Provision model

The NSW Centre for Effective Reading (NSW CER) provides a provision in which students who demonstrate low progress following evidence-based reading instruction will receive additional support. This support may be individualised reading intervention support for a child, online webinars for teachers, and resources and materials on this website.

Referrals

Referral information is used to determine the level of support a student requires.

How do I refer a student / apply for support?

Principals or their delegates refer students through an online referral submitted to NSW CER. Parents cannot refer students. All eligible schools receive an email when the referral period opens. This email includes the online link and relevant details to be included as part of the submission. Referrals are accepted twice per year, at the start of Term 2 and Term 4.

What is the age of students we can refer?

Eligible rural and remote primary schools can refer students who have been identified by the school as having difficulty with reading, and who have not responded as expected to school reading interventions. Usually, students are from Year 1 through to Year 6.

When do referrals open?

Referrals are accepted twice per year, at the start of Term 2 and Term 4.

Our students come from rural and remote schools across NSW.

2025 Semester 2 intake

Assessment

Assessments administered through NSW CER allow for the team to gain a thorough understanding of the child. This information guides the development of a tailored reading intervention plan for the student.

What assessments do NSW CER provide?

NSW CER’s team of teachers, speech pathologists and psychologists administer relevant assessments to assist the team in understanding the child. These are determined according to information provided by the referring school and family, and are tailored for each student.

When do the assessments happen?

All students accepted for support by NSW CER are assessed by our team. Assessments are scheduled over 1 semester (2 terms), so that each week 1 to 2 students are assessed through each hub.

The assessment schedule is shared with families and schools at the end of Terms 2 and 4, to assist with planning. Assessments take place over 2-3 days for each student.

Will students have to travel for assessments?

Students will be allocated to one of the 4 hubs for support: Dubbo, Wagga Wagga, Manly and Westmead.

Manly - Travel is not required for students allocated to the Manly hub. Support is provided online through the students school.
Westmead / CDU – it is requested that families travel to the Child Development Unit, Children’s Hospital Westmead, Sydney for assessment.
Wagga Wagga and Dubbo – families are requested to travel to these sites.

These assessments may take place over 2-3 days.

Remote (online) assessments may be available upon request for students supported by Westmead, Wagga Wagga and Dubbo.

How are the assessment results shared?

A collaborative report is written by the assessing team. This report has the results of the assessments administered by each specialist, as well as recommendations. This report is provided to schools and families. A meeting also discusses the results with the family and school.

Online assessment with our NSW CER teacher

Face-to-face assessments can also occur.

Meetings

Meetings are a valuable way of sharing information and collaborating with families, schools and students. This allows all involved to ask questions and to clarify information shared in a friendly and personal manner.

How often do meetings happen?

Meetings occur regularly throughout the 12 months of support provided by NSW CER. NSW CER, the school team, and the family are invited to these meetings. Students are also regularly invited so they can share their student voice.

3-4 weeks after assessment: Initial Planning Meeting to share the outcomes of the initial assessments
every 10 weeks: Personalised Learning Meetings to share progress
at completion of support: Final Review Meeting to share outcomes of review testing, the final review report

Who attends the meetings?

All those involved in supporting a student are invited. This may include the partner-school team, the family, any other community support or outside agencies.

Partner-schools support NSW in the inviting relevant people to these meetings.

How do the meetings take place?

Meetings usually take place online. Families are often invited to join the school team at school, and NSW CER joins online. No travel is required for meetings.

Schools can invite families onsite for meetings.

NSW CER team can join online for family and school meetings.

Intervention

All students accepted for support from NSW CER receive an individualised plan for reading intervention (PRI) written by a NSW CER teacher in collaboration with speech pathologists or school psychologists.

Who delivers the reading intervention?

The school is required to allocate a 1:1 tutor and a suitable location to support the reading intervention 4-5 times per week, 45-60 minutes for up to 12 months. This could be a teacher or an SLSO / teachers assistant.

Does the school need to provide the resources?

NSW CER provides all other resources and materials required for the individualised reading intervention. This includes carefully chosen decodable texts matched to the students reading level and interests.

How does the school tutor know what to do?

Our expert NSW CER teachers will train the school tutor/s that the school has chosen to deliver the intervention.

Every 2 weeks our teacher liaises with the partner school to make minor adjustments to the program to ensure that their are high expectations and that the students is motivated and engaged to progress in their reading.