allocate additional classrooms to all-day kindergarten sections. Others have claimed that District 204 has enough on its plate right now resolving the predicament surrounding the third high school to be allocating millions of dollars and other resources to implementing this project.

As my husband and I often say to each other, “the truth is somewhere in the middle.” It is my perspective that all-day kindergarten is absolutely the right choice for some while being inadvisable to force upon others. Some kids will benefit in the long run from the additional academic rigor, while other kids lack the maturity to stay focused for the entire day and will be frustrated by it. The best solution is to have both options available, with the choice ultimately being left to the parent(s).

District 204 has outlined a plan where half-day kindergarten will continue to be available in certain schools pending sufficient interest in maintaining it. It would be my hope that as many parents as possible who choose to stick with half-day kindergarten will be able to enroll their child at their nearest school, not just for convenience but also to enable the child to begin socializing with the peers they will be with during first grade and beyond.

----------------------

Lori J. Skurka, M. Ed., has more than a decade of experience as an elementary classroom teacher. She now operates a private tutoring company and can be reached at (630) 355-5112 or via email at lori@elemental-learning.com

Perspectives From An Educator: Building Literacy Skills In Children

finance@elemental-learning.com — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 08:00:00 GMT

Perspectives From An Educator: Building Literacy Skills in Children

By Lori Skurka, M. Ed.

As an educator I have always recognized the importance and benefit of building a solid literacy foundation for our young children. In my years as a classroom teacher I was responsible for many 4^th,5^th, and 6^th graders who came into my class woefully lacking a proper foundation in literacy skills. In order to set the right path for our kids, I encourage all parents to recognize the primacy of developing reading, speaking, and listening literacy skills in our kids from the earliest ages possible.

Although I no longer teach in the classroom, I have been vigilant in transferring my literacy development techniques to my own children. There is not a day that goes by that my husband and I do not read at least one book—and usually quite a few more than just one—to our children. Their rooms are filled with scores of books, as is the rest of our home. The books are kept in cubbies and on shelves at the kids’ eye level, where they will feel encouraged to grab one as they roam the house looking for mischief.

As a rule, my husband and I read aloud with our kids at nap time and at bed time. Our kids know to expect this as part of their routine, and they almost always look forward to it. Sometimes they choose the books, sometimes we choose the books. As I used to tell the parents of my 5^th grade students, “It really doesn’t matter what book it is, as long as they or you are reading something.”

It is unfortunate that as children age parents often let the bedtime reading ritual fall by the wayside. They often sense that their children are too old, too busy, or too disinterested. Parents should be adamant that their kids make time for reading, no matter their age. To stop reading is to stop learning, so even if the child is swamped with schoolwork there should still be a commitment to reading for pleasure and personal pursuits too. I think the author Jim Trelease said it best in his book The Read Aloud Handbook:

"Reading aloud is a commercial for reading. ...Think of it this way: McDonald's doesn't stop advertising just because the vast majority of Americans know about its restaurants. Each year it spends more money on ads to remind people how good its products taste. Don't cut your reading advertising budget as children grow older."

Some of the methods I have found effective for developing literacy skills in children are:

Turn on a “book on tape” while in the car, whether it is a short or long ride. This helps kids learn new vocabulary, use listening skills, and gain an understanding of an author’s voice while listening to the audio book. The books by Roald Dahl, E.B. White, Judy Blume, Louis Sachar, and Paula Danzinger are good choices. Books and CDs on tape are available by the hundreds at our wonderful Naperville Public Libraries.
Pick up books that have no text, also available in droves at the library. These books allow kids to use the pictures as context clues and orally tell the story themselves. The books by Raymond Briggs, Donald Crews, and Anno Mitsumasa are good selections. (This is not just for young kids. I used to have my 5^th graders write their own text to accompany the illustrations in these books as a language arts project!)
Orally tell stories to your children. Our kids love this! The stories can be personal (“Mom, tell me about your wedding day…”), factual (“Dad, tell me about how cars are made…”), or just downright silly (“Did I ever tell you about the time Snow White and the Seven Dwarves took on Scooby Doo and his friends in a soccer game?”). If you want outside help with this, both the Dupage Children’s Museum as well as the Public Libraries offer live storytellers at various times. Give them a call to find out more! Oral storytelling is not only beneficial for vocabulary development and recognition of language patterns, but it is also an excellent way for your kids to hone their listening skills.
Expose your children to as much non-fiction as possible. It was alarming to see how many 5^th graders coming into my classroom could not read and comprehend factual material in a text because they had rarely been exposed to it prior to school. Reading non-fiction helps kids understand that the process of reading for enjoyment and reading to glean new factual information need not be two separate and distinct concepts. If you encourage your kids to derive enjoyment out of reading non-fiction, then that will serve them well with their schoolbooks later. Good factual magazines that we enjoy with our own preschool age kids are Animal Baby, Your Big Backyard, Humpty Dumpty, and Time for Kids.
Help your children develop vocabulary and the drive to continually use new words and improve their speaking proficiency. Ruth Heller writes a collection of books that are excellent for introducing kids to these concepts. These books are picture books primarily geared towards younger children but are just as applicable to the middle grades too.

In summary, the process of developing reading, speaking, and listening literacy is like a seed that must be continuously watered. We have access to some of the finest schools in the state to help us with this process, but ultimate accountability for our children’s journey resides in the home. Devote as much time as you can to spending constructive literacy time with your kids, and you will both be richly rewarded.

----------------------

Lori J. Skurka, M. Ed., spent more than a decade as an elementary classroom teacher. She now operates a private tutoring company and can be reached at (630) 355-5112 or via email at lori@elemental-learning.com

New District 204 Boundaries

finance@elemental-learning.com — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 06:00:00 GMT

What do you think makes sense? Let's hear your rationale. Please try to keep it civil...no hitting below the belt!

IPSD District 204 announces the new(est) site for Metea Valley high school

finance@elemental-learning.com — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Today IPSD District 204 announced that it has selected a site located near the intersection of Diehl and Book Roads in the far northwest corner of the district to be the new location for Metea Valley high school. The selection comes after the district's/school board's preferred site at 75th and Commons Drive (better known as the Brach-Brodie estate) was abandoned due to ongoing legal battles regarding the land acquisition cost.

Along with the selection of the new site, the District 204 school boundary lines will now need to be re-worked. This is sure to cause controversy, as boundary line discussions always do.

Whether or not the district/board has the legal right to apply the funding secured in the most recent referendum towards a new site which will require changing the boundary lines put forth prior to the referendum is one thing. But whether it is good policy is certainly open for debate.

Let's hear what you think about the ongoing saga of Metea Valley high school. For more color, please visit the Naperville Sun coverage here or go directly to the school district's dedicated webpage regarding Metea Valley here.

Is No Child Left Behind Working?

finance@elemental-learning.com — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 06:00:00 GMT

The U.S. Dept. of Education thinks so!

Click here for their take on it

---

This article on the other hand shows that there are serious problems with implementation of the program. And although it is well documented elsewhere that the tutoring companies providing NCLB services do not provide highly qualified tutors and a personal touch (the way EleMental Learning, which has not pursued participation in the NCLB program at this point, DOES), this article interestingly focuses on the problem of parental apathy towards the program. In other words, parents who can obtain free tutoring for their children if their school qualifies for remediation under NCLB have widely chosen not to opt into the program. Not a very good endorsement.

Here is the article

All Day Kindergarten in IPSD District 204

finance@elemental-learning.com — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 06:00:00 GMT

What do all of you think about this development?