Assignment 2a Personal Report - Exceptionality

Rebecca Oliver
PME 843: Effective Instruction
Queen’s University

I currently tutor a student who experiences difficulties with his orthographic learning. Castles, Rastle, K., &
Nation, K. (2018) stated “Orthographic learning is an umbrella term that encompasses both the
acquisition of the word-specific knowledge required to access a particular word’s meaning from print and
also the accumulation of more general knowledge about orthographic regularities within the writing
system” (p. 19). Just as this quote suggests, the student often experiences difficulties in reading fluency,
since they are not able to rapidly and automatically recognize words. This student relies on decoding
strategies (e.g., sounding out common words) that should be stored in long term memory which impacts
reading fluency. This is referred to as orthographic mapping. Orthographic mapping is the process we use
to store words from our working memory into our long term memory. This student has difficulties with his
orthographic mapping, which leads to lack of fluency and even comprehension difficulties. An example
provided by Carlolina Orton-Gillingham (2020) discusses how students have already orthographically
mapped their name. This means that most students don’t ever decode when it comes to seeing their own
name - they know it rapidly and automatically. Behavioural wise, reading can be very strenuous with this
student, since they are often using their decoding strategies for multiple words on each page within a text.
This can lead to the student feeling overwhelmed and fostering a sense of doubt in himself and his
abilities. Teachers can further investigate to identify what the challenge is by performing comprehension
assessments, anecdotal notes of fluency and even orthography assessments on both orthographic
mapping and orthographic processing. I personally use different strategies for developing fluency (which
will also help with comprehension) with this student. I first give explicit work on fluency (involving speed
and accuracy) such as repeated timed reading of single word lists to develop automatic recognition of
grapheme patterns. I also practise and monitor the progress of oral reading with repeated readings of
continuous texts. For homework, I encourage students to participate in daily reading of a text that is
around their “reading level”. In terms of classroom accommodations, since this student may experience
difficulty with reading directions, I ensure to orally review written directions and/or provide demonstrations
to support comprehension, as needed. Since this student also has difficulties with resilience, I ensure to
foster resilience when tutoring and in the classroom. Hurlington (2010) discusses the importance of a
teacher getting to know their students, the students getting to know each other and affirming a student’s
strengths (p. 3). All three of these relationship building exercises, can promote resilience in and outside of
the classroom. I personally even read culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy that promotes positive
affirmations in the classroom. Believing in oneself and our abilities is also an essential factor to success.

References

Castles, Rastle, K., & Nation, K. (2018). Ending the Reading Wars : Reading Acquisition From Novice to
Expert. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 19(1), 5–51.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100618772271

Orthography. CAROLINA ORTON GILLINGHAM. (2020).

https://carolinaortongillingham.com/orthography/
Hurlington. (2010). Bolstering resilience in students teachers as protective factors. What Works?
Research into Practice.