There is a problem both in the U.S. and elsewhere: grade school students are falling behind in reading skills.
A study conducted by the BBC found that pupils leaving primary school at age 11 are reading at a 7 year old level.
The British Education Secretary said in the statement: “Ultimately, if you do not get a child reading by the time that they leave primary school when they arrive at secondary school, the curriculum is just a closed book to them literally.”
However, assistive technology (AT), which uses text to speech synthesis, might be able to help. “In 2011 no learner should need to experience the curriculum as a closed book”, said Ian Litterick, BATA’s literacy spokesperson in a statement. “Assistive Technology allows students to listen to text books that they cannot read by traditional means. As the best schools are already aware, it gives independence, stops non-reading pupils falling inexorably behind and lessens reliance on teaching assistants. In addition, because pupils who use Text-to-Speech synthesis see and hear many more words, their literacy skills also improve.”
Educators say that AT will be particularly helpful, because students wouldn’t have to be taken out of the classroom and could move at the same pace as other students.
“Part of the Pupil Premium must be devoted to Assistive Technology”, says BATA in a statement, “as A.T. offers terrific Value for Money in overcoming the disadvantages of those who are socially or digitally excluded.”
Thinking of the thousands of youngsters that somehow fell behind in school, assistive technology sounds like a great tool to help improve the situation. Maybe it would also help recent immigrants whose reading skills in the new language may not be strong enough.