Lesson 1 The Remedial Classroom Organization and Management

Lesson 1: The Remedial Classroom: Organization and Management
A remedial program primarily helps students address language skills deficits

by helping them acquire self-confidence to face their own weakness and overcome
these through the acquisition of self-help strategies. A thorough assessment must be
conducted before organizing a remedial program, while consistent monitoring is
imperative in managing the program.
Below are general instructional guidelines that should be considered (Strickland,
1998 cited in Gunning, 2003 and in Vacca, Vacca, and Gove, 1991):
 Instruction is systematic when it is planned, deliberate in application, and

proceeds in an orderly manner. This does not mean a rigid progression of
one-size-fits-all teaching.
 Intensive instruction on any skill or strategy should be based on need. Thus,
intensity will vary both with individuals and groups.
 There is no substitute for ongoing documentation and monitoring of learning
to determine the order in which skills should be addressed and the level of
intensity required to help a child or group of children succeed in a particular
area.
 To track specific goals and objectives within an integrated language-arts
framework, teachers must know the instructional objectives their curriculum
requires at the grade or year level they teach.
A. Organization
In organizing a remedial program, one must consider the following factors:
1. CURRICULUM
a. Base goals and standards for language learning on theory and research.
b. Relate teacher beliefs and knowledge about instruction to research.
c. Organize the curriculum framework so that it is usable.
d. Select materials that facilitate accomplishment of school goals.
2. INSTRUCTION
a. The program must identify instructional strategies and activities for
learners.
b. Instruction must be based upon what we know about the effective teaching
of language skills.
c. Those involved in designing or selecting instructional activities need to
consider the variables that contribute to success in language learning,
given its interactive and constructive nature.
d. Time must be provided in the classroom for practice.
e. Composing should be an integral part of the program.
f. Students should be given opportunities to become independent and to
self-monitor their progress.
g. The climate in a school must be conducive to the development of students.
h. The school must develop an organizational structure that meets individual
needs of students.
i. The program must provide for coordination among all language programs
offered in the school.
3. ASSESSMENT
a. Use assessment to guide instruction.
b. Develop scoring guides and rubrics.
c. Seek alignment among various layers of assessment.
B. Management
School-based remedial sessions tend to involve 3 to 10 learners, and typically
last between 30 to 50 minutes, depending on whether they are in the elementary or
secondary level. A plan to maximize the utilization of that time should be a high
priority. To ensure that the program is effective, one must consider the six
components of an ideal remedial program (Manzo & Manzo, 1993).
These principles may also be applicable in remediation for other skills aside from
reading.
1. The orientation component. The orientation component provides
continuity and focus to the remedial session. It may be an engaging
question or statement related to local or national news, or even school life.
It must focus on structured routines, materials, equipment, venue, people
involved, and the objective of the program.
2. Direct Instruction Component. This is the instructional heart of the
remedial session. It should never be traded away, even for one period,
without some compelling reason.
3. Reinforcement and Extension Component. This period ideally should
build on the direct instructional period and be spent in empowered reading,
writing, and discussion of what was read. Writing activities may vary from
simply listing key words to summarizing and reacting.
4. Schema-Enhancement Component. This unit of time should be spent in
building a knowledge base for further reading and independent thinking. It
is an ideal time to teach study skills such as outlining, note taking, and
memory training. Ideally, it should flow or precede Component 3.
5. Personal-Emotional Growth Development. There is little learning or
consequence that can occur without the learner involvement and
anticipation of personal progress.
6. Cognitive Development Component. This component should contain an
attempt to enhance basic thinking operation such as: inference, abstract
verbal reasoning, analogical reasoning, constructive-critical/ creative
reading, convergent and divergent analysis, problem-solving, and
metacognition.

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Lesson 1: The Remedial Classroom: Organization and Management

A remedial program primarily helps students address language skills deficits

 Instruction is systematic when it is planned, deliberate in application, and

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