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Contact: |
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Penney Cobb
RCMA
Outcomes
Specialist
402 W. Main St.
Immokalee, FL
34142
(239) 658-3560
penney@rcma.org
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Serving
rural, low-income families,
many of whom speak no English at home, RCMA works diligently to educate
young children so they can succeed in Florida’s public schools.
Results of
ongoing assessments show children improve significantly with RCMA’s
curriculum, which emphasizes English language acquisition.
In the
2005-06 school year, for example:
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Approximately 2,000 children (3-6 years) gained an average 19.34
percentage points in the Learning Accomplishment Profile (third
edition), which rates seven critical domains of learning.
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Among 622 children (4-year-old English language learners), 78%
progressed one or more levels of proficiency on the Oral Language
Proficiency scale; 22% remained at the same level. These children
will enter kindergarten at age 5, having gained more English
language.
Essential
to a child’s ability to learn are basic health and nutrition. RCMA
provides or coordinates dental, vision, hearing, developmental and
nutritional screenings so that children may receive diagnoses and
treatment as early as possible.
The
screenings lead to early intervention and specialized help when the
children appear to be delayed in their learning of basic skills, or if
they need glasses, speech therapy or hearing aids. Otherwise, they won’t
be ready for school.
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