Tier 2 Literacy Intervention – Student Data Summary

Programme Focus: Literacy Acceleration for Tier 2 Students
Reporting Period: Mid Term 2, 2025

Overview

A total of 18 students from Year 1 to Year 6 were identified for Tier 2 literacy support. These students were selected based on assessment data and teacher observations indicating a need for targeted, small-group instruction to accelerate foundational literacy skills.

The cohort includes English Language Learners (ELLs), with several students newly arrived in New Zealand. While these students often show strength in their first language, they require support in developing English literacy skills.

Student Profile Summary

Category	Number of Students	Comments
Limited English proficiency (new to NZ)	5	Students have minimal English exposure but are fluent in their first language.
Not ready for formal schooling	2	Require support with school routines, attention, and early literacy readiness.
Difficulty with letter-sound recognition and sight words	8	Students show confusion with phonics and have limited fluency with basic sight words.
Strong oral English, weak written English	3	Students communicate well verbally but struggle with writing skills.

Key Considerations

• Literacy instruction was designed to meet the diverse needs of this group, including phonemic awareness, oral language, vocabulary development, and early reading strategies.

• Students were grouped according to their specific learning needs to enable targeted intervention.

• Interventions were delivered by trained learning assistants under teacher guidance, with a strong emphasis on consistency and modelling.

 Next Steps in Supporting Tier 2 Students

My next step was to identify all our Tier 2 students. The strategy was to accelerate their learning in literacy. It was interesting to see that students from all year levels were identified, and those working at Level 1 of the curriculum were placed into the Tier 2 programme.

This programme was to be run by our teacher aides, so I decided to set up hui with teachers to coordinate our approach. We organised for all Tier 2 students to be withdrawn during the first block of the day to focus on foundational literacy skills.

The most important task for me was to train our learning assistants, prepare resources, and model how to deliver the lessons. This process took around two weeks, during which time our learning assistants gained confidence and capability in taking the lessons themselves.

I must say, our learning assistants were fantastic at picking up new learning and applying it effectively to support students. Considering their level of understanding and enthusiasm, I decided to enrol them in the Best Start Literacy Programme through the University of Canterbury.

This course includes regular weekly Zoom hui for the learning assistants. To ensure this runs effectively, we at Tāmaki have allocated dedicated time for them to attend the sessions and practise completing the required quizzes, which are an essential part of the course.

It’s been very satisfying to see our learning assistants making such a strong effort to upskill themselves while also providing valuable support to our students