Abstract

The student population at Walsh Public School, from junior kindergarten to grade eight, is 434. It is situated in a rural area where farming is an important source of income for many families either directly or indirectly. At this school students are very diverse and require a community where they can actively participate in their education and can gain the necessary skills for success in a challenging world. Teachers at Walsh P.S. take every opportunity to create a uniform atmosphere and appreciate open communication.

Development of My Inquiry

During one of my Action Research Project Group sessions Jackie Delong remarked, "I have to feel like I'm helping other " This statement struck me because it encompasses my beliefs as a person, as well as a Learning Resource Teacher (LRT). As a person, I need to feel as though I am a member of a supportive environment. As an LRT, I need to feel as though I am helping my students achieve their goals. Consequently, my research project was given a focus, as one of my foremost concerns is how to aid students most effectively. As an LRT this year I attempted to aid my students in their pursuit of success by developing relationships with their teachers and my administrators which are conducive to improving student learning.

Peter Senge (1990) states, "You cannot have a learning organization without a shared vision...A shared vision...provides a rudder to keep the learning process on course when stresses develop" (p. 209).

As a result, I was determined to discover how I could improve my practice by developing partnerships with my colleagues that would allow me to meet or accommodate the specific needs of my students. My question evolved to become; how can I improve my effectiveness as an LRT through the development of partnerships with my colleagues so that the specific needs of my students can be met or accommodated?

Areas of Concern

My position as the LRT is not only a new assignment, but it is also a part-time (0.80 of a full time equivalent position). The remainder of my time is dispersed at another institution (West Lynn Public School), which equates to two afternoons per six day cycle. The vice-principal at Walsh P.S. is responsible for a portion of resource time as well, which cements a partnership between us. For these reasons, I needed the assistance and support of my colleagues in order to successfully learn and execute my duties as the LRT. It was my hypothesis that the development of effective partnerships would ease my concerns and benefit my students.

The fragmentation of my position cannot be controlled, but it continues to cause great concern. At the center of my anxiety is the belief that I do not have enough time in my resource schedule to effectively accommodate or meet student needs. My journal repeatedly announces, "I feel so awful that my grade two students don't receive enough attention" and "I can't find time..." (L. Huyge, Personal Journal Entry, November 25 & January 9, 2003).

Working with students from many different classrooms meant that I had to collaborate with several teachers. I felt the development of constructive partnerships would aid communication between students, colleagues and parents, as well as facilitate the completion of paperwork.

After several discussions with my colleagues, it became clear to me that a trend should be started which focuses resource time on primary students. This trend would make it possible for junior and intermediate students to remain in the classroom in the future.

Imagine a Solution

After I examined my personal journal, I arrived at several conclusions:

• the primary teachers seemed to be focused on their struggling readers, therefore literacy groups would need to be established
• the creation of a collaborative community would be an essential foundation for my resource program
• effective time management would be essential
• meaningful communication would link all areas of my program
• self-esteem in students would improve if students improved their skills in literacy

Implementing the Solutions

I decided to experiment with the following concepts:

• develop literacy groups
• collaborate with colleagues
• focus on increasing self-esteem

Because the vice-principal and I both perform LRT duties as well as share resource room space, we formed a partnership early on and divided our duties equitably. This partnership was "seamless" and we both "believe that students benefitted from our communication" (Colleague Survey # 4, April 25, 2003). This partnership was effective because we were "equal partners sharing all we have to meet student needs" (Colleague Survey # 4, April 25, 2003).

After speaking with my school's primary teachers, we decided to develop a literacy group consisting of eight grade two students who were experiencing various language difficulties. The twenty minutes before our school day began (8:40 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.) was used to follow The Four Blocks™ model (Cunningham et al., 1999) with the selected eight students for five out of the six days in our school cycle. During this block of time other students in the school came in from recess, organized themselves and listened to announcements before the school day officially began at 9:00 a.m. An improvement in literacy skills was attempted through the use of Making Words lessons (Cunningham & Hall, 1994), writing and guided reading.

A grade one literacy group was also established, but ran at various times during the afternoon. These students required intensive remediation and also followed The Four Blocks™ model (Cunningham et al., 1999). Predominate materials these students used included picture books, leveled books, writing journals, and making words worksheets.

In addition, two junior groups were also formed and were provided with assistance every morning. The focus for these groups was improving literacy skills through the completion of novel studies and response journals.

Data and Analysis

Data collection included the following:

• surveys from colleagues
• surveys from students
• results from report cards
• anecdotal comments

My self-esteem soared one night when Gwen Booker, the grade two teacher, called me at home to tell me about a student that we had been working with. She said he was making words on the blackboard and correctly answered all her questions. Typically, this student would not want to work at the blackboard and would need assistance. This boy was glowing with pride, and so was I after hearing this news. We decided that our efforts must be working and that we should continue with the process.

The students I work with were all given surveys to complete concerning their skills and self-esteem (Appendix A). Every student remarked that their language skills had improved, and every student said their self-esteem improved, except for one student who commented that it did not change.

One individual explained that he knew his language skills had improved because he was "reading a lot more books and it's not as hard" (Student Survey #1, May 1, 2003). This individual also stated that his self-esteem had improved because he could control his temper and that made him feel better (Student Survey #1, May 1, 2003).

Another student mentioned that he knew his language skills and self-esteem had both improved because he spoke more in class and did not feel nervous anymore (Student Survey #3, April 29, 2003).

Report cards were examined and consequently indicated that the majority of the students who participated in the resource literacy groups improved both their reading and writing marks.

Coping with Issues

A variety of frustrating issues arose throughout the completion of my project including:

• finding uninterrupted literacy time in my schedule to provide appropriate programs for at-risk students
• loss of resource assistance for some when more students and groups were added to the resource schedule
• the realization that all teachers, parents and students would never be content with the available resource time

The factor of time repeatedly and consistently arose with negative implications. There will always be students who do not receive as much assistance as they require. However, I released a great deal of anxiety when I accepted this realization and performed my duties as best as I could with the time available. Everyone cannot be pleased, but I am more effective when I am pleased with myself.

Scheduling was consistently being rearranged because the student population changed and students' needs changed. This issue will continue to emerge each year, but was solved with the characteristics of flexibility and adaptability.

Conclusion and Next Steps

"Part of the reason our partnership has been so successful is because we communicate often and honestly. I think we both agree that well-timed, intensive, individualized remediation is crucial to prevent failure for some primary children. Although we were only partially successful in achieving this goal, I think what we did accomplish was effective. It's good to know I have a partner who agrees with me and will continue to lobby for more time and personnel to help meet the needs of primary special education kids! It's amazing what can be accomplished through the power of collaborative teamwork with another professional" (Colleague Survey #2, April 22, 2003).

This quote from my colleague, Gwen Booker, brought forth several realizations for me. For instance, I learned that my ability to communicate with others makes me more productive as an LRT. I met or accommodated a student's needs more effectively when I created a strong partnership with his/her teacher. Another colleague reported that our partnership benefitted our students because they are confident they will be successful with my program, their command of the English language is improving and these students are more willing and confident when attempting the regular classroom activities (Colleague Survey #3, April 18, 2003).

After reading anecdotal comments from my colleagues I learned that even some of the small tasks I performed were worthwhile, and that I didn't need to see quantitative results to know that what I do is important. As I was walking down the hall one morning I saw one of my student's regular teachers and I recounted what this student had said to me regarding his feelings about school. His teacher acted very surprised and explained that he never speaks in class. Only then did I realize that I had accomplished my goal of making this student feel important and comfortable in my classroom (L. Huyge, Personal Journal Entry, February 25, 2003).

My personal view of my practice has changed dramatically over the course of this year. I now know with certainty that I am a valuable asset to my school. When I begin a new school year in the fall I will change my teaching strategies. I will immediately approach staff members with my concept that the greatest amount of my resource time should be spent in the primary division. I will then establish literacy groups, and I will devote a block of uninterrupted time to each of them in order to improve learning for all students.

In conclusion, I would like noted that this project helped me to understand my strengths and weaknesses as an LRT. The development of effective partnerships and open communication allowed me to meet our accommodated students' needs and therefore improve student learning.

Appendix A: Student Survey

Name __________________________ Grade_____

1. Do you think your language skills (reading, writing, speaking) have improved this year?

Yes ____ No ____

How do you know?

2. Do you think your self-esteem has improved this year?

Yes ____ No ____

How do you know?

3. What did Miss Huyge do to help you improve your language skills?

4. What else could be done to help you improve your language skills?

Appendix B: Colleague Survey

Name ___________________________

1. Describe the Partnership we have developed.

2. Describe how effective this partnership has been in terms of meeting or accomodating student needs.

References

Cunningham, P. & Hall, D. (1994). Making Words. Torrance CA: Good Apple.

Cunningham, P., Hall, D., & Sigmond, D. (1999). The teacher's guide to the four blocks. NC: Carson-Dellosa Publishing Company, Inc.

Senge, P. (2003). The Fifth Discipline. New York: Doubleday.