| There are many Orange County Public Schools | | | | (5) Comprehension |
| systems throughout the nation. There are | | | | |
| Orange Counties in Virginia, North Carolina, | | | | (6) Motivation |
| California, and Florida to name a few. Issues | | | | |
| and challenges may vary from Orange County | | | | -Necessary criteria for increasing reading |
| Schools to Orange County Schools, but the | | | | achievement: |
| basic drive is the same to give students the | | | | |
| best quality education possible. | | | | (1) Minimum of 90 minutes of protected time |
| | | | for reading instruction to close the gap |
| Orange County Schools in Orlando are no | | | | |
| exception. School choice, as mandated by the | | | | (2) Smaller class sizes for intervention (15 |
| United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth | | | | to 20 students per class) to individualize |
| Circuit, is present throughout these Orange | | | | and adjust instruction for all students |
| County Schools. Improvements in reading | | | | |
| education and reading fluency are also hot | | | | (3) Technology in classrooms to create a |
| topics. | | | | scope and sequence of individualized |
| | | | instruction for all students |
| It may be hard to believe that a school | | | | |
| district could raise the reading scores of | | | | (4) Commitment, by administrators, to |
| struggling students by as much as two grade | | | | learning about reading process instruction |
| levels each year, but Orange County Schools | | | | and what it looks like in a successful |
| are doing just that. The most challenging | | | | classroom |
| group of students to bring up to grade level | | | | |
| are students in middle and upper grades. | | | | (5) Continual professional development for |
| These Orange County Schools students are a | | | | intervention program teachers |
| lot less motivated, and have even lost a lot | | | | |
| of their trust in the learning process, | | | | In accordance with a 1970 court order enacted |
| believing they are too dumb to learn. Many | | | | by the United States Court of Appeals for the |
| educators have come to realize that it's | | | | Fifth Circuit, Orange County Schools offers |
| going to take extreme measures to change such | | | | its students and parents many avenues of |
| these students' lives. Interventions are | | | | school choice. They are: |
| required at all levels - from the | | | | |
| superintendent's office on down to the humble | | | | Majority to Minority Transfers |
| classroom. One Orange County Schools | | | | |
| intervention that has been put into place - | | | | No Child Left Behind |
| with amazing results - is the Orange County | | | | |
| Literacy Project. | | | | Opportunity Scholarship |
| | | | |
| In addition, a recent report was solicited by | | | | Exceptional Education Program Placement |
| Orange County Schools from the Phyllis C. | | | | |
| Hunter Consulting Firm. The firm recently | | | | McKay Scholarship Transfer Academic Transfer |
| presented an evaluation of the Orange County | | | | |
| Schools, and how the district can best | | | | Childcare Transfer |
| improve its reading instruction. The report, | | | | |
| entitled "Reading Leadership in a | | | | Graduation Transfer |
| Standards-based Reform", covered numerous | | | | |
| aspects that need to be addressed. Among | | | | Magnet Transfer |
| them: | | | | |
| | | | Medical Transfer |
| -All students have the right to reading | | | | |
| instruction that enables them to meet high | | | | Mid-Year Transfer |
| standards | | | | |
| | | | Psychological Transfer |
| -A Comprehensive Reading Program includes | | | | |
| these six elements: | | | | School Personnel Transfer |
| | | | |
| (1) Phonemic and phonological awareness | | | | Sibling Transfer |
| | | | |
| (2) Systematic phonics | | | | Work-Related Transfer |
| | | | |
| (3) Vocabulary and background knowledge | | | | For more information on the requirements to |
| | | | make any of these types of transfers, visit |
| (4) Fluency | | | | the Orange County Schools district website. |
| | | | |