Excerpt from “Accelerator”, Accelerated Christian Education, Aug-Sep 2015, pg 1.
Accelerated Christian Education continues to use proven learning methods that have been around for decades.
Illiteracy is a problem that has plagued educators for generations. According to a United states Education Department study released in 2015, an estimated 32 million adults in the United States could not read. This accounts for one in seven Americans. Around the world nearly 16 percent of people over the age of 15 cannot read, according to statistics published by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
How is it possible that so many students walk away from schools without the ability to read?
The United States spends of $15,000 per student on education, more than any other nation. And yet every year, over 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the United States alone. That’s one student every 26 seconds–or 7,000 students a day. The United States, which had some of the highest graduation rates of any developed country, now ranks 22nd. Despite this massive amount of spending, government schools have failed to prevent many students from being discouraged, giving up on education, and dropping out of school.
How did these students slip through the cracks? Were they not taught properly, or did they just not learn to read?
While educators search for the answers, Accelerated Christian Education has successfully used the centuries-old phonetic system for the last 45 years to help generations of students learn to read. This system has helped turn on the “light bulb of literacy” in the minds of countless children and adults. The experience of learning to read is different for each student. some catch on early, while others take longer to grasp the concepts. As an educator, embrace this realization and focus on each individual’s ability.
A.C.E. offers several programs to help students read. it is important to start with the ABCs with Ace and Christi Pretest, formerly known as the Reading Readiness Test, and Coordination Development Tests to determine the proper placement for beginning students. The basics of phonetics are introduced in both the Kindergarten with Ace and Christi program and the ABCs with Ace and Christi program. Both programs build within students the desire and ability to start reading. By the end of the Kindergarten with Ace and Christi program, many students are able to read. Students are able to read the bible at the end of 15 weeks using the ABCs with Ace and Christi program.
Older students, adults, and non-English speakers require a different approach to experiencing their own “light bulb moment.” Videophonics is a literacy program for students aged 9 through adult. English As Your Second Language is a 6-12 month course for adults wanting to learn English, while the new ABCs for English Learners program is geared for younger students. Readmaster, part of the Readmaster Plus software suite, is another valuable tool that helps increase the reading speed of students. This software should be used for all students in levels 1 through 12.
Educators need to help each student find his own “light bulb moment” through individualized learning. Empowering students to learn for themselves opens their minds to see how they can glean truth from God’s Word and gain knowledge to view the world from God’s perspective. When they see that God has given them the ability to increase in wisdom, knowledge, and understanding, they being to realize their own potential. “For the LORD giveth wisdom; out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.” (Proverbs 2:6)
When the reading light bulb turns on, it will unlock the individual’s potential to learn for a lifetime.