REMEDIAL INSTRUCTION IN ENGLISH

Remedial Teaching
 Intended for students who, for one reason or another, have fallen behind the rest of the class.
 At the beginning of a remedial course, the teacher has to assess with care the strengths and
weaknesses of her students. The remedial class teacher is expected to pay greater attention to
individual weaknesses and needs.
 The ultimate aim is to help such students learn to the best of their ability and to bring them back
into the mainstream classes as far as possible.
(Handbook on Remedial Teaching in Secondary Schools, 1997)
Objectives of Remedial Teaching (Education Bureau in Hongkong, 2007)
1. To provide learning support to pupils who lag far behind their counterparts in school performance.
By adapting school curricula and teaching strategies, teachers can:
 Provide learning activities and practical experiences to students according to their abilities
and needs.
 Design individualized educational programmes with intensive remedial support to help
pupils consolidate their basic knowledge in different subjects, master the learning methods,
strengthen their confidence and enhance the effectiveness of learning.
2. Provide systematic training to develop pupils' generic skills: interpersonal relationship,
communication, problem-solving, self-management, self-learning, independent thinking, creativity
and the use of information technology

Principles of Helping Pupils with Learning Difficulties

Teaching preparation
Before preparing for their lessons, remedial teachers should identify pupils' diverse learning needs as soon
as possible so that they may design appropriate teaching plans to facilitate pupils' effective learning.

Devise various learning activities

Since pupils have different characteristics in learning, teachers must devise different learning activities with
the same teaching objective to develop pupils' varied abilities and skills in problem solving. It is more
effective for teachers to adopt a series of relevant and simple teaching activities than assigning one long
teaching activity since pupils may acquire the required knowledge and skills through diversified activities.

Design meaningful learning situations

Remedial teachers should specifically design meaningful learning situations, language environments
(especially for English subject), games or activities so as to provide personal learning experiences for pupils
and stimulate their interest and initiative in learning.

Teaching approaches
Teachers should give concrete examples before proceeding to abstract concepts by way of simple and
easy steps at a pace in line with the learning abilities of students. Teachers may teach new concepts from
different perspectives by various approaches so that pupils can grasp the ideas through meaningful and
repeated illustrations. Teachers should encourage pupils' active participation by more frequent use of
teaching aids, games and activities. They can also make use of information technology and all the teaching
resources available to help pupils understand the main points.

Provide clear instructions

Pupils with learning difficulties are less competent in understanding written language. Therefore, remedial
teachers should give pupils short and clear instructions to avoid confusion. They must explain clearly the
arrangement of each learning activity. If necessary, they may ask pupils to repeat the steps of activities so
that every pupil may understand the instructions.
Summarize the main points
At the course of teaching, teachers should always sum up the main points in teaching and write the key
phrases on the board to enhance pupils' audio and visual memories. Teachers can guide their pupils to link
up the knowledge they learn from class with their life experiences so as to enhance the effectiveness of
learning. Besides, guiding pupils to repeat the main points in verbal or written form is also an effective
way of learning.

Enhance learning interest and motivation

Suffering from frequent frustrations in their work, pupils with learning difficulties may gradually lose their
interest in learning. Therefore, teachers should adapt the curriculum to meet the needs of pupils. With
lesser pupils in the IRTP, teachers can design interesting activities coupled with reward scheme to
stimulate pupils' interest. It is most important to help pupils overcome their learning difficulties so that
they may gain a sense of achievement and recover their confidence and interest in learning.

Encourage pupils' active participation in class activities

Pupils with learning difficulties usually lack self-confidence and are more passive in class. They seldom ask
questions or express their views. Remedial teachers should patiently encourage active participation in class.
Pleasurable learning experiences may help enhance pupils' interest in learning.

Focus on the learning process

Teaching should not only focus on the transmission of knowledge. It is also important to see that pupils
are benefited from the entire learning process. Teachers should provide ample opportunities in class for
pupils to practice and think what they have learnt, and allow them to solve problems by different means.
Teachers should also carefully observe the performances of pupils and give them appropriate assistance,
feedback and encouragement so as to help them acquire the learning skills, solve their problems and
understand their own capability, thus enhancing self-confidence and improving their learning skills.

Show concern for the performances of individual pupils

Pupils may encounter different problems in their studies, therefore, teachers should carefully observe the
learning process of individual pupils in class. Whenever necessary, they should provide individualized
remedial teaching before and after class, during recess or lunchtime, so that they can remove their
learning obstacles as soon as possible. When marking assignments, teachers should take note of the
common errors of pupils and deliver the correct concepts and knowledge to them promptly.

Organization of the Remedial Classroom

A. Curriculum
 Base goals and standards for language learning on theory and research.
 Relate teacher beliefs and knowledge about instruction to research.
 Organize the curriculum framework so that it is usable.
 Select materials that facilitate accomplishment of school goals.
B. Instruction
 The program must identify instructional strategies and activities for learners.
 Instruction must be based upon what we know about the effective teaching of language
skills.
 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.
 Time must be provided in the classroom for practice.
 Composing should be an integral part of the program.
 Students should be given opportunities to become independent and to self-monitor their
progress.
 The climate in a school must be conducive to the development of students.
  The school must develop an organizational structure that meets individual needs of
students.
 The program must provide for coordination among all language programs offered in the
school.
C. Assessment
 Use assessment to guide instruction
 Develop scoring guides and rubrics
 Seek alignment among various layers of assessment

Management of the Remedial Classroom

 School-based remedial sessions tend to involve 3-10 learners, and typically last between 30-50
minutes, depending on whether they are in the elementary or secondary level.

6 Components of Remediation
1. 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
- 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 of time 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.

Remedial Teaching Strategies

Individualized Educational Programme (IEP)
 Geared to the learning needs of individual pupils, it aims to reinforce the foundation of learning,
help pupils overcome their learning difficulties and develop their potentials.
 Includes short-term and long-term teaching objectives, learning steps, activities and reviews to
ensure that the programme is implemented effectively.
 Teaching can be done in small groups or for individual.
Peer Support Programme
 Remedial teachers may train up pupils who perform better in a certain subject to become ‘little
teachers’ and who will be responsible for helping schoolmates with learning difficulties in
group teaching and self-study sessions as well as outside class.
 It helps pupils reinforce their knowledge, and develop their communication and cooperation
skills as well as good interpersonal relationship.
 Remedial teachers must provide training to the pupils concerned beforehand and make regular
reviews on its effectiveness. Note: This programme is more suitable for pupils of higher grades.
 Reward Scheme
 The reward scheme has positive effect in enhancing pupils’ motivation. It aims at guiding pupils
to set their own objectives and plans, and positively reinforcing their good performance.
 No matter what reward is provided, the most important thing is to help pupils cultivate an
interest in learning and gain a sense of satisfaction and achievement during the learning
process.

Remedial Instruction Overview and Terminologies

Emergent/Beginning literacy skills

- These are the skills that form the foundation of speaking, reading, and writing and develop into
conventional or traditional reading and writing.
- Students who perform poorly in the classroom might have a weakness in one or more of the
emergent/beginning literacy skills areas. It is advisable to assess students’ knowledge of emergent
literacy skills if they are having difficulty reading.

“All babies are born equal. Not one can speak, count, read, or write at birth, but by the time they go to
kindergarten they are not equal: (Trelease 2001, p.36).

A. Concepts of Print
 Neuman and Celano (2001) write that many children have very limited experiences with print. As a
result, they have not developed concepts of print. Specific instruction is needed in order for
children to learn letters, sounds, and story structure. (Reutzel, Fawson, Young, Morrison, and
Wilcox, 2003)

Terms
 Concepts of Print - the foundational, or emergent literacy, skills involved in how to hold a book and
turn the pages, identifying a word or sentence, where to begin and end reading a page, having the
eyes move in the correct direction, retelling a story, or relating the author’s ideas to one’s own
experiences.
 Directionality - moving one’s eyes in the correct direction for reading the printed form of language.
 Story Structure – the ability to identify the characters, plot, and setting of a story.
 Visual Discrimination – the skill of seeing likeness or differences among objects, pictures, letters,
numbers, or words.
 Words and sentences – identifying the individual words and sentences on a page, identifying that
sentences are made up of words, and recognizing that these words and sentences contain meaning
are important concepts of print.
Note: the best way to teach students concepts of print is to provide many experiences with books
and writing.
 Explicit Instruction: Reading Big books
 Environmental Print – the print that surrounds us is an excellent source for teaching students that
they can be successful in reading. Students can easily identify many of the symbols and can feel
successful as readers.
 Language Experience – provides an authentic learning experience for students. It helps students
understand that the printed word carries meaning. It is most often used with the beginning
readers, but can be successfully used with adults learning to read.
Roach Van Allen (1968) and Russell Stauffer (1970) provide thorough discussions of the Language
Experience Approach. Hoffner (2003-2004) provides insight into the Language Experience
Approach with the secondary students in content areas.
What I think about, I can talk about.
What I can say, I can write down.
What I can write, I can read.
I can read what others write for me to read.

B. Letter identification
 Being able to identify and name the letters of the alphabet was found to be one of the best
predictors of reading success by Durrell (1958). Knowing letter names assists students in
associating phonemes, or sounds, with graphemes, or letters (Walsh, Price, aandGillingham 1988).
Terms

 Grapheme – the physical representation of a symbol from a standard alphabet.

 Letter identification – the skill of naming a graphic symbol belonging to a standard alphabet.
Note: Do not simultaneously teach letters with similar appearances.

C. Phonemic Awareness
 Is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds-phonemes--in spoken words.
Before children learn to read print, they need to become more aware of how the sounds in words
work.

Remediation through Phonemic Awareness

1. Sound Isolation. In sound isolation, use conspicuous strategies.
Example: The first sound in sun is /ssss/.
2. Blending (Example: /sss/ - /uuu/ - /nnn/ is sun). In blending instruction, use scaffold task difficulty.
activities.
3. Segmenting (Example: The sounds in sun are /sss/ - /uuu/ - /nnn/) In phoneme segmentation
instruction, strategically integrate familiar and new information.

Word Analysis Skills

- These are the skills that students use when identifying words as they are reading. These are used
automatically by proficient readers. This automatic use of word analysis skills allows readers to
focus on comprehension – interacting with text and attaching meaning to printed symbols.
- It is the goal of educators to have students who are independent in their skills of word analysis. If
students have not developed sufficient skills in word analysis in the early childhood grades, they will
have difficulty encountering the high density of vocabulary presented to them in grades four and
above (Taylor 1996).
- Materials read by students in high school contain over 100, 000 different words (Nagy and
Anderson 1984).

Having good word analysis skills or developing automaticity in decoding words is not sufficient to be a
proficient reader. This must be combined with fluency and comprehension.

A. Sight Word Recognition

Terms
 Sight words – are words that can be recognized instantly and pronounced without resorting to the
use of word analysis.
 High Frequency or Basic Sight Words – are words most frequently used in written text.

3 basic sight word lists:

1. “Dolch Basic Sight Words” - account for approximately 70 % of the words children encounter in
grades 1 through 3, and approximately 40% of the words that appear in adult text.
2. Edward Fry’s “Instant word list” - is a second high-frequency word list. The first 100 words on the
list account for about 50 % of all printed materials. The 300 words on this list account for about 65 %
of all printed materials. These are the words most frequently used to generate text in basal readers
and other narrative materials.
3. “Adult Basic Word list” - contains the 385 words that adults beginning to read most frequently use
to generate written text.

Note: Inadequate development of concepts of print, poor visual discrimination and lack of phonic
decoding skills may be possible causes of poor sight vocabulary. Practice makes word recognition more
accurate and faster.

Explicit instruction: Teaching Using Predictable big books

 B. Picture Clues
 The use of picture clues is an emergent literacy skill that assists students in identifying words in the
text and predicting story content. They are useful in developing sight vocabulary.
 Heilman (1998) says, “It is true that pictures may provide clues to unknown words. Pictures may
suggest words. They have high motivational value and will often lure the child into reading. Pictures
help focus attention on meaning. They serve as stimuli for oral language use in group discussion.
 Gunning (2003) identifies a second level of text and picture clues. There is a simple text that is
illustrated. Most, but not all of the words can be identified by the picture.

Explicit instruction: Using book walls

C. Phonic Analysis
 The process of using the relationships between spelling and pronunciation at the letter, syllable,
and word levels to figure out unfamiliar words.

D. Syllabic Analysis
 The process of dividing words into pronounceable units that contain a vowel-like sound. The way
the story is written encourages the student to drum out the syllables, or beats, like playing a drum.

Syllabication Principles
1. When two consonants stand between two vowels, the word is usually divided between the
consonants, e.g., dag-ger and cir-cus. In some of the newer materials, materials are divided after
the double consonant, e.g., dagg-er. It should be remembered that in reading we are usually
teaching syllabication as a means of word attack. Therefore, we should also accept a division after
double consonants as correct even though the dictionary would not show it that way.
2. When one consonant stands between two vowels, try dividing first so that the consonant goes
with the second vowels, e,g., pa-per and motor, Students should be taught that flexibility is
required in using this rule; if this does not give a word in the student’s speaking-listening
vocabulary, then the student should divide it so that the consonant goes with the first vowel, as in
riv-er and lev-er.
3. When a word ends in a consonant and le, the consonant usually begins the last syllable, e.g., ta-ble
and hum-ble.
4. Compound words are usually divided between word parts and between syllables in this parts, e.g.,
hen-house and po-lice-man.
5. Prefixes and suffixes usually form separate syllables.

Vocabulary

- As defined in Webster’s New World Dictionary, is all the words of a language. Our knowledge of
words and our ability to use them are essential to comprehension.
- “Reading instruction that focuses on the growth of children’s vocabulary results in enhancing their
abilities to infer meanings and to better comprehend what they read” (Rupley, Logan, and Nichols
1998 – 1999).

- The basic vocabulary of 6th grade students is estimated to be about 32,000 words, and that of 12th
grade students is 47, 000 (Smith 1991).
- Graves (1986) estimated that the listening vocabulary of first-grade students is 10,000 words.

Pavio (1971), Wolpert (1972), Reynolds and Flagg (1977), and Jiganti and Tindall (1986) provided research
supporting the promotion of mental imagery in learning words.

Four main principles of instruction by Blanchowicz and Fisher (2000):

1. Students should be actively involved in learning new words.
2. They should make personal connections to new words.
 3. They should be surrounded – immersed – in learning new words.
4. They should see the words in multiple contexts and have many repeated exposures to them.

Note: The goal of vocabulary instruction is not to have students memorize a list of words and write
definitions. Rather, it is to provide opportunities for students to understand and use words. Wide reading
provides many opportunities for students to encounter new words in multiple contexts beyond the
classroom.

A. Remedial Vocabulary Instruction

Vocabulary is initially acquired in four ways:

 reading and conversation

 direct instruction (when a teacher or auto-instructional program is used intentionally to build
vocabulary power)
 self-instruction (when words are looked up in a dictionary or when a child asks other people for
meanings of words)
 mental manipulation (while thinking, speaking,and writing)

1. Considerations in remedial vocabulary instruction

 Connect vocabulary instruction to the natural processes of word learning. The literature on
vocabulary acquisition tends to divide the teaching of vocabulary into five phases. These are:

a. Disposition – opening the student’s mind and will to engage new words.
b. Integration – establishing ties between the meaning of a new word and the student’s existing
knowledge.
c. Repetition – provisions for practice distributed over time, as well as opportunities for frequent
encounters with the word in similar and differing contexts.
d. Interaction and meaningful use – social situations conducive to using new words in interactions with
others and, thus, mentally referencing new words in listening, reading, writing, and speaking.
e. Self-instruction – maintaining an awareness of new words outside the classroom.

2. Concept-Based Approach to Vocabulary Building

a. Identify the relevant and irrelevant features of the concept in question.
b. Provide examples of the concept.
c. Provide examples of irrelevant but loosely related concepts with which it might be compared.
d. Relate the concept by some possible smaller or subordinating concepts.
e. Relate or categorize the concept by some possible larger or superordinating concepts.
f. Relate or categorize the concept alongside equal or coordinating terms.

3. Motor Imaging
 It appears that even the highest forms of vocabulary and concept learning have psychomotor
foundations, or equivalents. Hence, motor movements associated with certain stimuli can become
interiorized as a “symbolic meaning” (Piaget, 1963 in Manzo and Manzo, 1993). There are three
considerable advantages to knowing this where remediation is concerned:

a. First, since physical-sensory or pro-prioceptive learning can be interiorized, they also can be self-
stimulating, and as such, they are easier to rehearse and recall with the slightest mental reminder,
as well as from external stimulation.
b. Second, pro-prioceptive learning is so basic to human learning that it is common to all learners, fast
and slow, and hence, ideal for heterogeneously grouped classes.
c. Third, the act of identifying and acting out a word becomes a life experience in itself with the word
– a value that Frederick Duffellmeyer (1980) in Manzo and Manzo (1993) demonstrated when he
successfully taught youngsters words via the “experiential” approach.

A. Graphic Organizers
Terms
 Graphic organizers – provide visual representation of the relationships among words. Usually
geometric shapes and lines are used to slow these relationships. They provide opportunities for
students to develop a more thorough understanding of words by seeing relationships and being
active in the learning process (Blanchowicz and Fisher 2000).
 Definition word maps – help students see visual representations of definitions (Schwarts and
Raphael 1985). The concept is presented, and students organize information to which concept
belongs, its properties, examples, or illustrations of the concept.
 Logo and pictomaps – at the emergent literacy stage, students may not have developed the skills
needed to decode words. A pictorial representation of the words and their relationships is
presented.
 Semantic feature analysis – is a grid that assists students in identifying similarities and differences
among concepts that are related to each other. It helps students make comparisons.
 Semantic maps - are a diagrammatic way of showing relationships among concepts, ideas, by using
circles and lines.
 Word walls – are working bulletin boards (Padak 2001). It is a chart with atheme or focus
determined by the teacher. These charts are posted around the room and used as a way of studying
word patterns and word relationships.

Explicit Instruction:
Word walls can be created for any topic or skill being studied in class. The use of word walls is limitless.
Logo and Pictomaps
Semantic Maps
Definition Word maps
Semantic Feature analysis

B. Morphology

Terms
 Morphology – is the study of word formations that include compound words, contractions, and
affixes. Knowledge of morphemes helps children expand their vocabulary beyond root words and
aids in comprehension of printed materials.
 Affix – a prefix, suffix, or inflectional ending that is added to a root word to change the function of
the word or to add its meaning.
 Compound word – a word that is formed by combing two or more words.
 Contraction – formed by omitting one or more letters or sounds from an expression and replacing
the omitted letters with an apostrophe.
 Root word – the word that is left after you take away all affixes.
 Description of compound words
- Usually do not create much difficulty because students already know each of the smaller words that
make up the compound word. Students who have difficulty with compound words may not have
recognized that the words are made by combining already known words. Attention should be
drawn to the compound words’ makeup.
 Description of Contractions
- Usually do not create problems because they maintain the same meaning and often have similar
structures. Directing students’ attention to the “lazy way of writing” is often sufficient during silent
or oral reading.

C. Context
- Words that surround a particular word and help identifying it.

NOTE: If students are to use context clues, they must be given specific instruction in their use. They must
be taught how to arrive at meanings that are unknown to them.

- Students taught through a strong decoding approach with heavy reliance on phonics may not use
context. Students taught with a strong meaning approach, such as whole language, may tend to
overuse context.
FACT: Better readers who view reading as “getting meaning” use context. Less able readers tend to view
reading as “decoding” or pronouncing words.

Six types of context clues:

1. Direct definitions and explanations. Words such as is and means give clues that a definition or
explanation will follow.
2. Explanation through example. Sometimes, writers us explanations to help the reader understand a
word’s meaning. “The car has rust spots; these are reddish brown spots that have decayed.”
3. Words in a series. The reader can get an idea about a word’s meaning if it is included among other
words that belong to the same category. “We visited Hirosaki, Tokyo, and Toyota.”
4. Synonym or restatement. Unknown words may be identified because different words with similar
meanings are used in conjunction with it.
5. Comparison or contrast. Words are compared or contrasted with words that are known already.
6. Familiar expressions or figures of speech. At times metaphors and similes may be used to convey
meaning.

Explicit instruction: Teacher Modeling, Student Modeling

D. Word Relationships
 Words have many different relationships to each other that students should be aware of in order to
understand differences in meanings. Understanding these differences in meaning helps students
use the dictionary and comprehend material they read (Crawley and Mountain 1995).

Terms
 Antonyms – words that are opposite in meaning.
 Figurative language – words that contain meanings that are different from their literal meanings.
Connotative rather than denotative meanings.
 Homophones (homonyms) – words that have the same sound but are spelled differently and have
different meanings.
 Homographs – words that have the same spelling but are pronounced differently.
 Multiple meanings – the various meanings and shades of meaning words can have.
 Synonyms – words that have the same meanings.

Explicit instruction: Synonyms, Homophones, Homographs, Multiple meanings, figurative language

E. Extending an Interest in Vocabulary

 Vocabulary development is an ongoing activity, and many opportunities should be provided to
encourage its expansion.

Reinforcement Activities
Providing real experiences
Providing vicarious experiences
Encouraging wide reading
Word histories

FLUENCY

Fluency – Being able to decode words automatically, group them meaningfully, and read with expression.
Being fluent in reading allows students to focus on comprehension – interacting with text and attaching
meaning to printed symbols. It also helps students develop more positive self-image as readers.

Oral Reading – communicating an author’s message by reading aloud to an individual or an audience.

Fluency instruction has been found to result in improved reading comprehension (Dowhower 1987).
Blachman (2000) concluded that “without accuracy and fluent word recognition, there will always be
constraints in comprehension.
Round Robin oral reading instruction is used as a method of fluency. It involves having students turning a
page in their textbooks and selecting a student to begin reading orally.

Problems with fluency may stem from a variety of causes: inadequate sight vocabulary, poor decoding
skills, an overdependence on word analysis skills, or inattention to punctuation.

A. Major Fluency Strategies

 Antiphonal Reading – groups of students are assigned to read parts of a selection or text in unison.
 Choral reading - students read together text in unison and the selection is not divided into parts for
different groups of students to read.
 Echo reading – fluency is modeled. Students immediately echo a phrase read by a skilled reader.
 Paired reading – a capable reader and a student who is having difficulty reading materials written at
an instructional level are paired or partnered together.
 Radio reading – students are asked to think back to the days when people sat around the living
room in anticipation of stories being told on the radio. In radio reading, one student is the
announcer. This promotes listening skills and audience reading.
 Readers’ theater – students practice reading their script parts. After practicing their parts, they
present the script to an audience of parents or peers without memorizing the script.
 Repeated readings – students practice reading a selection until it is read perfectly.
 Tape – assisted reading – students read along in their books as they listen to an audiotaped
recording of their book by a fluent reader. This has been called “talking books”.

Remedial Instruction in READING

B. Correcting Perceptual and Decoding Deficits in Word Recognition
 We can identify the student who has insufficient competence in the visual analysis of words in
two ways. First, the student, when pronouncing words verbally, selects inappropriate elements
to sound out and often he/she tries again and again to use the same analysis even when it does
not work. The second way can be done when the teacher shows him/her the word covering up
parts of it, if the student is able to recognize it, then at least one of his/her problems in word
recognition is faulty visual analysis (Ekwall & Shanker, 1988).

C. Definition of Terms
1. Alphabetic Knowledge: understanding that letters represent sound so that words may be read by
saying the sounds represented by the letters, and words may be spelled by writing the letters that
represent the sounds in a word.
2. Sight-Word Knowledge: all words any one reader can recognize instantly (with automaticity) not
necessarily with meaning.
3. Basic Sight Words: a designated list of words, usually of high utility.
4. Knowledge on Sound-Symbol Correspondence: (a.k.a. graphophonic knowledge) the readers’ ability
to use phonics, phonemic, and structural analysis knowledge.

D. Correcting Sight-Word Knowledge Deficit

1. Write a sentence on the chalkboard with the new word used in context. Underline the word.
2. Let students read the sentence and attempt to say the new word using context clues along with
other word-attack skills. If you are introducing a new story, it is especially important that you do not
tell them each new word in advance, as this deprives them of the opportunity to apply word-attack
skills themselves.
3. Discuss the meaning of the word or how it is used in talking and writing. Try to tie to something in
their experience. If possible, illustrate the word with a picture or a concrete object.
4. Write the word as students watch. Ask them to look for certain configuration clues such as double
letters, extenders, and descenders. Also ask them to look for any well-known phonograms or word
families, e.g. ill, ant, ake, but do not call attention to little words in longer words.
 5. Ask students to write the word themselves and to be sure have them say the word while they write
it.
6. Have students make up and write sentences in which the word is used in context. Have them read
these sentences to each other and discuss them.

E. Correcting Basic Sight Vocabulary Deficit

1. Have the students trace the word; write it on paper, or use chalk or magic slates.
2. Have the students repeat the word each time it is written.
3. Have the students write the word without looking at the flash card; then compare the two.
4. Create “study buddies.” Match learners in the classroom with fellow students who have mastered
the words. Take time to teach the “tutors” how to reinforce new words. Provide a big reward to
both tutor and learner once the learner has attained the goal.
5. Provide reinforcement games for students to use on their own or with their study buddies. Games
may be open-ended game boards or developed by levels according to the sub-lists.
6. Provide charts, graphs, and other devices for students to display their progress. These serve as
excellent motivators, especially since students are competing with themselves rather than each
other.
7. Use your imagination. Have students dramatize phrases, build a sight-word “cave,” practice words
while lining up, read sight-word “plays,” etc.

F. Correcting Knowledge on Sound-Symbol Correspondence

Vowel Rules or Principles and Accent Generalizations

1. In words containing a single vowel letter at the end of the word, the vowel letter usuallyhas the
long vowel sound. (Note that this rule refers to words and not just syllables.) There is a similar rule
for single word letters at the end of syllables.
2. In syllables containing a single vowel letter at the end of the syllable, the vowel letter may have
either the long or short vowel sound. Try the long sound first. (Note that this has the same effect as
rule 1.)
3. A single vowel in a syllable usually has the short vowel sound if it is not the last letter or is not
followed by r, w, or l. When explaining this to students it is often helpful to indicate that a single
vowel in a closed syllable is usually short. Students should be taught that a closed syllable is one in
which there is a consonant on the right-hand side. They will also need to know, as indicated above,
the r, w, and l control rules.
4. Vowels followed by r usually have a sound that is neither long nor short
5. A y at the beginning of a word has the “y” consonant sound; y at the end of a single-syllable word,
when preceded by a consonant, usually has the long I sound; and y at the end of a multi-syllable
word, when preceded by a consonant, usually has the long e sound. (Some people hear it as short
i.)
6. In words ending with vowel-consonant-silent e the e is silent and the first vowel may be either long
or short. Try the long sound first. In teaching this rule, stress that the student should be flexible; i.e.
try the short vowel sound if the long one does not form a word in his or her speaking-listening
vocabulary. It has been demonstrated that students who are taught to be flexible in attacking
words when applying rules such as this become more adept at using word-attack skills than those
who are not taught this flexibility.
7. When aj, ay, ea, ee, and oa are found together, the first vowel is usually long and the second is
usually silent.
8. The vowel pair ow may have either the sound heard in cow or the sound heard in crow.
9. When au, aw, ou, oi, and oy are found together, they usually blend to form a diphthong.
10. The oo sound is either long as in moon or short as in book.
11. If a is the only vowel in a syllable and is followed by l or w, then the a is usually neither long nor
short.
NOTE: Accent has less importance for a corrective reader than the vowel rules. This is true partially because a
student who properly attacks a new word in his or her speaking-listening vocabulary but not sight vocabulary
is likely to get the right accent without any knowledge of accent generalizations.
 Also, teach students the use of affixes so they will have better understanding of contractions,
inflectional and derivational endings for change tense, number form and function. These will lead to students’
sufficient use of structural analysis strategy.

G. Remedial Vocabulary Instruction

Vocabulary is initially acquired in four ways:

 reading and conversation

 direct instruction (when a teacher or auto-instructional program is used intentionally to build
vocabulary power)
 self-instruction (when words are looked up in a dictionary or when a child asks other people for
meanings of words)
 mental manipulation (while thinking, speaking,and writing)

4. Considerations in remedial vocabulary instruction

Connect vocabulary instruction to the natural processes of word learning. The literature on vocabulary
acquisition tends to divide the teaching of vocabulary into five phases. These are:

f. Disposition – opening the student’s mind and will to engage new words.
g. Integration – establishing ties between the meaning of a new word and the student’s existing
knowledge.
h. Repetition – provisions for practice distributed over time, as well as opportunities for frequent
encounters with the word in similar and differing contexts.
i. Interaction and meaningful use – social situations conducive to using new words in interactions with
others and, thus, mentally referencing new words in listening, reading, writing, and speaking.
j. Self-instruction – maintaining an awareness of new words outside the classroom.
5. Concept-Based Approach to Vocabulary Building
a. Identify the relevant and irrelevant features of the concept in question.
b. Provide examples of the concept.
c. Provide examples of irrelevant but loosely related concepts with which it might be compared.
d. Relate the concept by some possible smaller or subordinating concepts.
e. Relate or categorize the concept by some possible larger or superordinating concepts.
f. Relate or categorize the concept alongside equal or coordinating terms.
6. Motor Imaging
It appears that even the highest forms of vocabulary and concept learning have psychomotor
foundations, or equivalents. Hence, motor movements associated with certain stimuli can become
interiorized as a “symbolic meaning” (Piaget, 1963 in Manzo and Manzo, 1993). There are three
considerable advantages to knowing this where remediation is concerned:

d. First, since physical-sensory or proprioceptive learning can be interiorized, they also can be self-
stimulating, and as such, they are easier to rehearse and recall with the slightest mental reminder,
as well as from external stimulation.
e. Second, proprioceptive learning is so basic to human learning that it is common to all learners, fast
and slow, and hence, ideal for heterogeneously grouped classes.
f. Third, the act of identifying and acting out a word becomes a life experience in itself with the word
– a value that Frederick Duffellmeyer (1980) in Manzo and Manzo (1993) demonstrated when he
successfully taught youngsters words via the “experiential” approach.

Remedial Instruction in LISTENING

A. Factors Affecting Students’ Listening Comprehension
1. Internal factors – refer to the learner characteristics, language proficiency, memory, age,
gender, background knowledge as well as aptitude, motivation, and psychological and
physiological factors
2. External factors - are mainly related to the type of language input and tasks and the context in
which listening occurs
 B. Internal Factors
1. Problems in language proficiency (cover problems on phonetics and phonology like phonetic
discrimination, and phonetic varieties; problems in grammar; and lexicological problems)
2. Poor background knowledge
3. Lack of motivation to listen
4. Psychological factors
5. Other internal factors (age, attention span, memory span, reaction and sensitivity)
C. External Factors
1. Speed of delivery and different accents of the speakers
2. The content and task of listening materials
3. Context - refers to the spatial-temporal location of the utterance, i.e. on the particular time and
particular place at which the speaker makes an utterance and the particular time and place at
which the listener hears or reads the utterance.
4. Co-text - It refers to the linguistic context or the textual environment provided by the discourse
or text in which a particular utterance occurs. Co-text constrains the way in which we interpret
the response. Here we can infer that the person is not going to a picnic by judging from the co-
text.
A: Are you coming to Baguio with us?
B: I have a paper to finish by Monday.

D. How to Improve Students’ Listening Comprehension

1. Teach pronunciation, stress, and intonation of the critical sounds of English
2. Practice sound discrimination, liaisons, and incomplete plosives
3. Recognize stressed and unstressed words
4. Enrich vocabulary
5. Teach grammar
6. Practice inferring information not directly stated
7. Improve skills in predicting
8. Teach note-taking skills

Remedial Instruction in SPEAKING

A. What makes speaking difficult (Brown, 2001)
1. Clustering
2. Redundancy
3. Reduced forms
4. Performance variables
5. Colloquial language
6. Rate of delivery
7. Stress, rhythm, and intonation
8. Interaction

B. Teaching Pronunciation
Below are techniques and practice materials (as cited in Murcia, Brinton, and Goodwin, 1996) in
teaching pronunciation which have been used traditionally and continue to be utilized in speaking
classes.

1. Listen and imitate. Learners listen to a model provided by the teacher and then repeat or imitate it.
2. Phonetic training. Articulatory descriptions, articulatory diagrams, and a phonetic alphabet are
used.
3. Minimal Pair drills. These provide practice on problematic sounds in the target language through
listening discrimination and spoken practice. Drills begin with word-level then move to sentence-
level.
 4. Contextualized minimal pairs. The teacher established the setting or context then key vocabulary is
presented. Students provide meaningful response to sentence stem.
5. Visual aids. These materials are used to cue production of focus sounds.
6. Tongue twisters
7. Developmental approximation drills. Second language speakers take after the steps that English-
speaking children follow in acquiring certain sounds.
8. Practice of vowel shifts and stress shifts related by affixation
Vowel shift: mime (long i) mimic (short i)
Sentence context: Street mimes oftenmimic the gestures of passersby.
Stress shift: PHOtograph phoTOGraphy
Sentence context: I can tell from these photographs that you are very good at
photography.
9. Reading aloud/recitation. Passages and scripts are used for students to practice and then read
aloud focusing on stress, timing, and intonation.
10. Recording of learners’ production. Playback allows for giving of feedback and self-evaluation.

C. The Use of Accuracy-based Activities

Accuracy precedes fluency. Form-focused activities prepare students for communicative tasks.
These activities have a high degree of control and focuses on specific language components. To
strike a balance, Hedge (2000) describes how to make accuracy-based activities meaningful.

1. Contextualized practice.This aims to establish the link between form and function. The activity
should highlight the situation where the form is commonly used.
2. Personalizing language. Personalized practice encourages learners to express their ideas, feelings,
and opinions. These activities help learners to use language in interpersonal interactions. A variety
of gambits or useful expressions should be provided.
3. Building awareness of the social use of language. This involves understanding social conventions
in interaction. Communication strategies are directly taught and practiced through contextualized
activities.
4. Building confidence. The key is to create a positive climate in classroom where learners are
encouraged to take risks and engage in activities.

D. Talking to Second Language Learners in the beginning level

Cary (1997) suggests that teachers need to make speech modifications as a form of instructional
support when teaching with second language learners.

1. Speak at standard speed. This means providing more and slightly longer pauses to give students
more time to make sense of the utterances.
2. Use more gestures, movement, and facial expressions. These provide emphasis on words and give
learners extra clues as they search for meaning.
3. Be careful with fused forms. Language compressions or reduces forms can be difficult for
learners. Use these forms without overusing or eliminating them altogether.
4. Use shorter, simpler, sentences.
5. Use specific names instead of pronouns.

Remedial Instruction in WRITING

A. Areas of Difficulty for Students with Writing Problems (Troia, 2002; Troia & Graham, 2003)
1. Knowledge Difficulties
Students with writing problems show:
a. Less awareness of what constitutes good writing and how to produce it;
b. Restricted knowledge about genre-specific text structures (e.g., setting or plot elements in a
narrative);
c. Poor declarative, procedural, and conditional strategy knowledge (e.g., knowing that one
should set goals for writing, how to set specific goals, and when it is most beneficial to alter
those goals);
d. Limited vocabulary;
e. Underdeveloped knowledge of word and sentence structure (i.e., phonology, morphology, and
syntax);
f. Impoverished, fragmented, and poorly organized topic knowledge;
g. Difficulty accessing existing topic knowledge; and
h. Insensitivity to audience needs and perspectives, and to the functions their writing is intended
to serve.
2. Skill Difficulties
Students with writing problems:
a. Often do not plan before or during writing;
b. Exhibit poor text transcription (e.g., spelling, handwriting, and punctuation);
c. Focus revision efforts (if they revise at all) on superficial aspects of writing (e.g., handwriting,
spelling, and grammar);
d. Do not analyze or reflect on writing;
e. Have limited ability to self regulate thoughts, feelings, and actions throughout the writing
process;
f. Show poor attention and concentration; and
g. Have visual motor integration weaknesses and fine motor difficulties.
3. Motivation Difficulties
Students with writing problems:
a. Often do not develop writing goals and subgoals or flexibly alter them to meet audience, task,
and personal demands;
b. Fail to balance performance goals, which relate to documenting performance and achieving
success, and mastery goals, which relate to acquiring competence;
c. Exhibit maladaptive attributions by attributing academic success to external and uncontrollable
factors such as task ease or teacher assistance, but academic failure to internal yet
uncontrollable factors such as limited aptitude;
d. Have negative self efficacy (competency) beliefs;
e. Lack persistence; and
f. Feel helpless and poorly motivated due to repeated failure.

B. Qualities of Strong Writing Instruction

In order for teachers to support all students' writing ability development, certain qualities of the
writing classroom must be present. Four core components of effective writing instruction constitute
the foundation of any good writing program:
1. Students should have meaningful writing experiences and be assigned authentic writing tasks that
promote personal and collective expression, reflection, inquiry, discovery, and social change.
2. Routines should permit students to become comfortable with the writing process and move
through the process over a sustained period of time at their own rate.
3. Lessons should be designed to help students master craft elements (e.g., text structure, character
development), writing skills (e.g., spelling, punctuation), and process strategies (e.g., planning and
revising tactics).
4. A common language for shared expectations and feedback regarding writing quality might include
the use of traits (e.g., organization, ideas, sentence fluency, word choice, voice, and conventions).
C. Teaching Handwriting
1. Curriculum Considerations
a. Place special emphasis on difficult-to-form letters and those that are frequently reversed like p,
q, b & d.
b. Introduce lowercase letters before upper-case letters, unless they are formed using similar
strokes like C, c
c. Group letters with common strokes, for instance o, c, d & a.
d. Stagger the introduction of easily confused letters like b, d, p & q.
e. Model the formation of individual upper- and lowercase letters and, for cursive, difficult letter
transitions
f. Guide letter formation through visual cues like verbal descriptions, numbered dots and arrows,
even short anecdotes about letters.
g. Conduct activities to reinforce letter recognition and naming
h. Ensure that students practice using a comfortable and efficient tripod pencil grasp.
i. Demonstrate appropriate posture and paper positioning for their handedness.
j. Develop handwriting fluency through frequent writing and speed trials, but stress the
importance of legible handwriting.
2. Strategies for Remediation
a. In the primary grades, allocate 60–75 minutes per week for handwriting instruction.
b. Encourage students to compare letters to discover patterns and to highlight their similarities
and differences.
c. Give students opportunities to reinforce target letters by tracing them, copying them, and
writing them from memory.
d. Monitor students’’ handwriting and immediately reinforce for correct letter formation, spacing,
alignment, size, slant, and line quality.
e. Ask students to self-evaluate their handwriting and to set goals for improving specific aspects of
their handwriting each day.
f. Encourage students to correct poorly formed letters and to rewrite illegible work.
D. Teaching Spelling
1. Curriculum Accommodations
a. Spelling vocabulary includes words drawn from children’s reading materials, children’s writing,
self-selected words, high-frequency word lists and pattern words.
b. Teach students phonemic awareness and phoneme-grapheme associations in kindergarten
and first grade. Common spelling patterns (e.g., phonograms or rime families) are taught in
first and second grades. Morphological structures (i.e., roots and affixes) and helpful spelling
rules (e.g., add -es to make words ending in s, z, x, ch, or sh plural) are taught in second grade
and beyond.
c. Teach students systematic and effective strategies for studying new spelling words (e.g.,
mnemonic spelling links, multi-sensory strategies).
d. Periodically review previously taught spelling words to promote retention.
e. Monitor and reinforce correct use of spelling vocabulary
f. Teach and encourage students to use dictionaries, spell checkers, and other resources to
determine the spelling of unknown words
g. Use wall charts to help students master spelling “demons” and other difficult words.

“Doing your best is more important than being the best. But, if you can be the best, then
strive to become the best!”

Prepared by: Ezekiel C. Gometer, LPT