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Description of Program
 The Self-Directed Learners Program (SDLP) is a scientifically-based after school learning development program that unfolds skill and processes to students in a scaffolded instructional format that accelerates students' skills and competence in reading, mathematics, writing, and learning. The program provides two courses for students, both approximately ten weeks in duration. Student who complete both courses gain learning power and possess the key skills common to self-directed learners: an awareness of their thinking (meta-cognition), specific understanding of key foundational knowledge in reading, writing, and mathematics, and increased performance based on preliminary, interim, and post assessments.
Underlying both components of the SDLP is the intent to develop students as self-directed learners by developing students' meta-cognitive abilities at the same time that students experience learning new skills and content. In particular, cognitive science research underscores the importance of ensuring that students possess certain skills that might be described as skills represented by intelligent novices, learners in possession of superior learning capacity that is steeped in language-based awareness (and correlating skills) and heightened meta-cognition. The research from cognitive science provides the scientifically-based approaches utilized.
Reading & Writing Acceleration Program
The Reading and Writing Acceleration Program (RWAP): students make dramatic gains in reading comprehension, writing competence, and learning capability as a result of successfully completing the program.
Relying on a synthesis of key scientific research, students receive focused, explicit instruction and scaffolding in language-based applications (the sentence and the paragraph), and they receive scaffolding and learning support as they transform from dependent learners to self-directed learners able to construct meaning in the content area classrooms and represent improvement in all language skill relevant to learning as a result.
The RWAP relies on the Reciprocal Teaching approach to reading competence that hails from cognitive science research showing consistent growth in reading development for a short investment in learner time. Indeed, Reciprocal Teaching research reveals the positive effect on student reading comprehension and learning capacity among all populations of learners, limited decoders, primer level readers, non-readers, and students unable to make sense of text because they lack the prerequisites. The research record associated with Reciprocal Teaching consistently reveals improvement in reading ability for all students, even those who cannot decode text. Just as importantly, RT research trials show that when students learn and utilize Reciprocal Teaching dialogues as mechanisms for constructing meaning their reading comprehension improves.
Mathematics Acceleration Program
The Mathematics Acceleration Program (MAP): students make dramatic gains in mathematical competence and exit the program with essential foundational knowledge in mathematics onto which additional mathematical knowledge can be built.
 The Mathematics Acceleration Program (MAP) is a scientifically based responsive math tutoring program grounded in cognitive science research that informs of the importance of eradicating students' misapplication of mathematics rules. The program uses a cognitive model of expert performance to ensure that buggy rules that students apply to mathematics are surfaced, modified, and where needed, eradicated.
Using an individualization format keyed to needs of students, the MAP provides students with mastery based instruction in the key elements required for them to advance in understanding and representation of national mathematics content standards. The ultimate goal for each student is the development of a consistent framework of mathematical knowledge onto which further mathematical learning can take place.
Students receive extensive assessment in the related mathematics standards and work individually (or in small groups) to learn essential content and skills; tutors provide whole group instruction in the sub-skills or elements of mathematics that are known to be problem areas for all students. The MAP relies on games-based approaches to accelerating student learning in mathematics and to authentic practice solving standards-based mathematical problems. Students increase their competence in solving mathematics problems as a result of increased mathematical knowledge, highly developed meta-cognitive awareness, and specific emphases on closing students' gaps in mathematical knowledge relevant to their individual circumstances. Students will receive explicit instruction (where required) in correcting their buggy rules as needed to ensure that the base foundation for learning mathematics is built for each student in need and that the foundation we create for each student is based on authentic and appropriate mathematical rules.
Evidence of Alignment with National Standards
 Reading and Writing Acceleration Program: Reciprocal Teaching is a reading improvement strategy that mimics the processes that expert readers employ when they are engaged in reading or learning. As such, Reciprocal Teaching is a, holistic reading improvement strategy. Additionally, because Reciprocal Teaching is enhanced with the added supports of sentence and paragraph development and meta-cognitive strategy instruction, the SDLP results in a holistic reading improvement strategy that taps into each one of the national English Language Arts content standards. Accordingly, the SDLP is perfectly aligned to the state’s curriculum framework's English Language Arts content standards and provides students with steeping in skills that are aligned with each of the content standards and their correlating indicators as students concentrate exclusively on constructing meaning, writing correct and clearly worded sentences and paragraphs and interpreting text at a variety of levels, strengthening reading, writing, viewing, displaying skills, increasing reading fluency.
Mathematics Acceleration Program: Students are assessed on their knowledge of the mathematics content standards and related indicators upon enrollment; these (mathematics standards and indicators) then are used as the sole curriculum for advancing student competence in mathematics. Students begin learning in both horizontal and vertical directions as they advance through levels of mathematics competence that are keyed to the benchmark standards represented in the national standards.
All students are assessed to determine their understanding of and ability to represent the elementary content standards or the first level of competencies; if assessment indicates need to begin at that level, an individual plan is developed for each students needing this level of beginning instruction. Student who test into this level, complete the entire level and demonstrate a solid knowledge of arithmetic competence. In this regard, the goal is to develop a horizontal understanding and competence within the first set of foundational standards onto which additional knowledge about mathematics will be built. For students whose assessment results indicate their placement at Level Two (or Level Three), they will have individualized plans developed that represent both horizontal and vertical applications as they will complete the benchmark standards for their tested level and begin working in their areas of strength in the level above as well.
SELF-DIRECTED LEARNERS: How We Are Different!
Six Levels of Thinking:
Lower Order Thinking Skills & Levels: Needed, But Not Enough Alone
- Knowledge: Student can find information in books
- Comprehension: Student can say it in his/her own words
- Application: Student can solve the problem, one correct way Higher Order Thinking Skills & Levels: The Skills Needed To Understand
- Analysis: Student can separate parts from the whole & analyze
- Synthesis: Student can create new knowledge based on the old
- Evaluation: Student can apply judgment to the reading
- Most Other Programs STOP at the lower order levels and input ONLY facts and how to apply them into student learners.
How We Are Different; Why Our Program Will Work!
The Self-Directed Learners Program BLENDS the two & teaches students to understand the lower order skills and how to THINK about the higher order skills as they solve problems in the content areas they are learning.
Importance of the Thinking Levels
The importance of the levels of thinking is that standardized assessments like the state tests measure BOTH, lower order and higher order thinking.
Your Child Will Learn:
- To Write Paragraphs and Sentences!
- To Read Magazines, Articles, & Textbook Chapters!
- To Build A Strong Foundation in Mathematics!
- To Solve Mathematics Problems!
- To Think About His or Her Thinking!
- To Learn Independently!
For a Powerpoint Slide Presentation just click here to learn more about SDLP.
For a list of locations in your area please click here.
Choose Carter, Reddy & Associates, Inc.!
We Guarantee That Your Child Will Learn!
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