*Reading activity sessions for
children aged 12 months
- parental attendance
compulsory. We're teaching
YOU how to help them at home! *

*Child Assessments - Why is
your child struggling? Might your
pre-school child (especially
if a boy) have difficulties at
school so why wait to find out?*

*Individual Sessions with
The Child Listener- Literacy &
also Behaviour Management*

*Dyslexia? Learning Difficulties?
Or teaching that doesn't
meet the needs of the child?*

*Workshops & Training for
Parents & Teachers- Literacy &
Behaviour Management*

*The Parents Aboard
Program for Schools-
Addressing
Recommendation 4 -
AU Inquiry into the Teaching
of Literacy *

*What methods/ teaching
strategies are used at the Early Reading Centre, and why?
Research and findings
relating to reading
success and failure.*

*How individual differences
impact learning *

*Memory- and how it
relates to reading

*Problem solving- and
how it relates to reading*

*Why are Boys Failing
Within the Current
Education System
- and why does The Child
Listener want to welcome as
many boys as possible, to
The Early Reading Centre?*

Reading Directory
- Including *'Read Australia'- methods of teaching reading
and spelling using phonics,
within Australia. A free
resource for parents and
teachers.

*Research and useful
articles relating to the
teaching of reading*

* Why the current
education system
within Australia isnt
working for all.
Discussion forum*

Selected Book for Parents
(click on the book to order)

 
Rec Price $64.99 
You pay just AU $57.95 !

Speech Sounds:
Watch & Learn
By: Reading Rockets
(2004)

The following are four
short video clips that offer
you the chance to watch and
learn effective speech sound
activities. The video clips are from Reading Rockets' PBS
television series
Launching Young Readers.
View now

Improving literacy
results in Queensland
Read article

Professor Kevin
Wheldall has published a
new article, "How Children
Learn To Read", in the
Journal of Primary
Leadership . Click here to download the pdf, from the MULTILT web site.

" Early intervention
with intense, explicit
instruction is critical
for helping students
avoid the lifelong
consequences of poor
reading. Prevention is
better than cure.
Engaging parents
early in the process of
identifying what strategies
are best for
their child will ensure
greater levels of success
and co-operation between
home and school."
'The Child Listener
2009 '

Excellent Web SIte
- Promoting Synthetic Phonics
The Reading
Reform Foundation
http://rrf.org.uk/

The AU National Inquiry
into the Teaching of Literacy
published findings in 2005 http://www.dest.gov.au
/nitl/report.htm

It states that ..
.'systematic instruction in
phonics during the early
years of schooling
is an essential foundation
for teaching
children to read.'....

Read overview of
Teaching Reading report
findings and
recommendations

The AU National
Inquiry lists
20 key recommendations
Click Here

Read Australia™
- Head Office 'The Early
Reading Centre™' offer
practical strategies and
teaching resources-
offering teachers
the 'how' with regards
to the AU National Inquiry
into the Teaching of Literacy (Teaching Reading) recommendations
and findings. 

Useful Essay
Observation on
Reading Recovery
Read Essay  

At 'Read Australia™' we do
not believe there is any
need for reading
recovery type programmes,
or special needs help
within this area- if we begin
to teach children using
effective methods from
an early age, and learn to
identify the children most
likely to fail.

We also believe that many
children 'labelled' with
learning difficulties
are simply not being taught
in ways appropriate
to those individuals.
This is why we adopt a
'Why Wait 'Til Prep?'
approach.

Imaging Study Reveals
Brain Function of Poor
Readers Can Improve

A brain imaging study has
shown that, after they
overcome their reading
disability, the
brains of formerly poor
readers begin to function
like the brains
of good readers, showing
increased activity in a part
of the brain that recognizes
words.
The study appears in the
May 1 Biological
Psychiatry and
was funded by the
National Institute of Child
Health and Human
Development (NICHD),
one of the National
Institutes of Health. 
"These images show
that effective reading
instruction not only improves reading ability,
but actually changes the brain's functioning so that it
can perform reading tasks
more efficiently," said Duane Alexander, M.D., Director of the NICHD.  The research team
was led by Bennett
Shaywitz, M.D., and Sally
Shaywitz, M.D, of Yale
University, in New Haven, Connecticut. Other authors
of the study were from
Syracuse University, in Syracuse, New York; Vanderbilt
University, in Nashville,
Tennessee;
and the NICHD.  Read More

 The Miskin Method
- Read Write Inc
(Superphonics)

One of the programs
we incorporate, along
with Jolly Phonics and
others.
We use a range of
strategies and resources
to meet the individual needs
of the children we
are working with.

Ruth Miskin has
taught for 25 years,
12 as a Head Teacher
in Plymouth,
Leeds and Tower
Hamlets, London.

During her time as
Head Teacher she
developed a simple way
of teaching reading and
writing that proved very
successful. Every child
who completed
her programme learned
to read fluently and
confidently.

After leaving Tower
Hamlets she went on to
develop a full literacy
programme called
Read Write Inc. which other
UK schools have adopted
as an alternative to the National Literacy Strategy.

Read more about
Superphonics

Within Australia
Jolly Phonics
is increasing in popularity, especially after its
success was
reported on within
the (UK) Rose Report

Jolly Phonics is a thorough foundation for reading and writing. It teaches the letter sounds in an enjoyable, multi sensory way, and enables children to use them to read and write words.

Read the Jolly Phonics pages to gain background advice for parents and teachers, and understand the the principles behind Jolly Phonics so that your understanding of the teaching, and your ability to help a child, is much greater.

All the material is suitable for use in school and much of it is also well suited to use at home.

Read more about Jolly Phonics

Great resource- USA based
Reading Rockets®

 

 

 

 

Read About
Jolly Phonics

 

 

Read Australia™ is based in Santa Barbara (Hope Island), on the Gold Coast QLD 4212 Australia.

Come and meet The Child Listener -
The Child Listener, Emma Hartnell-Baker BEd Hons, MA Cert Life Coaching
Private Child and Teen Behaviour Consultations, Family Therapy
and Relationship Rescue sessions for Adults
www.The-Child-Listener.com

Also ask about Behaviour Management and Literacy workshops for
parents/ carers& childcare workers
Email info@the-child-listener.com

Important Note To Teachers: "Reading wars" has been part of the debate over reading research for the past 25 years. The unpleasantness of the conflicts among reading researchers has been moderated, if not eliminated, by the realization that all the participants are primarily interested in ensuring the well-being of young children and in promoting optimal literacy instruction. We, too, acknowledge that for the most part teachers and parents want children to succeed- however wanting it, and making it happen are not the same thing. While our approach may seem to focus on the plight of some (too many!) children who fail within schools, please be assured that we are also very aware of inspirational teaching, and that most teachers want to learn how to help all children. Our mission is to bridge the gap between what we all seem to want, and what is actually happening.
The Child Listener™ is dedicated to
making sure that children who are likely to fail, are not taught by teachers without the knowledge to recognise, and meet, their individual needs. At the Early Reading Centre™ our aim is to help parents and teachers identify children who are likely to have difficulties, offer these children quality experiences as early as possible, educate their parents/ carers , and ensure that the teaching within their school meets their learning needs. There is no excuse for failing our children- and research shows that this is still happening far too frequently, even despite the Inquiry into the teaching of Literacy 2005. If you are a teacher viewing our site, please do not feel we are attacking the teaching profession- far from it- we feel that teachers are underpaid, over-worked, and expected to perform miracles. Within secondary education no one teacher would be expected to cover the whle curriculum- and yet primary teachers are? How can one person be a specialist in everything, and meet all individual needs within these crucial first few years of a child's educational life? The issue of poor literacy rates is,in our opinion, far wider. Until resolved however our focus is on the children of Australia, and we hope you will join us in our mission, and work with us to make the changes needed. Thank you.

---

The Child Listener™ offers 'Read Australia™' services in her new office and training centre in Santa Barbara, Hope Island - most of our service are for ADULTS wanting to learn more about the teaching of reading and spelling (and behaviour management)
We share information and resources relating to the teaching of reading and spelling using phoneme awareness ('phonics'). Letter formation and emergent writing also incorporated into individual learning plans. What are phonemes? Click Here
Did you know that learning to read is a challenge for almost 40 percent of children? The good news is that with early help, most reading problems can be prevented. The bad news is that 44 percent of parents who notice their child having trouble wait a year or more before getting help. This part of the reasons we teach parents (through the Parents Aboard Program) and not just children. Unfortunately, the older a child is, the more difficult it is to teach him or her to read. The window of opportunity closes early for most kids. If a child can't read well by the end of year 3, odds are that he or she will never catch up. And the effects of falling behind and feeling like a failure can be devastating.

News articles and stufdies show that current systems within Queensland are not working,
which is why The Child Listener™ created this private enterprise, although she plans to work in partnership with Education Queensland. Her intention is to be able to profivide fully trained 'Read Australia' certified trainers, to schools- to ensure that ALL children achieve as they should. There is no excuse for failing our children.

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,23145909-3102,00.html

Craig Johnstone
February 02, 2008 12:00am
QUEENSLAND is struggling to improve literacy and numeracy in the middle years of primary school.
Figures show that almost one in five of the state's 10-year-olds fails to achieve minimum standards in reading.
A top-level report into literacy and numeracy warned that these children were falling short of national benchmarks and would find it "difficult to progress satisfactorily at school".
The figures are revealed in the latest national results of literacy and numeracy tests given each year to Australian children in Years 3, 5 and 7.

This needs to change. Now.

The NAPLAN testing results for QLD will be available in May - Contact us to share your
class or child's results, and to discuss a way forward
https://naplan.qsa.qld.edu.au/naplan/

Read Australia™, through The Early Reading Centre™ will offer your child the best opportunity to succeed and The Child Listener™ aims to put forward proposals to bring about major changes with regards to the teaching of reading in the early years of school.
Please don't wait until your child starts school, or until you child struggles because of the methods used to teach reading and spelling within his or her school. Why rely on your child's teacher to meet your child's individual learning needs with regards to reading and spelling?
Please read our Research pages, about learn more about the importance
of starting as possible - and we advise you to become familiar
with the findings and recommendations outlined within the
AU Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy (2005).

Not all teachers have the expertise, knowledge, experience
or motivation to teach all of the children in their class to read
- this is a specialist area and they have a whole range of
things to cover, with classes of up to 30 individuals!
Your child can start learning to read and spell much
earlier - in small groups and on a 1:1 basis with
a specialist. The children that especially
concern us are those who are likely to find
reading and spelling difficult- and we can identify them before
they even start school. So don't wait!
Our long term goal is to put 'Read Australia' qualified instructors
into schools, with the specific aim of working with Prep and Year
1 teachers, to ensure (ideally to guarantee!) that all children enter
Year 2 already reading and spelling with confidence. This takes the pressure off teachers, gives children the opportunity to succeed, and reduces school
costs associated with additional learning support etc. We hope to gain
government support and funding. We also aim to offer free 'Read Australia'
classes to all children for at least the year before they start Prep. Until we
receive funding, we will be charging for sessions - but hope that won't be
for long!

Literacy workshops
Emma offers workshops and online resources for anyone
interested in learning how to teach children to read and spell!
Email us for more info

NICHD research on children with learning disabilities has shown that
deficiencies in processing letter-sounds are at the heart of most reading
problems, and yet time and time again we see teachers using a 'whole word'
approach, or handing out 'readers' that the children cannot possible
de-code at their level and therefore have to memorise or guess.
This article illustrates how letter-sound processing works, and describes
strategies for teaching children this skill. At The Early Reading Centre™
we only use 'readers' that the child can de-code and actually
'read' at their level. Learning whole words can actually be detrimental
to the reading process- our workshops will show you why.
Keep the process simple, and let children achieve long term success.

ALL children will learn to read using a systematic direct approach to teaching
reading and spelling using phonics- so this should be used for ALL children,
not later on with those who are failing. By empowering parents, more children
will read quickly, feel good about themselves - and become 'reader's for life!

The Child Listener™ created 'Read Australia™' as a free resource to parents and teachers and has opened the head office- 'The Early Reading Centre™' on the Gold Coast, QLD. Emma, along with other literacy specialists, will teach you - the parents and
carers- how to teach your child to read and spell,
and ensure that you know what your child's teacher should be doing (according to the recommendations outlined in the 2005 government report )
You will be able to offer fun, quality,
learning experiences and opportunities
for your children at home. If interested, please
ask about undertaking 'Parents Aboard'
training, and offering more effective help
within your child's school.

 

 

Be a part of the Read Australia™ 'Parents Aboard'
program - learn how ALL children can learn to read, and share this information
within your child's school in a productive way. Help your child's teacher by listening to readers, offering to help with literacy activities within the classroom- with a deeper understanding of why some children struggle, or fail to read and spell well, and
what you can do about it.
The' Parents Aboard' program is being designed to help develop more effective,
stronger links between children, parents/ carers and schools and help to raise literacy standards across Australia, and will meet Recommendation 4 of the report.

The Child Listener™ also offers a range of private sessions for children, teenagers,
families and couples, relating to behaviour strategies, and developing emotional intelligence- along with staff in-service training
- ask about 'Relationship Coaching'

About The Early Reading Centre™ Director

The Child Listener™ emigrated from the UK to
Australia in 2007 and now lives in Hope Island,
on the Gold Coast QLD Australia.

The Child Listener™ has been working with, and
educating children for over twenty years -and has a
BEd Hons (Specialism in The Early Years) and a
Masters Degree in Special Education- modules Dyslexia,
Counselling & Helping Skills, Behaviour Management
and Personal, Social and Emotional Development.
She is also a qualified and experienced Life Coach.

The Child Listener™- Emma Hartnell-Baker- has taught in
primary schools, been Head Teacher of two successful
Daycare Centres, was appointed to inspect Early Years
Education and Childcare for the UK Government - Education Dept-
(as an Ofsted Inspector) and for many years managed a busy 'child and
teenage behaviour management strategies' practice offering private
consultations and delivering workshops for parents and teachers.
She is also the creator of 'Read Australia' - a free resource for
parents and teachers.

Over the years, and especially while working with teenagers involved in
criminal activity, Emma has been overwhelmed by the clear correlation
between delinquent behaviour and poor literacy standards.
She firmly believes that a great deal of school, and
society's problems could be prevented if children were
given the opportunity to learn to read as early as possible.
Children should not need to have additional learning
support or 'reading recovery' type programs if taught
in ways that work for them in the first place.
This especially applies to boys. Early assessment can identify which
children are most likely to fail to read, or who will find reading difficult. Why
wait until the child is miserable and being failed by the current system?
This damages self-esteem, which horrifies The Child Listener™
- when it can so easily be prevented.

The Early Reading Centre™ aims to educate and empower parents, so
that their children do not have to go through negative experiences or be
at the mercy of 'the luck of the draw' with regards to which teacher they have.
Unfortunately too few teachers really understand why some children fail, and
what to do about it- they are not given the training, resources and
opportunities to meet every child's individual needs
regarding literacy. We believe it is expecting far too much from
Prep and Yr 1 teachers, to expect them to teach every child to read
and spell- and yet that is what these children need!
These children go from year group to year group without the help
they need to read fluently. The older they get, the more this
impacts on their self-image, and their ability to succeed within
the curriculum. We know that children who do not learn to read
early on, are unlikely to succeed as they grow older. Conversely,
children who read quickly are likely to be within the top 5% of the
class and remain there throughout the primary years.
This is supported by findings and recommendations outlined in the
National Inquiry Into the Teaching of Literacy (2005), ie that:

• learning to read is a crucial educational step
• the first school year is critical for learning to read
• reading success underpins overall school success in the later years
• children who do not learn to read during first grade will end up far behind their peers by the end of the year and face a difficult task trying to catch up.
  Children with reading problems need help early because remediation after the early grades is mostly ineffective.

Through the centre The Child Listener™ and other qualified teachers will teach adults how to teach children to read using a range of phonics methods and strategies,with modern and stimulating resources and will offer training parents and teachers so that they can bring about widespread change throughout Australia. The Early Reading Centre™- Head Office- is based in Hope Island, QLD Australia and other centres will be opened across Australia. Easy to understand and incorporate 'teaching reading using phonics' training courses and workshops will be offered to parents and teachers Private consultations are occasionally offered to older children struggling to read as well as adult non-readers.

" Developing the 'Parents Aboard' concept- empowering parents, raising
standards of literacy and behaviour at home and within schools."

Email The Child Listener™- Emma- for more information,

The Child Listener™ shows adults how to start literacy
activities with children as early as 12 months.
Click here to read why.

Girls are generally ready to actually crack the reading code much earlier than boys, and are able to read fluently (and become 'reader's) before they start school. It is the boys who need these sessions early on as we also focus on developing an aptitude for learning and the motivation to remain on-task and do well at school.
Boys are also far more likely to learn to read in ways not currently understood by all teachers. Often they are misdiagnosed as having 'special needs' such as 'dyslexia- when they are experiencing difficulties as their brains don't process the information in the same ways as others- and need more auditory processing activities, and a very clear, systematic approach using phonics. As stated previously, we would prefer that they start school already reading, so that any lack of understanding on the part of teachers, or lack of resources, does
not adversely affect the child.

Around the world boys are being overtaken in almost all
areas of education- and much of this is because schools
tend to cater more for the way in which girls learn, and
do not offer a curriculum that meets the needs of all children
- especially boys.

Professionals at The Early Reading Centre™ aim to offer all the
children who come through our doors the best possible
opportunity to succeed, and to educate parents so that even
if they are failed at school (and we hope this is not the case)
their parents will be able to offer quality learning support at home.
We also welcome enrollments from children who are being
home schooled and are looking into government funding, to
be able to offer free or reduced rates .

Private literacy consultations also available soon-
We will be seeking grants to try to offer free sessions.



The Child Listener™ offers private child, teenage and adult
consultations and workshops within our centre - with a focus
on developing inner-peace and increased self-confidence.
Ask about 'Relationship Coaching' - $125 per hour.
The initial relationship she focuses on, of course,
is the one you have with yourself..

School Programs

Ask about The Early Reading Centre™ 'Parents Aboard'
Program - proactively involving parents with reading
and spelling development during the early years.
Using a preventative approach. Eliminating the need for
reading recovery type programs, and additional learning ~
support within literacy. Specifically addressing
Recommendation 4 of the Inquiry into the teaching literacy (2005)

Training Providers

We also offer training facilities, and have a room available for
private session- eg life coaching- during the evening.

The Child Listener, through The Early Reading Centre™ works with
children, parents and teachers....:

*'Developing Positive Behaviour Linked with Guidance that
Encourages Individuals to be True to their Authentic Selves'

* Facilitating Parental Involvement in Schools
- Raising Literacy (and Behaviour) Standards,
Through Effective Partnerships.
'Parents Aboard!' (Parents teaching children to read
and spell well- at home and in schools!)

*Teaching children to read and spell as early as possible
- offering ALL children the opportunity to succeed, regardless of the
knowledge and capabilities of their teachers, their individual interests
and learning styles, socioeconomic status and any other factors
that are known to predict literacy difficulties....

Why Wait? Offer your child or children the opportunity to succeed in life - early reading and spelling development, through The Early Reading Centre™, in Hope Island, on the Gold Coast. SE Queensland Australia.

Back to top

---

WHY is this issue so important to The Child Listener™?
Let's look at the bigger picture...

Correlation Between Prison Intake and Poor Literacy-
Predicting future prison populations using 3rd & 4th grade reading scores
http://blog.iamnotashamed.net/2006/04/10/failing-reading-scores-prison-cells/

From
Investing in Literacy

Indiana’s former governor has stated that determining the number of new prisons to build is based, in part, on the number of second graders not reading at second-grade level.

From
Dialects, Teaching Reading and Literacy to Dialect Speakers: Educational CyberPlayGround™

In California they plan how many jail cells they will build in the future by how many children are not reading on grade level by third grade.

From
Democracy and Equity: CES’s Tenth Common Principle

“Based on this year’s fourth-grade reading scores,” observes Paul Schwartz, a Coalition principal in residence at the U. S. Department of Education, “California is already planning the number of new prison cells it will need in the next century.”

From
Evidence Based Education Science and Learning to Read

David Boulton: We were interviewing Lesley Morrow, the Past-President of the International Reading Association, and she made a statement which flabbergasted me. She said this was a fact: that there are some states that determine how many prison cells to build based on reading scores.

Dr. Grover (Russ) Whitehurst: Yes. Again, the predictability of reading for life success is so strong, that if you look at the proportion of middle schoolers who are not at the basic level, who are really behind in reading, it is a very strong predictor of problems with the law and the need for jails down the line.

Literacy for societies, literacy for states, literacy for individuals is a powerful determinate of success. The opposite of success is failure and clearly, being in jail is a sign of failure.

People who don’t read well have trouble earning a living. It becomes attractive to, in some cases the only alternative in terms of gaining funds, to violate the law and steal, to do things that get you in trouble. Few options in some cases other than to pursue that life.
Of course reading opens doors.

Back to top

---

Phonemes

Literacy Research, and Government led Inquiries research backs the need for lots of phonics, the sooner the better. While many beginners may be able to figure out what words mean by their context, most children-particularly those having trouble-need help learning the shapes and sounds of English.
The brain has no inherent knowledge of the alphabet, says Dr. Frank Vellutino, director of the child-research center at SUNNY-Albany.
It has to be taught.

Phonemes are the smallest units making up spoken language. English consists of about 41 phonemes.
Phonemes combine to form syllables and words. A few words have only one phoneme, such as a (a) or oh (o).
Most words consist of a blend of phonemes, such as go (g-o) with two phonemes, check (ch-e-ck) with three phonemes,
or stop with four phonemes (s-t-o-p). Phonemic awareness refers to the ability to focus on and manipulate these phonemes in spoken words.

The National Reading Panel was created by NICHD and the Department of Education. It includes 14 individuals who are leading scientists in reading research, representatives of colleges of education, reading teachers, administrators and parents.
During the last two years, the panel held five field hearings to consult with stakeholders in education and listen to their concerns.
They then assessed the current status of research-based knowledge, including the effectiveness of various approaches to teach children to read and the readiness of application in the classroom.

The National Reading Panel found that there is a clear and distinct pattern that children go through as they learn to read.
It starts with phoneme awareness and phonics instruction, which leads to fluency. It is important to understand that children won't become fluent until they have the foundation of phonemes and phonics established. In Kindergarten and first grade, phoneme awareness and systemic phonics instruction are essential for children at-risk.

The Panel's findings are welcome news given the staggering statistics. In 1994, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) found that 42 percent of fourth graders read below basic levels. The 1998 NAEP showed that the situation was not improved. The results found that 69 percent of fourth grade students are reading below the proficient level.

This is confirmed by the 1999 National Education Goals Report which finds that the U.S. has failed to increase the percentage of students scoring at or above proficient in reading for students in grade four. The report indicates that only 31 percent of our nation's fourth graders read at or above the proficient level, meaning 69 percent of our students are failing.

In 1994, the NAEP revealed that reading problems affect students in virtually every social, cultural and ethnic group.
According to the results, 29 percent of whites, 69 percent of African Americans, 64 percent of Hispanics, 22 percent of Asian Americans and 52 percent of American Indians read below basic levels in the fourth grade.

The Panel determined that systematic phonics instruction leads to significant positive benefits for students in kindergarten through sixth grade and for children with difficulty learning to read. Kindergartners who receive systematic beginning phonics instruction read better and spell better than other children, and first graders are better able to decode and spell words.
The students also show significant improvement in their ability to understand what they read. Similarly, phonics instruction helps older children spell and decode text better, although their understanding does not necessarily improve.

For more detail about the National Reading Panel's report, please visit their website at http://www.nationalreadingpanel.org.

UK

Statistics also show that around 19 to 20% of children starting Secondary School within the UK are failing to read to the level expected

Ofsted warns of gulf in reading levels

Rebecca Smithers, education editor Wednesday December 15, 2004
The Guardian

The new report from the Office for Standards in Educa tion, Reading for Purpose and Pleasure - An Evaluation of Reading in Primary Schools, showed that continued improvement in reading standards was being marred by an increasing gulf between those schools that successfully tackle weaknesses in reading and those that do not.

The Department for Education and Skills has released figures showing that in 2,235 primary schools (roughly 10%), a third of 11-year-olds do not reach the standard expected for their age, down on more than 6,100 in 1997. But Mr Bell said he remained worried about this group of schools which were failing to make any progress.

"Today's findings are unacceptable," he said. "Although standards in reading are rising, we have yet to ensure that all our pupils are competent and confident readers by the time they leave primary school. A stubborn core of pupils at the bottom of the scale are being let down by the system."

The most effective teaching included the systematic daily teaching of phonics, while formal "reading records" were found to be one of the weakest aspects of teaching reading, the report found.

Read article

---

AU

20 key recommendations from the Australia National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy:

The National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy Teaching Reading report lists 20 key recommendations to improve the reading skills of children in Australia.

 

1. That teachers be equipped with teaching strategies based on findings from rigorous, evidence-based research that are shown to be effective in enhancing the literacy development of all children.
   
2. That teachers provide systematic, direct and explicit phonics instruction so that children master the essential alphabetic
   code-breaking skills required for foundational reading proficiency. Equally, that teachers provide an integrated approach to
   reading that supports the development of oral language, vocabulary, grammar, reading fluency, comprehension and the
   literacies of new technologies.
3. That literacy teaching continue throughout schooling (K-12) in all areas of the curriculum ... meeting the specific skill
   and knowledge needs of individual children from diverse backgrounds and locations.
4. That programs, guides and workshops be provided for parents and carers to support their children’s literacy development.
   These should acknowledge and build on the language and literacy that children learn in their homes and communities.
5. That all education authorities and school leaders examine their approaches to the teaching of literacy and put in place an
   explicit, whole-school literacy planning, monitoring and reviewing process in collaboration with school communities and parents.
6. That all schools identify a highly-trained specialist literacy teacher with specialised skills in teaching reading.
7. That specialist postgraduate studies in literacy (especially in teaching reading) be provided by higher education providers.
8. That Teaching Australia – Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, in consultation with [key stakeholders], develop and implement national standards for literacy teaching, initial teacher registration, and for accomplished teaching, consistent with
   evidence-based guides for practice. It is further recommended that these standards form a basis for the accreditation of teacher preparation courses.
9. That the teaching of literacy throughout schooling be informed by comprehensive, diagnostic and developmentally appropriate assessments of every child, mapped on common scales. Further, it is recommended that:
   • nationally consistent assessments on entry to school be undertaken for every child;
   • education authorities and schools be responsible for the measurement of individual progress in literacy by regularly monitoring the development of each child and reporting progress twice each year for the first three years of schooling; and
   • the Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 national literacy testing program be refocused to make available diagnostic information on individual student performance, to assist teachers to plan the most effective teaching strategies.
10. That a confidential mechanism such as a unique student identifier be established ... to monitor a child’s progress
    throughout schooling [regardless of location].
11. That the key objective of primary teacher education courses be to prepare student teachers to teach reading, and that the
    content of coursework in primary literacy education focus on contemporary understandings of:
    • evidence-based findings and an integrated approach to the teaching of reading, including instruction on how to teach
      phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary knowledge and text comprehension;
    • child and adolescent development; and
    • inclusive approaches to literacy teaching.
12. That literacy teaching within subject areas be included in the coursework of secondary teachers so that they are well
    prepared to continue the literacy development of their students throughout secondary schooling in all areas of the curriculum.
13. That significant national ‘lighthouse’ projects in teacher preparation and education be established to link theory
    and practice that effectively prepare pre-service teachers to teach literacy, and especially reading, to diverse groups of children.
14. That the conditions for teacher registration of graduates from all primary and secondary teacher education programs include a demonstrated command of personal literacy skills necessary for effective teaching, and a demonstrated ability to teach
    literacy within the framework of their employment/teaching program.
15. That schools and employing authorities ... provide all teachers with appropriate induction and mentoring throughout
    their careers, and with ongoing opportunities for evidence-based professional learning about effective literacy teaching.
16. That a national program of literacy action be established to:
    • design a series of evidence-based teacher professional learning programs focused on effective classroom
      teaching, and later interventions for those children experiencing reading difficulties;
    • produce a series of evidence-based guides for effective teaching practice, the first of which should be on reading;
    • evaluate the effectiveness of approaches to early literacy teaching (especially for early reading) and professional learning programs for practising teachers;
    • investigate ways of integrating the literacies of information and communication technologies with traditional literacies in the classroom;
    • establish networks of literacy/reading specialist practitioners to facilitate the application of research to
      practice; and promote research into the most effective teaching practices to be used when preparing pre-service
      teachers to teach reading.
17. That Australian and State and Territory governments’ approaches to literacy improvement be aligned to achieve improved
    outcomes for all Australian children.
18. That the Australian Government, together with State and Territory government and non-government education authorities,
    jointly support the proposed national program for literacy action.
19. The Australian Government Minister for Education, Science and Training raise these recommendations as issues for
    attention and action by MCEETYA [Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs], and other
    bodies, agencies and authorities, that will have responsibility to take account of, and implement the recommendations.
20. Progress in implementing these recommendations, and on the state of literacy in Australia, be
    reviewed and reported every two years.
    
    Read Australia deliver workshops and training courses for parents and teachers - developing a preventative solution to the teaching of reading and spelling, and empowering parents.
    Raising literacy standards across Queensland and Australia

---

Back to top

Final Home Page Note:

Conditions under which reading is most likely to develop easily include stimulating preschool environments, excellent reading instruction, and the absence of any of a wide array of risk factors. Our focus on trying to work with parents to teach children to read before they start school does not mean that we think that children experiencing less than optimal conditions are in any sense doomed to failure in reading; many children from poor and uneducated families learn to read well, even without excellent preschool classroom experience or superb early reading instruction. Nonetheless, with an eye to reducing risk and preventing failure, we focus on providing the best possible opportunity for every child.
As our slogan states- "To offer your child the best possible chance to succeed in life, you wont leave much to chance'

So join us, and make a difference- starting with your own child!