Academic Skills Program
Program Description
The Academic Skills Program at Shattuck-St. Mary’s School is designed to recognize and enhance the potential of students with diagnosed learning disabilities and attention disorders. The program provides academic skills instruction and limited remediation within the traditional academic curriculum and is designed to accommodate the needs of students with mild learning disabilities and average to above average cognitive abilities. Through their involvement with ASP, students learn academic skills and strategies that will help them realize their potential and meet the expectations set by the School, their families, and themselves. As they become more confident, efficient and independent learners, students are able to see their own abilities shine.
Students enrolled in the program are required to meet the current graduation requirements for all students at Shattuck-St. Mary’s School. Each student receives a detailed education plan describing his or her learning style, Academic Skills Program services provided, academic goals, and necessary accommodations. This information is carefully discussed with teachers, advisors and families, and is reassessed at the end of each term to ensure the academic progress of each student. When appropriate, the Director of the Center for Academic Achievement will also administer pre- and post-testing to measure student progress in specific academic skill areas.
Students enrolled in the Academic Skills Program receive individualized, concentrated tutorial sessions, specifically tailored to their diagnosed learning disability and their educational needs. These sessions are conducted one-on-one or in small groups (2-4 students) and meet 3-5 times per week during a 45-minute class period. Designed to meet the specific needs of the students enrolled in the program each year, these tutorials address the following academic skills:
Development of Reading Skills
Students with diagnosed language-based learning disabilities, such as dyslexia, often need specialized reading instruction. For these students, ASP coursework may focus on three areas of skill and strategy development, which will support a student’s success with both academic and personal reading situations:
- Orton-Gillingham based remediation for decoding and encoding skills (focusing on the study of phonics, roots and affixes)
- Reading comprehension strategies for fiction and nonfiction texts (focusing on strategies for before, during and after reading)
- Reading fluency development (rate, accuracy and prosody)
Development of Writing Skills
Likewise, students with learning disabilities often have difficulty with written expression, especially the expository writing expected of students in a college preparatory program. For these students, ASP work may focus on writing mechanics, the writing process and essay organization. Relevant skills may include:
- Handwriting and keyboarding
- Sentence writing and grammar
- Paragraph and essay organization
- Brainstorming and idea development
- Editing and revision
- Thesis development
- Word choice and voice
Other Academic Skills
To complement our focus on reading and writing skills, students may need specific instruction to support vocabulary development. By focusing on content area vocabulary, general vocabulary development and word awareness strategies, we hope to further strengthen our students’ ability to comprehend difficult reading material and express their ideas clearly through written and oral language.
The Academic Skills Program tutorials may also address the study skills students need to make progress in mainstream, college preparatory programs. While we address the same study skills (time management, note-taking, textbook skills, test preparation) as the courses in the Study Skills Program, our focus is tailored more to the needs of students with specific learning disabilities and attention disorders.
Finally, Academic Skills Program sessions may focus on mathematics. For students with documented learning disabilities that affect their progress with math, Academic Skills Program tutorials address reading strategies for word problems, arithmetic skills and support for understanding difficult, abstract concepts.
The content of each ASP session is adjusted to each student’s diagnosed learning disability and individual education plan. Academic Skills Program work focuses on the above content areas with the goals of facilitating student progress in the general curriculum, and student interest in life-long learning. Through their participation in the Academic Skills Program, we hope that students will make the most of their academic opportunities at Shattuck-St. Mary’s.
The Role of the Director
In addition to providing specialized coursework for students, the Director of the Center for Academic Achievement also serves as a resource for parents, students and teachers. She collaborates with teachers and administrators to integrate a student’s Academic Skills Program support with the established curriculum, including developing and implementing appropriate accommodations for students in the program. She also maintains close contact with parents and teachers, facilitating dialogue about each student’s individual needs and ensuring that they are kept up-to-date on student progress throughout the year.
Cost and Admission
There is an additional cost per semester for Academic Skills Program services. Students pay a fee of $1,000 a term. Admission into the program is based upon diagnostic testing, an in-house academic assessment and consultation with the Director, in addition to the general admission policies of the school.
For more information about applying for the Academic Skills Program, please contact the Admissions Office at (507) 333-1618 or 800-421-2724.
