Info IPLÉ Program

What is IPLÉ Program or Reading Recovery in French Immersion?

Reading Recovery is an effective, early intervention series of lessons designed to dramatically reduce the number of children with reading and writing difficulties within an education system. It identifies children in grade one who are at-risk and delivers a short-term series of individual lessons. These lessons are designed to help children who are falling behind become successful readers and writers so that they are able to learn and progress in the regular classroom.

The Reading Recovery series of lessons teaches children how to learn more effectively which, in turn, benefits them throughout their school years.

Reading Recovery arose out of an extensive and on-going program of research and development carried out by New Zealand educator and psychologist Dame Marie Clay. Clay observed and recorded what grade one children did as they were learning to read and write. Then, she worked with a group of teachers on a development project that challenged teachers to use the knowledge gained as they taught at-risk children on a one-to-one basis.

Reading Recovery has been successfully implemented in New Zealand as well as Anguilla, Australia, Bermuda, Canada, Northern Ireland, the United States, and Wales. Presently in Canada Reading Recovery is being

implemented in eight provinces and one territory.

Reading Recovery is based on the assumption that intensive, high quality intervention during the early years of schooling is the most effective and productive investment of resources (Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1999). The early

years, which set the stage for later learning, are critical for children who are at-risk. Current research indicates that the “gap” in reading widens dramatically after the first year and is hard to close in later grades. In an Australian

study, it was found that even by third grade the learning gap was so large that, for low achieving students, catching up with their peers was virtually impossible (Hill, Crevola, 1999).

All children in their first year at school must be given the opportunity to move into a good literacy program at their own pace guided by sensitive, well-trained teachers. Despite good instruction in their first year, some students will be at-risk.

Reading Recovery provides a second chance for at-risk children to catch up with their peers and perform at average levels. This enables them to continue to learn from strong classroom instruction. Clay’s research indicates that at-risk children can be identified early by trained teachers (Clay, 2005) so if we are

able to see the process of learning to read going wrong early, why wait?

Providing low-progress students with a second chance early in their school years provides an opportunity for them to catch up. Successful readers

and writers develop essential literacy skills and failure to do so in the early years can have devastating effects on children’s self-esteem and academic achievement. Clay’s research reveals that poor readers develop and habituate

ineffective strategies that persist and may hinder their reading progress and block further learning. Retention is often seen as a solution to get the child on track but has negative effects on a child’s self-esteem and is a practice

unsupported by research. Allowing the child to stay with his peer group, while receiving the Reading Recovery series of lessons, is a more effective intervention.

Specially trained Reading Recovery teachers work individually for 30 minutes per day with the lowest achieving  six-year-old students in the school. There are

two positive outcomes for children involved in the Reading Recovery program. Most children who receive daily, individual lessons are able to accelerate their progress and catch up to the average or above of their classes within 12-20 weeks and are successfully discontinued from the program.

Those children who do not reach average performance levels often do learn how to read. They are identified early as needing longer term support and information about how they learn is available to develop further appropriate

interventions.