Heretofore, Greenfield Hebrew Academy reluctantly would have had to counsel out Josh, stating that our school could not meet his needs. Although the school has an LD resource room, where the students are pulled out two or three times per week and the LD teacher works with the student individually or on a small-group basis, this would not have provided enough remediation for Josh. It would have been recommended that Josh attend a specialty school or a self-contained program in the public school, where he would be immersed in a cognitive remedial setting. There would be no more Hebrew songs and prayers throughout his school day. However, he would not be frustrated by a rigorous dual curriculum that moved at a fast rate; his academic needs would be met.

A SCHOOL WITHIN A SCHOOL

Now Greenfield Hebrew Academy has a new option for Josh and others like him. He can attend M’silot-Pathways. This program is a school-within-a-school, which is comprised of self-contained rooms for children who learn differently.

Josh’s parents were thrilled to find out that their school was designing a program that would meet the needs of children with moderate learning disabilities and yet allow them to remain within a warm, supportive Jewish environment. They were informed that it would open in the fall of 2000. And, to their delight, they were told that Greenfield Hebrew Academy believes in early intervention; therefore, the classes would begin in first grade.

Josh’s parents also knew that the decision as to where to place Josh in school would be crucial to his success in his early learning as well as in his future education. They did not want to make this decision lightly and therefore had a myriad of questions. They did their research. Some of their questions follow:

What does M’silot-Pathways offer? What does M’silot-Pathways provide that increases Josh’s chances for success?

First of all, there will be a maximum of eight students and two full-time teachers. The small teacher-pupil ratio will put Josh at an advantage. His progress will be closely monitored, and the teachers will be able to individualize the curriculum. Research has shown that a small teacher-pupil ratio greatly increases the chances for success.

However, that is only part of the picture. The programs that will be used are remedial. Much research and care is being taken to determine what programs and material will be utilized. Many state-of-the-art materials, which have been supported by research conducted by NICHD (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development), will be included.

The teachers will be very aware of the learning profile of each student, which will help determine the best method to use for that child. The child may need a multi-sensory approach that uses tactile cues as he learns; the child may need to develop some of his cognitive skills which underlie his ability to learn; the child may need explicit mnemonic cues; or the child may need to attach verbalizations to non-meaningful symbols, which will help him retrieve on an automatic level. This will be determined for each student.

The psychologist talked a lot about the difference between remediation and accommodation. What does that mean?

Accommodation refers to minimizing the impact of the deficit in the classroom. For example, for the student who has difficulty finding words, the teacher would provide multiple choices for the student or the beginning phonemic cue. For the student who has visual-motor deficits, the teacher may reduce the amount of written work, provide visual models of the letters and numbers, place visual cues on the paper, and encourage the use of a computer at an appropriate age. These accommodations can be made in a traditional classroom as well as in a remedial setting.

Remediation refers to directly strengthening the deficit. Therefore the child who has word-finding difficulties may benefit from organizing language concepts into meaningful categories, which will help him easily retrieve information. For the child who has visual-motor deficits, he may benefit from writing his letters in three-dimensional substances such as sand and clay, learning to verbalize his movements, and breaking them into components. For both deficits, visualizing could increase one’s memory for word retrieval and motor movements. These are most easily accomplished in a remedial setting. Severity of the deficit determines the amount of time that is needed to strengthen and remediate the deficit.

Will Josh feel a part of the school? Will he interact with his peers?

Yes. During non-academic times of the day, such as recess, lunch, physical education, music, art or computer, the M’silot-Pathways students will have opportunities to interact with their peers in other classes. They will be included in the Siddur presentation with the rest of their peers at the school. They will take part in school-wide events such as the Model Seder, the Purim Carnival, and the “Community Mitzva Day.” They will feel a part of this school.

Who will attend M’silot-Pathways? What type of students will be with Josh?

The students in M’silot-Pathways will have average to above average intelligence, a discrepancy between their intelligence and achievement, and accompanying processing deficits. A licensed psychologist will have diagnosed them with a moderate learning disability. (Children whose learning issues are of mild intensity would continue to receive support through the resource room and accommodations within the regular classroom when needed.)

M’silot-Pathways is not designed for children with the more severe learning disabilities, nor for children with mental impairments, multiple handicaps or behavioral/emotional disorders. Neither is M’silot-Pathways appropriate placement for children whose primary presenting issue is ADD/ADHD. A child with learning disabilities who may be appropriate for M’silot-Pathways will not be excluded because of ADD/ADHD, provided that attentional issues are not at a level which present a barrier to learning.

What about Hebrew and Judaic Studies?

After the child is enrolled in M’silot-Pathways, he or she will be individually evaluated by the M’silot-Pathways educators to determine whether introduction of a second language would be appropriate, and, if so, to what degree (i.e., oral vocabulary enrichment, reading and writing of Hebrew). Judaic studies will be a part of the curriculum in the form of celebrations, cultural exposure, and participation in prayers.

What are the curriculum goals for a M’silot-Pathways child?

For each student the curriculum goals will be delineated within an Individual Educational Plan. Movement toward the next level of goals will be based on mastery of the preceding goals. In this way, the goals will be sequentially developed for each child. The IEP goals will be reviewed every six to eight weeks with the parents. Receptive and expressive language goals will be included if these areas need to be developed for the student. A speech and language therapist will be involved with the whole class, as well as individually, as indicated by the child’s needs.

And our final question, how long will Josh need M’silot-Pathways or a program like it?

M’silot-Pathways is for students who need an individualized remedial setting for two to three years. This is differentiated from students who may need the degree of intervention provided by M’silot-Pathways on a long-term basis (longer than three years). Often what characterizes the student who needs long-term intervention rather than short-term intervention is the severity of the learning issues, rate of learning, and the child’s ability to learn compensatory strategies for his learning issues. Our goal is that children who complete the M’silot-Pathways program will be able to transition successfully into a conventional classroom with support services and/or classroom modifications, if necessary.

Josh’s parents felt that the information provided about M’silot-Pathways would help them make an informed decision. After they learned about M’silot-Pathways, their feelings of anguish and dismay changed into relief and appreciation. They did not want to give up Josh’s Jewish education, but they knew he had learning issues that required a specialized setting. They now had an option that did not preclude the other. It was not one or the other, but an option that included both. According to Josh’s parents, “We feel that the year 2000 is going to be a very good year for Josh and for us. And to M’silot-Pathways we say, toda rabba.”

UPDATE on M’silot-Pathways

M’silot-Pathways will open in September 2000 with eight students and two full-time LD teachers, plus a Judaic studies teacher who will plan the Judaic portion of the curriculum and a speech and language specialist who will be involved with the class a few hours a week. The faculty of Greenfield Hebrew Academy has been kept fully informed about the development of this program, so that they can interact successfully with the children in the contexts in which they are mainstreamed. Phyllis Rosenthal has planned the curriculum, recruited the teachers, and identified the children appropriate to the program.