A Reading Resource Teacher for the Elementary School.

the madison, Wisconsin elementary schools have created a new kind of personnel to aid in the development of their reading pro grams. Reading Resource Teachers is the title given to specially trained classroom teachers who help their principals and fellow teachers improve reading instruction in their schools. The resource teachers are released one-half day a week from their classroom teaching to 1] strengthen the developmental reading programs in their schools and 2] give remedial instruction to disabled readers. Four major factors stimulated the development of reading resource teachers in the Madison elementary schools. First, many principals felt they needed help to keep themselves and their teachers abreast of the new research, teaching methods, and materials in the field of reading. Second, central office personnel wanted a teacher contact in each school to whom they could dis seminate information and from whom they could solicit teacher reactions to various aspects of the reading program. Third, class room teachers frequently requested guidance in diagnosing and providing for the wide range of individual reading needs among their students. The teachers wanted this help from a person more knowledgeable about reading instruction than themselves and more readily accessible than central office consultants. Fourth, each school needed someone to provide remedial help to students who need a small amount of out-of-class instruction to learn a specific reading skill that is presenting problems. The identification, training, and utilizaton of a reading re source teacher for each elementary school seemed to be a promising way to meet these needs. Selecting a classroom teacher with recog nized ability to teach reading, and retaining the selected teacher's status as a classroom teacher appeared to be a good way to avoid the communication difficulties that sometimes arise between class room teachers and non-teaching specialists. The special training for the selected teacher was intended not only to make a good