NCJ Number
126599
Journal
Journal of Correctional Education Volume: 41 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1990) Pages: 110-114
Date Published
1990
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Virginia's Department of Corrections is emphasizing literacy as a means to ensure that youthful inmates can acquire and maintain employment upon release. They developed a project which is to be implemented in a learning center in the Virginia Department of Corrections Division of Youth Services and which uses Heckelman's Neurological Impress as its design to promote fluency.
Abstract
The format of the project is to give repeated practice in oral reading through a perceptual conditioning approach. The goals were to increase the functional sight word vocabulary of select students, which would thereby increase automaticity of reading words and increase fluency in contextual reading. Additional goals in the design of the project were to use paraprofessionals or volunteers and materials in such a way as not to incur additional expenses and to use a protocol which would fit the scheduling constraints of the institution. The students are males from 16 to 19 in reading levels 50 to 83 percent below normal grade level. Mental ability ranged from I.Q.'s of 90 to 72 as reported on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. The method requires the student to read in unison with a teacher or paraprofessional, initially the same thing several times to establish a fluent, normal reading pattern. Data from the pre- and post-testing indicated a cumulative gain of four years and two months. The average gain per pupil was approximately one month in sight word vocabulary per hour of instruction. 3 tables, 2 appendixes, author notes, and 11 references (Author abstract modified)