An inclusive model of targeting literacy teaching for 7-8 year old children who are struggling to learn to read: the Integrated Group reading (IGR) approach

Abstract

This chapter draws on the background thinking and research which has informed a current research project that has been evaluating an additional literacy teaching programme designed for 7-8 year old children who are struggling to learn to read. The rationale for the chapter is to illustrate challenges and practices in inclusive teaching in a very important area of teaching and learning. The framework of thinking that informs the design of the Integrated Group Reading (IGR) approach is the wave model (Griffiths & Stuart, 2013; Rose, 2006). In its UK form the wave model distinguishes between wave 1 (or universal or Quality First teaching), wave 2 or targeted teaching and wave 3 specialist teaching. In its typical presentation and use, the model is unclear about important questions in relation to what characterises each wave and what their relationship is to each other. One of the key issues is to what extent wave 1 teaching is meant to be adapted or differentiated for the diversity of children in a class. Is wave 1 teaching meant to provide for children who struggle to learn to read, for example for more than a year, and whose reading is well below some notional average? It is widely assumed that wave 1 teaching differentiates to some degree for different rates and styles of learning, but if some children cross a cut-off (say, well below average attainment for a year) and move to wave 2 (targeted teaching) how is this to be organised? In targeted teaching, designed to be supplementary to wave 1 teaching, are the identified children also participating in wave 1 teaching? Or does wave 2 teaching become their main form of literacy teaching? Also, how does the kind of teaching of reading in wave 2 (in terms of assumptions about reading and how to learn to read) relate to the kind of teaching done in wave 1? And, who teaches the wave 2 identified children and where does this teaching take place?