2003
Annual Conference:
Dyslexia —Taking a Closer Look
Friday, October 10, 2003
8 :00 AM. - 4:00 P.M.
LOCATION: Radisson Hotel
Route One and Old Lincoln Highway, Trevose, PA
Exit 351 (Old Exit 28) Pennsylvania Turnpike
Keynote Address: Maryanne Wolf, Ed.D.
Conference Program
Participants
The Janet L. Hoopes Award
Keynote Address
Maryanne Wolf, Ed.D.
From RAN to RAVE-O:
The Assessment and Intervention of Fluency Issues in Dyslexia
Maryanne
Wolf is Director of the Center for Reading and Language
Research
at Tufts University and a Professor of
Child Development in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child
Development. She received her doctorate from Harvard University,
where she began her work on the neurological underpinnings
of reading, language, and dyslexia. Prof. Wolf was awarded
a Fulbright Fellowship in Germany, the Distinguished Professor
of the year Award from the Massachusetts Psychological
Association, and the Norman Geschwind Lecture Award from
the International Dyslexia Association for neuroscience
research in dyslexia. Along with colleagues Dr. Robin Morris
and Dr. Maureen Lovett, Prof. Wolf received an NICHD Shannon
Award for Innovative Research and two five-year NICHD grants
to investigate new approaches to reading intervention.
She recently edited Dyslexia, Fluency, and the Brain (2001)
and is the author of the forthcoming book, Plato’s
Rebellion: The Story and Science of Written Language and
Its Disorders, published by Harper-Collins.
This keynote will describe the history of two major hypotheses
on reading disabilities, the phonological core deficit
model and the Double-Deficit Hypothesis. The role of naming
speed and fluency deficits in reading failure will be discussed
as the basis of a new intervention for fluency and comprehension:
the RAVE-O program. Results from a five-year NICHD study
will be presented.
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Program
11:00am |
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A. Nimble Numeracy: Fluency and
Automaticity in Arithmetic
Speaker: Phyllis Fischer, Ph.D.
Becoming fluent with representing numbers with base-ten language and numerals
is often difficult for children with learning disabilities. The activities
presented help children become fluent with the oral and written language used
to represent the concepts of the number system. Speed drills for facts will
also be demonstrated.
Chair: Charles J. Shupe, M.Ed., MS, Principal, Radnor Elementary School.
B. Reading Achievement, Culture, and Difference: Issues and Implications
Speaker: Vivian L. Gadsden, Ed.D.
This presentation will address salient issues in reading achievement and the
ways these issues have been examined within the context of families, culture,
and difference as well as assessing, reducing, and mediating risk factors for
learners.
Chair: Kathleen A. Scott, M.S., CCC/SLP, Adjunct Professor, Temple University.
C. Steppingstones to School Success:
Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills
Speaker: Ruth Kaminski, Ph.D.
This presentation will provide an introduction to and overview of Dynamic Indicators
of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS™). The rationale and conceptual
foundations for DIBELS™ will be presented followed by a description of
the measures. The use of the DIBELS™ Assessment System for educational
decision-making will be described.
Chair: Claudia S. Mahon, M.Ed., Director of Special Education, Bensalem Township
School District.
D. A Synthetic, Simultaneous, Multisensory
Approach to Teaching Paragraph Writing
Speaker: Timothy P. Madigan, M.Ed.
This is an illustration of a synthetic, simultaneous, multisensory approach
to teaching paragraph writing that is successful with middle school students
with dyslexia.
Chair: Leslie H. McLean, Ed.D., Headmaster, Hill Top Preparatory School.
E. The Connection Between Reading and
Language
Speaker: Jenny Roberts, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Reading is fundamentally a language-based skill and dyslexia is a language-based
disorder. This presentation will explore the relationships between spoken and
written language. The crucial links between phonological awareness and decoding,
and spoken vocabulary and reading comprehension will be examined. Studies examining
the reading outcomes of children with spoken lanuage impairments will be discussed.
Chair: William F. Duffy, Ed.D., Director of Pupil Services, Marple Newtown
School District.
F. Legal Rights
Speaker: Marcie Romberger, Esquire
A discussion about a child with disabilities rights under The Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act. This presentation will discuss evaluations, IEPs,
appropriate programs and remedies.
Chair: Pam Swayne, Tutor, Chair of the Pittsburgh Regional Group of the Pennsylvania
Branch of the International Dyslexia Association.
G. Shame and Despair as Correlates
of Dyslexia
Speaker: Michael Ryan, Ph.D.
This presentation will outline how growing up with dyslexia can amplify the
feelings of shame and despair. The characteristics of the feelings will be
discussed and specific interventions will be recommended.
Chair: Nancy P. Harris, M.Ed., Educational Consultant, Montgomery County Intermediate
Unit.
H. Educating K-12 Students With Dyslexia:
The Tennessee Model
Speaker: Diane J. Sawyer, Ph.D.
This address will provide a brief history of the Tennessee Center for the Study
and Treatment of Dyslexia and its approach to diagnosis, teacher training,
and public service. Recent research, including a parent survey to support early
identification will be described.
Chair: Stephen Soffer, Ph.D., Psychologist, The Children’s Hospital of
Philadelphia.
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1:45pm
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AFTERNOON
SESSIONS I-P |
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I.
A Roundtable Discussion on What Makes Good Intervention
Speaker: Maryanne Wolf, Ed.D.
This discussion will link the lecture’s research to the need for connecting
good theory with best practice.
Chair: Rebecca B. Jackal, M.A., CCC, Speech Pathologist, Moss Rehabilitation
Hospital.
J. Red Flags in Psychoeducational Assessment of LD
Speaker: Harris Finkelstein, Ph.D
This presentation is intended as an overview of the elements of a comprehensive
psycho-educational evaluation. The constellation of test finding associated
with a variety of learning disorders will be reviewed with particular attention
to reading disorders.
Chair: Marlyn Vogel, Ed.D., Psychologist, School District of Hatboro-Horsham. K.
Speeding Up the Reading Processors for Automatic
Decoding
Speaker: Phyllis Fischer, Ph.D.
Although many students with dyslexia master individual decoding skills readily,
bringing those skills to a level of automaticity that allows fluent reading
is often very difficult. This presentation will demonstrate teaching materials
and activities that develop fluency on letter units and their sounds, and on
the words themselves. Fluency in context will also be discussed.
Chair: Amy Price, M.Ed., Special Education Teacher, Albert M. Greenfield Elementary
School.
L.
Homework Help for Parents: No one ever died from
doing homework, however…
Speaker: Nancy E. Hennessy, M.Ed.
Why is it that the mere mention of “homework” often signals the
onset of behaviors that are associated with anxiety, frustration, and fear,
especially for students with learning disabilities, their parents and even
their teachers? Perhaps because we know these students, in comparison to their
peers, are more negative about homework, are less likely to complete assignments,
are more resistant and perceive themselves as less competent. At the heart
of solving the “homework dilemma” is a thorough knowledge of the
student, including what he needs to learn, how his learning disability affects
learning, and whether or not he has the skills and strategies necessary to
succeed in school. This session will focus on solutions including communication,
organization, and study strategies, so that parents can collaborate with educators
to guide students in overcoming the homework hurdles.
Chair: Karen L. Davis, M.Ed., Principal, Dorothea Simmons Elementary School.
M.
Relationships Between Mathematics and Reading Disabilities
Speaker: Nancy C. Jordan, Ed.D.
This session will present the findings of our NICHD funded longitudinal investigation
of math disabilities, with and without co-morbid reading disabilities. Implications
for diagnosis and intervention will be discussed.
Chair: Carol M. Pate, Ed.D., Chair, Department of Education, Chestnut Hill
College.
N.
Profiles of Middle School Students Who Do Not Pass
High-Stakes Reading Tests
Speaker: Deborah F. Knight, Ph.D.
This presentation will describe the profiles of eighth grade students who did
not meet criterion on a high-stakes reading test. Cognitive and academic profiles
of different readers will be presented. Implications for instruction for these
students with persistent reading difficulties will be discussed.
Chair: Virginia L. Biasotto, Founder, Reading Assist Institute.
O.
Comprehension
Speaker: Joan R. Knight, MA, MS
Each sentence in a paragraph contains a word that moves the passage along.
The words form main ideas. In the process, literal and inferential comprehension,
writing, and vocabulary are developed.
Chair: Kate Wartchow, Ph.D., Associate Director, Learning Resources Center,
University of Pennsylvania
P.
Direct, Explicit, Sequential, Structured, Systematic,
Multisensory Instruction: What Exactly Does It
Look Like?
Speaker: Mary Ellen Cummings, M.Ed.
This new approach to professional development is structured to complement and
upgrade your reading instruction. Participants will practice timely, research-tested
strategies using manipulatives, materials and techniques that can be incorporated
into and will enhance any program or method presently being used.
Chair: Demetra Haines, M.A., Director of Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment,
Upper Dublin School District. |
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Participants
Mary
Ellen Cummings, M.Ed., Director,
The Learning Lab of Delaware Harris
Finkelstein, Ph.D., Psychologist, Concord Behavioral
Health, Inc., Wilmington, DE
Phyllis
E. Fischer, Ph.D., Professor of Learning Disabilities,
University of Maine at Farmington
Vivian
L. Gadsden, Ed.D., Associate Professor Of Education,
Director, National Center of Fathers and Families,
University of Pennsylvania
Nancy
E. Hennessy, M.Ed., Educational Consultant,
The Consulting Network, NJ, President, International
Dyslexia Association
Nancy
C. Jordan, Ed.D., Associate Professor, University
of Delaware
Ruth
Kaminski, Ph.D., Research Associate, Eugene Research
Institute, University of Oregon
Deborah
F. Knight, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, University
of Delaware
Joan
R. Knight, MA, MS, Director, Knight Education,
Inc.
Timothy
P. Madigan, M.Ed., Teacher, The Gow School,
New York
Jenny
Roberts, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Assistant Professor,
Temple University
Marcie
Romberger, Esq., Associate, McAndrews Law Offices,
Strafford, PA
Michael
Ryan, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist, Ryan & Ryan
Psychological Associates, Grand Rapids, MI
Diane
J. Sawyer, Ph.D., Chair of Excellence in Dyslexic
Studies, Middle Tennessee State University
Maryanne
Wolf, Ed.D., Director, Center for Reading
and Language Research, Tufts University, MA
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Janet L. Hoopes Award
Recipient of the Janet L. Hoopes Award for 2003
Elizabeth (Lisa) P. Simon
The Janet L. Hoopes Award was initiated by the Board
of Directors of the Philadelphia Branch of the International
Dyslexia Association in 1993. It is presented each
year at the Fall Conference to an individual or individuals
in the Greater Philadelphia area who have made a significant
contribution to the education of people with learning
differences.
The
Pennsylvania Branch of the International Dyslexia
Association
is pleased to present the Janet L. Hoopes
Award to Elisabeth P. (Lisa) Simon, founding executive
director of Reading ASSIST® Institute in Wilmington,
Delaware.
Reading
ASSIST® is a non-profit organization that
trains teachers, tutors and volunteers in a research-based,
multisensory structured language curriculum. They,
in turn, provide help to children at risk for reading
failure. Volunteers provide this individual instruction
to struggling readers in schools and community centers
in Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey at no charge.
Lisa
Simon first became involved with Reading ASSIST® in
1986, when her son, John, now 25, was diagnosed with
dyslexia and she was looking for effective reading
instruction for him. She was referred to Virginia (Ginger)
Biasotto, as someone who had been helpful to children
with this learning difference. At that time, Ginger
was developing what became the Reading ASSIST® curriculum
and training a small group of volunteers to provide
remediation through an Orton-Gillingham-based curriculum.
The meeting of Lisa and Ginger benefited John (who
not only learned to read, but subsequently became a
successful student and college graduate), and, through
the years, countless others. Together, Lisa and Ginger
realized that many more children could become successful
readers if they had access to the Reading ASSIST® curriculum.
To move this bold dream from vision to reality, in
1989, Ginger incorporated Reading ASSIST ® Institute
as a non-profit organization and asked Lisa to be the
executive director.
During
Lisa’s tenure, her passion for Reading
ASSIST® and her knowledge of the issues surrounding
reading helped Reading ASSIST® grow from a “kitchen
table” organization to that of a regional non-profit
resource and training center for teachers and tutors.
A short list of her major accomplishments includes:
RAI’s accreditation by IMSLEC (International
Multisensory Structured Language Education Council),
affirming the quality of RAI’s multisensory,
research-based curriculum, materials and methods; recognition
as a provider of professional development by the departments
of education in Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey;
and RAI’s relocation, first to the Edgemoor Community
Center, and finally, in 2000, to its current centrally
located site in Wilmington’s Community Service
Building. Lisa also initiated a five-year longitudinal
study, in partnership with the Catholic Diocese of
Wilmington schools, to assess how multisensory reading
instruction, as delivered through the RAI curriculum
in a classroom setting, affects reading achievement
and spelling outcomes in children in kindergarten through
third grades. She retired in 2002, after 16 years of
dedication to Reading ASSIST®.
Lisa
Simon first sought out Reading ASSIST® to
help her son. Her enduring contributions to helping
children in need of specialized reading instruction
reach far beyond her immediate family, her husband,
James, and their four children (Christopher, Jeffrey,
John and Edward). Lisa Simon stands as a role model
of motivation, perseverance and vision, both for professionals
and for parents of children with learning differences.
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