<p> Elementary Education and Reading Bacon Hall Room 316C 1300 Elmwood Avenue Buffalo, NY 14222-1095 Tel: (716) 878-4074 Fax: (716) 878-6033</p><p> www.buffalostate.edu Maurice A. John, Sr. President Seneca Nation of Indians</p><p>20 April 2015</p><p>Dear. Maurice A. John, Sr., </p><p>I am writing you concerning the Native American students I have in my elementary classroom. In my classroom five out of the twenty-two students are Native American. I have recently come across and done some research on the phenomenon called, The Matthew Effect, which I fear may have potential consequences on my Native American students who are struggling readers. I would like to share with you the reasoning behind my fear and the connection it has with struggling readers. </p><p>To start, I will define the Matthew Effect. According to Cain and Oakhill (2011), the Matthew Effect is “…the phenomenon that performance differences between good and poor readers may increase over time” (Shively, 2014, slide 44). It is my fear that my Native American students will fall victim to the Matthew Effect because they have not been previously taught the proper foundational skills of how to read. </p><p>Unfortunately, research has shown that, “National dropout rates for Native Americans highest for any ethnic group” (Shively, 2014, slide 7). The dropout rate is directly correlated with a student’s difficulty with reading, because Native American students are more motivated to drop out of high school due to their difficulty with reading. According to Hernandez (2011), “1 in 6 children who are not reading proficiently in third grade do not graduate from high school on time, a rate four times greater than that for proficient readers” (Shively, 2014, slide 48). It is my hope that, as a teacher, I am able to influence my students’ ability to overcome their reading difficulties and remain in school. </p><p>As an elementary teacher, with Native American students in my classroom, the correlation between the Matthew Effect and Native American drop-out rates interests me. I believe that the topic of the Matthew Effect and its potential consequences on native students is a matter which all teachers should be made aware of. </p><p>Sincerely, </p><p>Whitney Blackley </p>