On The Road With Dislecksia: The Movie: Radcliffe Creek School - YouTube

Harvey and crew visits Radcliffe Creek School in Chestertown, MD to see firsthand the unique teaching methods they use for students with learning differences!

Dyslexia: Grade Retention is Holding Back Pupils

If your child struggles in school, it is likely that at some point a teacher or school official will recommend that he be retained and repeat a grade.

Grade retention is almost Never a good idea for a child with dyslexia, as the possible negative consequences far outweigh the benefits.

Dyslexia is not something that can be outgrown or cured by waiting for a child to mature; repeating the same curriculum a second time around will not help your child improve his basic skills.

What the Research Shows
Retention is far more likely to hurt your child than help him; this is especially true in the early elementary years.

Dozens of research studies conducted over 25 years show that students who are retained because they are performing poorly usually fall even further behind over time.

Children who are promoted despite concerns about their academic skills may still have difficulties, but their performance is usually somewhat better than their counterparts who have been retained.

FACT:
Studies show that grade retention increases the likelihood, by as much as 40 percent, that your child will not complete high school; if your child is retained more than once, there is an almost 100 percent likelihood that he will later drop out.

Studies of middle and high school students also demonstrate a high social cost of retention; students who are old for their grade level reported higher levels of emotional distress, substance abuse, involvement with violence, and suicidal thoughts.

No matter how well-intentioned, holding a child back a year can send the message that he is a failure and that the teachers do not believe him capable of keeping up with his peers.

Read the full article here

UK Investment to Reverse falling literacy and maths rates

Secondary state schools in England will today (Thursday) receive £500 per pupil to help every year 7 pupil who did not reach the expected level in literacy and maths when they finished primary school.

The ‘catch-up premium’ will provide intensive tuition for almost 110,000 pupils who have failed to reach the expected level of literacy and maths skills by the time they move to secondary school.

Figures from the Department for Education show that only five per cent of pupils who did not manage to get Level 4 in both English and maths at Key Stage 2 went on to achieve five GCSEs at A* to C, including English and maths.

In order to help these children catch up and strive for better GCSEs, they will receive additional help through either individual tuition or intensive support in small groups.

The extra support is designed to help bring pupils up to speed so they are more likely to succeed at secondary school, rather than falling further behind. By catching up with their classmates, pupils’ motivation will also be boosted, in turn preventing disruptive behaviour that impedes learning for others.

The catch-up premium funding for this academic year (2012/13) will be £54.5 million, and schools will hear today how much they are set to receive.

UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg (not known for keeping his promises where Education is involved) said:

The consequences for a pupil being left behind in the basics when they start secondary school can last for the rest of their education.

The catch-up premium money being handed out to schools today will help pupils catch up with their peers as quickly as possible. Every child should have the chance to succeed and get off on the right foot when they start their new school.

UK Schools Minister David Laws (also unreliable on the education front and not known to be able to keep promises) said:

It is vital that every child has a strong grasp of maths and a good reading ability when starting their secondary education. No pupil should be left behind.

Our Year 7 catch-up premium for literacy and maths - £500 for every pupil needing extra help - will ensure that support is best targeted to those who most need it.

Despite a tough economic climate, this Coalition Government is making sure all children get the help they need to succeed.

The catch-up premium will support every Year 7 pupil who has not achieved at least Level 4 – the expected level – at Key Stage 2 in either or both literacy or maths.

In 2012, 13 per cent of pupils in all schools failed to gain a Level 4 in reading and 16 per cent failed to achieve this in maths (109,000 in total).

Schools will have freedom to decide how best to use the catch-up premium, but examples could include:

• Small-group tuition supported by new classroom materials and resources, which could take place at lunchtimes or after school. 
• Holiday support to deliver intensive catch-up over a short period. 
• Additional services and materials to add to those provided by the school, such as tutor services or proven computer-based learning or online support.

Notes to be aware of

Payments to local authorities will be made today (Thursday 31 January). Payments to academies and Free Schools will be made on 1 February.

Funding for the catch-up premium is a maximum of £500 per pupil. Almost half of the pupils who are matched with funding are also eligible for the Pupil Premium, which is focused on disadvantaged pupils.

Schools are free to determine how best to use the funding, but Ofsted inspectors will consider how schools are using the premium when inspecting schools. They will also monitor how effectively schools report to parents on whether or not students are meeting national expectations.

UK children's speech therapy cuts - Warning!

In an exclusive interview with The Independent , Ms Gross said parents needed more information about children’s speech development arguing that many families were still unaware how to help their youngsters.

She called for parents to be offered information via smart phones and social networking sites, saying parents were willing to make dramatic changes to their lifestyles once the dangers of their children’s excessive television viewing or dummy use were explained to them.

In her final report, Two Years On, Ms Gross warns that the improvements made in children’s speech during 2011, the national year of communication, risk being overturned because of the “significant cuts” to front-line services.

The cuts come as levels of communication problems identified in children continue to rise, with a 58 per cent growth in numbers of pupils with communication as their primary special need over the last five years.

Ms Gross told The Independent her visits to 105 out of 152 local authorities during her two years in the job had made her “very worried” about the effect of the cuts on children with communication problems.

Ms Gross said she feared that children would face significantly longer waits to see speech and language therapists for assessment. She said: “If you are three and have to wait around 18 months to be seen then it is going to be much harder to catch up. If children can have help and catch up by the time they are five and a half then there progress should be normal from then on. But research shows that a child whose problem persists after five and a half will struggle.”

Ms Gross was appointed the Government’s communication champion in January 2010 in order to boost awareness of the importance of developing children’s communication skills.