Reading Program

MMA Launches New Reading Program

Mrs. Jackie Palamara

“Only 43 percent of SAT takers in the Class of 2012 graduated from high school with the level of academic preparedness associated with a high likelihood of college success.”   SAT Report on College & Career Readiness, Sept. 2012.

reading programMarine Military Academy has launched a new computerized reading program using Fast Forward products for eighth and ninth grade cadets reading below their grade levels. These students received written and computerized screening to determine their performance in the following skills: phonological awareness, decoding, vocabulary, and comprehension.

The written exam given by the reading specialist provided the first level of reading proficiency in English for the eighth and ninth graders. If cadets scored below a 70, they joined the reading program class where they took the Fast ForWord  Reading Progress Indicator (RPI) to determine the exact reading level and percentage of each skill mentioned above.

New Computer Based Reading Program

reading programBoth the Fast ForWord and the  Reading Assistant by the Scientific Learning Corp come from 30 years of research. While Fast ForWord builds on the cognitive skills in the areas of memory, attention, processing, and sequencing, the Reading Assistant program helps the cadets increase their reading fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

At the present time, MMA’s reading program has 16 cadets enrolled. These cadets include English Language Learners and English speakers. The cadets work for 30 minutes daily and five days a week. Their successes in the reading program rests on their complete dedication to their attendance and motivation.   These are self-paced programs. “Learners can realize achievement gains of up to two years in …three months and maintain rate of learning even after the program ends.”  Scientific Learning Corp 2012.

Goal of the MMA Reading Program

reading programWe expect gradual improvement in the cadets’ overall academic grades based on improvements in the reading program results. We will look for signs of more listening, reading and participating in their academic classes. We will monitor their progress weekly in and out of their reading class, looking for an increase in their self-esteem and better academic performance.  Check back later for a follow-up report on how our students reading improvement has impacted on their grades.

Learn More about Marine Military Academy and the Reading Program

Click on the image below to request information about enrollment or check out the Marine Military Academy website.

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