A study of the Remedial Programme at a HerzliaPrimary School.

Mirah Stein

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Education as a 4th year full-time student.

Centre for Creative Education

October 2007

Contents

Acknowledgments ...... ………………5

Statement of authenticity ...... ……………....6

CHAPTER 1: DESIGNING THE RESEARCH PROJECT...... ………………..

1.1 Introduction...... …………………………7

1.2 Research focus...... ……………….7

1.3 Research questions...... ………………10

1.4 Purposes of research...... ………………11

1.5 Research perspective...... ………………12

1.6 Conceptual framework ...... ……………....13

CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODS...... …………………

2.1 Description and justification of research method...... …………………….14

2.2 Selection of research site...... ………………..16

2.3 Ways of dealing with possible threats to validity...... …………………17

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH FINDINGS...... ………………….

3.1 The purpose and structure of this chapter...... ………………...19

3.2 SECTION 1: THE PROGRAMME...... ……………………

3.2.1 The context of the study...... ……………..19

3.2.2 Selection for the remedial programme...... ……………...21

3.2.3 The organisation of the remedial programme...... ……………….23

3.2.4 The application of reading in the programme...... ……………….26

3.2.5 The sub-programmes in the remedial programme...... ………………..27

3.3 SECTION 2: THE CHILDREN...... …………………..

3.3.1 The three children selected for study...... ………………..31

3.3.2 Background information about Ashley...... ………………...31

3.3.3 Background information about David...... ………………...33

3.3.4 Background information about llana...... …………………..35

3.3.5 How the three children engaged with the programme...... …………………

  • Interview report 1: The remedial teacher, Mrs Venter...... …………….36
  • Interview report 2: The class teacher, Mrs Donald...... …………….43
  • Interview report 3: The facilitator, Lara Stern...... ……………47

3.4 Conclusion...... ………………...48

CHAPTER 4: DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS...... ……………………

4.1 Introduction...... ………………..50

4.2 The main features of the remedial programme...... ………………..50

4.3 The importance of reading within the programme...... …………………52

4.4 The contrast with how reading is taught in a Waldorf school...... ………………………………………………………………………………..53

4.5 How do the skills acquired in the remedial class help the childto cope in the mainstream classroom?…………………………………………………………………………………………54

4.6 The problems of missing mainstream lessons...... ……………..56

4.7 was it possible the children could have the remedial after school hours, as this would mean that they would not have to miss out on the lessons during the day?...... 57

4.8 How does the relationship of the remedial teacher and the child affect learning?...... ………………………...58

4.8 Remedial teaching and the art of observations……………………………………………59

4.9 The importance of patience...... ………….59

4.10 Communication and cooporation between the remedial teacher and theclass teacher...... ……………………..60

4.11 The social and cultural benefits of the inclusion of the remedial programme in the Herzlia system...... ……………………………………………………………………………………61

4.12 How have these children integrated themselves into their class socially…………..63

4.13 Conclusion...... ………….64

Bigliography……………………………………………………………………………………..67

Acknowledgments

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank the following people who have helped and guided me in successfully compiling this thesis through helping me to achieve the goals and outcomes of the course and answer the questions which I set out to answer. A big thank-you to the remedial teacher, Mrs Venter, at Weitzman school who spent hours talking with me about the remedial programme and all the components which make up the programme, as well as giving me a full descriptions of the three children I was researching which really helped to bring the research alive. I also want to thank her for letting me sit in on classes and watch her while teaching. Another thank you goes to both the class teacher, Mrs Venter and the facilitator Lara stern who have the helped me to gain a first-hand insight into how the programme has helped the children. I would like to acknowledge these people for giving up their time and providing me with honest, in-depth and valuable information to enhance my research findings as well as Megan and Janine for the help and support during our meetings. And to Jo Stein thank-you for all the last minute support and guidance, your knowledge was invaluable.

Lastly, I would like to acknowledge and thank my professor, Clive Millar, for guiding me throughout my research. Without his ongoing support and help this thesis would not have been possible - Thank you.

Statement of Authenticity

I, the undersigned, confirm that the research and research report are my own personal work. The report has not been submitted previously (entirely or in part) for a degree or other qualification.

Date: ______

Place: ______

Signature: ______

CHAPTER ONE

1. DESIGNING THE RESEARCH PROJECT

1.1 Introduction

The purpose of this project is to gain insight into an aspect of teaching which I am particularly interested in: remedial teaching. The research approach I have adopted is qualitative as opposed to quantitative as it deals with a case-study, i.e. one small scale, real life situation which I have been researching over approximately nine months during the course of 2007. The research has involved the use of formal and informal interviews, as well as observation and the analysis of children’s personal files.I chose to study one remedial programme in depth in order to gain deeper insight into the nature of remedial teaching as I am considering becoming a remedial teacher.

1.2 Research focus

While deciding on my research focus I kept the following things in mind:

  • My research needed to be manageable as I am currently attending college full-time and have little time to do my fieldwork.
  • I wanted my research to deal with a real school context. I wanted to be able to go into a school and see for myself, “hands-on”, how remedial education was working or not working to help children cope and hopefully, thrive.
  • I wanted my research to hold my attention for the duration of the year and to be of long term benefit and value to me.
  • As a young child in school I attended a remedial programme similar to the one which I decided to research. I wanted to see what went on behind the scenes and what made the programme either a success or a failure.

When thinking about what my research focus would be, I initially wanted to do an experimental research project. Since I am studying Waldorf teaching and I am considering teaching in a mainstream school I was hoping to use my knowledge of Waldorf teaching and conduct research which involved implementing Waldorf teaching methods in a mainstream classroom context in order to compare and contrast the two teaching practices and assess which was more beneficial to the children’s learning. After talking to my professor about the pros and cons of undertaking such a large research project, however, I decided against it.

I thought again about teaching and what it meant to me. I thought about my school experience and what compelled me to become a teacher. It was certainly not the money! Rather, it was almost a “calling”, or a “knowing” that I could help children, especially those with learning difficulties, to have a positive primary school experience such as I was privileged to have had.

As a young child I received remedial lessons, as I needed the extra support. Luckily the school I went to provided a comprehensive and well-developed remedial programme, which I attended throughout primary school. So naturally the second thing that came to my mind was remedial teaching, as it has always remained dear to my heart and is one of the reasons I was attracted to teaching in the first place.

My first instinct was to go back to the primary school where I had received my own schooling. I have fond memories and strong bonds with many of my teachers including my dear remedial teacher Mrs Redomsky. I was kept back in grade two and started received remedial support from then.

The Herzlia group of schools are private schools which have access to good resource materials including books, educational games, computers and activities which helped me to acquire the skills I needed in order to keep up with the rest of my class. The remedial support gave me the confidence to participate in my class lessons and to be confident about my work. It also taught me not to be afraid to ask for help if I did not understand something and that it was not a bad thing if I was not at the same standard as the rest of my classmates and friends. During my primary years at school I was taught that each child is an individual with different strengths and weaknesses and I never had the feeling that I was being compared to the rest of the class.

If I think about remedial teaching, the first thing that springs to mind is my lower primary remedial teacher. Her kindness and support made me feel confident and proud of my work even though I knew I was far from being the brightest in the class. She would always encourage me to do my best and seemed to have an intuitive ability to know when my spirits were down. She made school and learning fun and enjoyable and I really do believe that she contributed greatly to my learning progress in the primary years. Therefore when the idea of doing my research dissertation shifted to remedial teaching, my primary school remedial teacher was the person I knew I should contact. I wanted to research a school remedial programme which I knew really supported learning and a remedial programme which really worked with the children’s individual needs to make the learning experience as positive and enriching for the pupils as possible. Therefore I realized there was only one place where I wanted to do my research and I was sure that my old remedial teacher would be only too pleased to help me during the process.

I called and spoke to my remedial teacher who, as I had expected, was only too happy to help me, especially when I told her that I was considering becoming a remedial teacher. She said, “You can come and do your practical with me.” This put a smile on my face and I said I would call in a couple of days to set up an appointment with her to discuss what I needed to do concerning my research project. When I called I was told that she had suddenly fallen ill and would not be coming back to school until further notice when a diagnosis had been made.

I wanted to do my research in a school where I knew the needs of the children where really catered for and which offered a good and thorough remedial programme. My second option was Herzlia Weitzman. I had done practicals there and my aunt, uncle and mother had gone to the school. While doing my practical there some years ago, I had felt that the school really focused on learning needs of the children in a positive way. I had had a brief interaction with the remedial teacher and she seemed friendly and the children leaving my class to have lessons with her always seemed pleased and happy to go to their remedial lessons.

I called and spoke to the remedial teacher. I explained who I was, what I needed to do and that I had gone to Herzlia Highlands and was going to do my research there with the remedial teacher Mrs Redomsky, but due to circumstances I could not. She was very obliging and so I set up a time to speak to her. After speaking to her informally about what my research entailed she agreed to help me as much as possible and so my research began at Weitzman.

Although I did not have a research question yet, I had a focus as well as a school where I would do my research. The school and the remedial programme had given me my general focus which I would refine and work with as time went by.

1.3 Research questions

Initially I formulated tentative research questions which reflected my interest in remedial education. These questions were:

  • Whether the remedial programme offered by the school was individualized to cater for the different needs of each child,
  • Whether the remedial programme helped children to cope within the classroom situation,
  • How the remedial programme worked and what it included.

These questions were of interest to me because of my first hand experience in a remedial programme. I was eager to assess whether the programme was individualized or if the children were all given the same work. Most importantly, I wanted to know if the work that the children did during the remedial lessons was beneficial and helpful to the learning process they underwent in their normal classroom. In fact, all the questions I wanted to research were based in my personal experience and prompted by my investment in possibly becoming a remedial teacher myself.

After my initial conversation with the remedial teacher and talking to her briefly about the programme, I felt confident about doing my research at Weitzman. I felt I had hands-on experience with the remedial programme offered at Highlands Primary and that focusing on another school with another programme would be beneficial as it would tell me if other schools provided children with as positive a remedial experience as I felt I had received.

1.4 Purposes of the research

I have found Maxwell's distinction between different research purposes helpful (Maxwell 1996).

Personal purpose

The purpose of my research project was personal, as I had hands on experience with remedial teaching and I am considering at a later stage studying further and becoming a remedial teacher. The subject of remedial touches a special place in my heart. My remedial teacher, in fact most of my teachers, were extremely supportive about my learning difficulties. I can remember that I was a shy child. Because I struggled and was often lost in the class, I did not participate much, and only contributed when I was asked an individual question. After staying back and starting remedial support lessons I started to look forward to and really enjoy the time in remedial lessons.

Practical purpose

The practical purpose for this research was firstly that I needed to complete it in order to obtain my bachelor in education. Secondly, because I was thinking about studying further and teaching children with remedial needs, I felt that doing my research on remedial teaching would help me practically in finding out more about what remedial teaching entails and seeing if it was in fact the direction I want to move in. I also wanted to see the difference between teaching a whole class and teaching a child one-on-one, as I am not sure if I want to teach a whole class or individual children who are having difficulties with their learning. This research I think will have prepared me to become a better teacher generally and broadened my knowledge about remedial teaching in particular,at the same time.

Theoretical purpose

My theoretical purpose in this research was that I wished to understand more about remedial teaching, what it entails and how it works.As a pupil I had a child’s perspective of the programme. I wanted to go back as an adult and explore and understand the programme on a deeper theoretical level. I wanted to find out about the impact the programme has on the children; this was very important to me. This would give me a clear understanding of how remedial teaching works as well as allowing me to understand how it helped me when I was young.

1.5 Research perspective

I understand a research perspective to be the glasses which we wear to make things seem clearer. (Maxwell 1996). As a researcher I would almost have to put on a pair of these glasses when I was researching. I wanted to see not only what was on the surface, but also what lay underneath. As a researcher I could put on many different glasses in which to learn more about the remedial programme which I am researching. These perspectives may include: psychological, sociological, linguistic.

After considering my options, however, the perspective I chose was an anthropological one. Anthropology is a form of social science which studies how people live, work and think in natural everyday activities. And this is exactly what I wanted to do in my research; spending time researching a real life remedial programme.

Anthropologists typically use qualitative research as opposed to quanitative research with measurement. I understand qualitative research to have the following characteristics:

  • It attempts to make sense of small-scale, real life situations, and not experimental situations.
  • It describes and interprets what is happening: qualitative research does not measure like quantitative research does.
  • It begins with the subject’s own account in his or her own words, of what is happening.
  • It tries to avoid preconceived understandings of what might be happening.
  • It is an open-ended exploratory approach.
  • It provides insight and raises new questions but does not encourage simple generalizations beyond the situation studied.
  • It is concerned with how to make sense of the situation studied not with explaining cause and effect. (Maykut and Morehouse 1994: 43-47).

1.6 Conceptual framework

My conceptual framework was a common sense one. Because of my positive remedial experience as a young child and because both schools fall under the United Herzlia Schools I assumed that the programme offered by the school where I did my research would provide the children with as good a programme as Highlands Primary did.However, I had no idea of the details of the remedial programme. Furthermore my common sense assumptions about the remedial programme might have turned out to be wrong or misleading as my study progressed. I also considered that the answers to my research questions might differ depending on the school context, though I did not know in which ways they might differ. My research questions remained crude and quite general but I was sure that the more I researched about the programme the more my questions would home in on the key aspects I wanted to find out about.

CHAPTER TWO

RESEARCH METHOD

In this chapter I will give a description of my research method and a justification as to what I am researching and why. As well as justifying the reasons why I selected the specific site at which to conduct my research and what the site includes. I will then deal with possible threats to validity.

2.1 Description and justification of research method

Given my research questions and that I am working in a qualitative research tradition, there were two methods which seemed to be the most appropriate and helpful in my research inquiry.

Interviews, both formal and informal, allowed me to gain the insight and knowledge that I was looking for. Another important method for acquiring my research data was through observation and I spend five days observing the children during their remedial lessons as well as watching and observing the remedial teacher while teaching. I was also given permission by the parents of the three children I am researching to look at the personal files of these children. I wanted to use all these methods as I felt that this would give me a rich source of data which I would be able to work with. It would have been ideal to also interview the children themselves, but permission was not granted for me to do this. Due to time constraints and for practical reasons, I was only able to interview the remedial teacher formally twice although we talked informally on a regular basis.I had one interview with the class teacher of the children who I am conducting my research on and one interview with the facilitator of one of the children. All data was recorded by way of detailed note-taking during the course of the interviews and observations. Over the course of five days, I watched the remedial teacher teaching. I found that this was valuable and helped to bring my data to life.