Robertson Public School

A quality education in a caring, innovative environment

Telephone02 4885 1284

Emailrobertson-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Learning support

Tutoring

Supporting individual students to achieve literacy and numeracy goals focused on helping students to "close gaps" in  their learning has seen the implementation of two very successful programs implemented by a committed and dedicated team of volunteers.

Research shows that the most effective programs for reading instruction incorporate three key elements: phonics, sight word recognition and supported reading. The Learning Support Team at Robertson Public School drew on a range of strategies from evidence based practices to put together the learning program for Literacy and then trained tutors to deliver this program to students.

The Numeracy program utilises identified key skills and understandings students need in Years 3 and 4 to ensure they consolidate place value concepts, non-count-by-one strategies for addition and subtraction, and strategies for developing the fundamentals in multiplication and division.

The Literacy program involves an intensive 20 minute session three times per week where students are supported in achieving increased sight word recognition, increased accuracy when reading, improved reading fluency and comprehension.

The Numeracy program involves an intensive 20 minute session three times per week where students are supported in achieving efficient strategies for addition and subtraction, place value skills and concepts and strategies for consolidating multiplication and division.

A Learning Support teacher oversees the implementation and supports tutors in their role, communicates progress to parents and staff, and ensures weekly resourcing.

The program has had so much success that the school hopes to provide an on-going program in 2017. The school  welcomes  any community members who would like to become a volunteer tutor. If interested, please contact the principal, Susan Matthews at Robertson Public School on 48851284.

What is MULTILIT?

MULTILIT, (or ‘Making Up Lost Time in Literacy') is a research-based initiative of Macquarie University, which aims to address the needs of students with reading disabilities and similar problems from Year 2 to high school by providing an intensive, structured, systematic program of instruction in reading and related skills carried out within a Positive Teaching environment.

 MULTILIT began in 1995 as the MULTILIT Research and Development Initiative at the Macquarie University Special Education Centre, led by Professor Kevin Wheldall, a research psychologist specialising in the area of learning and behaviour difficulties in children. In 1998, Professor Wheldall and his team of academic researchers and special educators developed and published the first edition of the MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program, based on the key components for effective tuition programs for low-progress readers, as identified by research.

 

Since then, through continuing research and development, MULTILIT has provided assistance to thousands of low-progress readers through a variety of settings, including schools, their own Sydney-based reading clinic, and community projects in New South Wales and far north Queensland. Teachers and other educational professionals are now also able to use the MULTILIT program to help low-progress students make up lost time in literacy.

MultiLit supports our individual tutoring programs in Literacy at Robertson Public School for students in Years 4 and 5. It is delivered by trained volunteers three times per week to individual students.