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Success Story: Sumner High School, Sumner, WA

Confidence is crucial to learning, and a little success goes a long way. According to Vicki Kelly of Sumner Junior High School, the Academy of READING software program not only improves reading skills but also motivates students to want to read more.

Vicki Kelly uses an interesting analogy to illustrate how some students struggle with reading. "I always try to think about how I would feel if I had to sit in an auto mechanics class every day of my school career. I am not mechanically inclined; it is not an interest of mine. And I have never had much success in learning the subject." Kelly says this is how students with reading difficulties often feel. "Students who can't read at the junior high level often have low self-esteem, and though they may have tried to learn at one point, the fact that they experienced little success means they certainly don't want to expose themselves to further humiliation and failure." She explains that the Academy of READING software program from AutoSkill boosts students' confidence in their own reading ability. The better a student reads, the more he or she wants to read.

Kelly says another reason for choosing the Academy of READING is the fact that it's software-based. "We chose it as part of our total remedial program because students, for the most part, are highly motivated by computers." She adds, "I work with approximately 50 students each day, and I have yet to hear any students complain about the program."

Sumner Junior High has only recently introduced remedial reading to its curriculum; this is the first year students have worked with the Academy of READING software program. "The students are chosen based on a reading level determined by a test called Degrees of Reading Power," Kelly explains. "The test is administered every year across all grade levels in our district."

Since starting the program, Sumner has upgraded its computers, resulting in "much, much more success" according to Kelly. "I guess my year could be summed up with a quote from one of my eighth grade students who said to me, 'Did you hear me read today? Haven't I improved a lot?' She not only feels success, but her whole outlook towards reading has improved. She has completed two novels on her own during the past two months, something that she had never accomplished before. That's what I call a successful reading program!"