Rotary and Literacy

Peter Roaf introduced our speaker Fran Blackwood BC CALS Coordinator. CALS (Computer Assisted Literacy Solutions) started in 2007 and is a Rotary International Partnership. It is an Award-winning, Animated, Canadian Literacy Software Program delivered over the Internet.(Academy of Reading and Academy of Math) for elementary school children.

There are 270 students using the program currently in the Lower Mainland at a cost of $80 UD per child. It changes lives for students struggling with Learning Disabilities as well as ESL and  First Nation children. The program is available in Spanish.

Stats show that 1 in 3 Delta Elementary School Grades 4-7 are failing to read at Grade levels, if you are having problems at even Grade 3 it is extremely hard to catch up.  

Fran noted:

   Students Meeting/Exceeding Expectations:
   Grade 4: Reading:   63%   Grade 7:  Reading:  57%          
   Source: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/reports/pdfs/fsa/037.pdf
   Essentially,  more than one in three Delta elementary students are failing to read at Grade level!

The club enjoyed the presentation and Fran was thanked by Art Birk.