Frequently Asked Questions
The Reading Repairer Series

Frequent lessons, such as three lessons each week, are most effective and efficient. Each student’s rate of progress will be influenced by the frequency and duration of lessons. The content and strategies used in The Reading Repairer will accelerate students’ reading skills development regardless of age – it has been especially helpful for students in secondary school. Many students with a reading disability may require lessons using this program for a year to show mastery of the content across the 13 content areas. If lessons are limited to only one a week with a reader requiring instruction in the 13 content areas, the whole program may well require two or more years to complete.

Rereading is crucial to teach the word lists and passages in The Reading Repairer. Rereading, or ‘Repeated Reading’ as it is known in the literature, may not be appealing at first thought. However, research suggests a positive approach towards it is justified. In a 2021 article written by Nathaniel Hansford reviewing Repeated Reading, Pedagogy Non Grata states, ‘The research evidence for Repeated Reading is ironclad. We have three meta-analyses specifically on the topic and all three show results that are on average higher than the mean result in meta-analyses for phonics instruction. Moreover, the NRP meta-analysis also looked at Repeated Reading and found results similar to phonics.’ (p.2) This program entwines phonics, Repeated Reading, teaching to mastery, and the use of visual evidence of progress, providing effective evidence-based strategies for learners. The noted article concludes that ‘the statistical evidence for Repeated Reading is actually higher than the statistical evidence for phonics, and it therefore deserves its place, within the banner of the Science of Reading.’ (p.7) Doubts about the use of Repeated Reading should be tempered by the research evidence until one’s experience provides first-hand knowledge regarding effectiveness.

Improvement is displayed through graphs for word lists and passages. These must be completed each lesson and usually form powerful motivators. Rate of progress becomes clear to the student, instructor and family. A form requiring students to insert the time they took to read their word list and passage each lesson also assists to motivate many students. Also, the alternative diagnostic assessment tool may be given and the results will indicate the progress made across the areas of phonics and structural analysis. A progress page indicating which spelling rules have been taught and mastered adds to the evidence of student progress. A formal reading assessment may also be used to indicate initial reading abilities and progress after several months or at the end of a year.

There are limitations within this program. It requires students to reread word lists and passages aloud to improve. This may be a problem if the program is used by someone who does not realise the importance or benefits of such explicit repetition. Students also need to learn the value of rereading, and some instructors may not reinforce this perspective, which may result in insufficient rereading and little overall progress. While the progress graphs help to motivate the teacher and students, the rereading must be done conscientiously over time to achieve the benefits. The program may be used by teachers, teaching assistants, tutors and parents. However, the instructors will need to know basic phonics themselves in order to teach the program most effectively. To develop this knowledge if it is lacking, one exceptional source is Tom Nicholson’s Phonic Handbook.

Organizational pitfalls abound for those teaching older students to read. An awareness of some of these before teaching begins may help avoid significant problems.

People who have not used The Reading Repairer before are advised to begin using it with only one student.  Time is needed for the teacher to get used to the routine and the explicit teaching required. 

Once a student is comfortable with the program, and the teacher is confident with the teaching routine, another student could be added to the program. However, when a student is particularly weak in sounding out and blending regular words for example, a great deal of teacher time must be given to demonstrating the skills and supporting a student isolate and say the sounds of letters or blends, to blend them - sound them sequentially, to make the word being read. Teacher modelling, then teacher and student turn taking of this process, and finally student sounding out and blending alone, takes considerable time, care and patience.  It is too easy to forget how difficult this skill development is for some of our students, and this can be compounded when a student feels humiliation at needing such explicit teaching in the upper grades of schooling.  But once learnt, teachers and students will discover it was worth all the effort.

When teaching more able students I believe up to three students might be taught their relevant sections of the program concurrently.  But I would not have any more than three students because of the intense teacher instruction required by each student.  When three students are being taught it is a stressful job for the teacher and only the most competent can ensure the necessary attention is provided to each student, and mastery of the content is achieved by  each student.

As a consequence of experience, I also believe students should not be on the same word list or passage as each other.  When this has happened in my teaching, some students pay more attention to what they hear a peer say than to their own sounding out and decoding skills.  But it is skill development that needs to be mastered by each student, not just saying the words in their lists or passages.  Their copying of what they hear another student say, rather than concentrating upon developing their own decoding skills, detracts from their progress.  Teachers will see this lack of significant progress by examining the first list and passage reading progress graphs of students (when they have not heard them read by another student).

Spelling rules, syllabification and dictionary work can be completed with students working on the same sections if appropriate.  Students can assist each other with this work and the assistance provided by one student to another enables some students to build in confidence, and the sharing assists with a positive learning environment.  But explicit teaching to mastery level is still essential for each student. Delegation of this professional responsibility must not be assigned to students.

Teaching older students to read is such an important job. It can be daunting for it may be a student’s last chance to learn to read during school years. It needs to occur in an area where the student/s feel safe, and where respect between all students is consistent. Inclusion, like the worst of the previous trends of withdrawal and Learning Support classes when teaching has been in reality babysitting rather than professional, can result in some students being assigned to some classes that do not meet their learning needs or where they are not given respect.

Give your student/s the priority they deserve, where you know they will be able to thrive rather than just survive.