Vice President of Executive Support
In education, the very best ideas can be researched, endorsed, and even funded. But unless they are fully implemented within the schools, they are of little value.
ACSI Urban School Services has invested heavily in an initiative designed to diagnose and treat cognitive skills deficiencies of students in many of our urban member schools. Dr. Ken Gibson has created BrainSkills, which was developed from the clinical program LearningRx. BrainSkills is an Internet-based diagnostic tool and treatment program that has the potential to revolutionize the education of urban, minority, and underresourced children.
The Gibson Cognitive Skills Test (GCST), a screening tool for cognitive skills, is undergoing validation and standardization by Dick Carpenter, a professor at the University of Colorado. Additional validation is taking place using correlation studies with the Woodcock Johnson III before standardization.
A foundation has committed $100,000 to the project, and more money will follow. Educators, political leaders, and corporations are optimistic about this unique program and the opportunities it provides to urban children. ACSI urban member schools are receiving the first opportunity to incorporate this program into their schools. Participating schools must have the necessary technology for the online program, and they must make a commitment to scheduling and managing the process to realize the potential outcomes.
I believe, as do the founders of the program and those at ACSI who have invested months in the project, that this may be the future of education success in our urban schools. We now need the no-cost investment of our schools to chart success.
Once a school commits to the process, the first step is to assess each student by using the GCST. The GCST is designed to equip educators with a diagnosis of a child’s cognitive skills. The second step is to employ the BrainSkills eight core exercises, which are designed to treat the identified deficiencies, thus increasing the child’s ability to learn.
Will you join us?
The success of this program depends highly on the level of participation of our member urban schools. With that said, I encourage your participation and commitment to this critical program for the sake of our children. They need a positive foundation that will serve as a new base upon which to build a lifetime of advancement. Will you join us?
The Meantime Volume 7 Number 3