Today’s Literacy Headlines

Any discussion about “equity” in education that is not first and foremost a discussion about literacy is unserious. Wide and persistent gaps between White and Black students, stretching back decades, make it abundantly clear—or ought to—that state education officials have no more urgent business to attend to than ensuring that every child can read in every school under their control or influence. To its credit, the Council of Chief State School Officers understands this rock-bottom priority. CCSSO has emerged in recent years as a consistent, informed, and energetic proponent of the “science of reading,” and has put considerable effort into championing state initiatives to encourage the adoption and implementation of high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) in literacy. Its new report, A Nation of Readers, describes “concrete actions” that state leaders can take to improve the caliber of reading instruction and materials in classrooms within their borders. It’s required reading for any state or district official in a position to influence curriculum adoptions, professional development, or teacher training and certification.

When serving students with ASD in a remote setting, educators should focus on the following: relationships, consistency, social skills, and fluid instruction. As more and more schools shift back to in-person learning, special education teachers should emphasize the need for a coordinated strategy. Once the students return, they will depend on you to provide a positive learning environment. Focus on compassion, communication, and encouragement. After the student has readjusted, use a diagnostic assessment to determine potential strengths and deficits. Use this data to guide instructional planning, implement academic interventions, and determine the accommodations needed to excel in the classroom setting. Increase student engagement by using relevant content. At the same time, be aware of the social and emotional needs of the student and the hidden curriculum.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shed light on the needs of students with dyslexia, but also made it more difficult to support them. Education Week interviewed four experts to find out what advice they have for educators and parents who are working with students with dyslexia. Here’s a look at what the experts had to say. First, avoid asychronous learning. The experts universally agreed that students with dyslexia need direction, instruction, and real-time feedback that isn’t available during recorded lessons. Another tip: embrace assistive technology. Schools should use tools, such as speech-to-text and text-to-speech functions, that can help students with dyslexia navigate lessons and complete assignments.

Across the country, teachers are beginning to face the reality of returning to their classrooms in person and all that comes with it — whether it’s excitement over seeing students again, anxiety over whether classrooms will be safe from the virus or the challenges that come with teaching in a radically new environment. Maxie Hollingsworth just returned to in-person teaching at her elementary school in Houston, where she has been working remotely since last spring. Mike Reinholdt teaches special education at an elementary school in Davenport, Iowa. Pam Gaddy is still teaching her students at a Baltimore high school remotely for now, so she and her colleagues have had to improvise. All three are thinking about vaccine availability and their safety and the safety of their students and their families. Here are highlights from their conversation with All Things Considered.

For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, covering someone’s face means pieces of conversation get lost. That’s a challenge given that public health experts tout mask wearing as one essential strategy for reopening schools. Educators say that while virtual learning has advantages for deaf students and teachers because no one needs a mask, visual learners are prone to screen fatigue. Then there’s the all-important socialization for young people that a classroom offers. So, those who work with deaf students are adapting to the new normal.

A study on word learning recently published in Neuropsychologia is shedding light on the age-old question of how language learners’ minds store the target language. Researchers at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile found that new words in the native language and the target language are stored in largely overlapping regions of the brain; however, L2 words triggered more activity in the primary auditory cortex, suggesting increased phonological processing efforts. “Our results shed new light on the neural representation of two languages in the bilingual brain, by examining newly learned words that participants had no prior experie

In a flipped classroom, students watch video lectures before class and use class time to work on assignments and group projects. It’s “flipped” because it’s the opposite of the traditional structure in which students first learn from a teacher’s in-class instruction. Advocates believe that students learn more when class time is spent actively learning instead of passively listening. Flipped classrooms also free up class time for teachers to help students individually, as a tutor does. Over the past decade, flipping has spread across U.S. classrooms, from city college campuses to suburban elementary schools. But like many trends in education, the novelty took hold before the evidence mounted. Now there is a significant body of research to answer the question of whether students learn more. The underwhelming answer from more than 100 studies of flipped classrooms is yes, but only slightly.

Child care via before- and after-school programs is vital for many parents and guardians, and preschool and elementary schools can help them navigate the options. Preschool teachers are in direct contact with children and families during the year before kindergarten begins, which means they are well-positioned to share information with families and help them make choices that meet the needs of their children. Kindergarten teachers and school administrators are positioned to know which before- and after-school programs serve the children at their school, and can share this information with incoming families via preschool teachers and kindergarten transition outreach efforts. Elementary school administrators, kindergarten teachers, early childhood educators, and program directors can take specific steps to help families make informed decisions that serve their coverage requirements and their child’s needs.

Fans of the bestselling children’s books “Rosie Revere, Engineer” and “Ada Twist, Scientist” should get ready to welcome a new friend. The latest picture book in the “Questioneers” series is “Aaron Slater, Illustrator,” on sale this fall. Aaron is a boy who loves to draw — and struggles to read. The story is inspired by the book’s illustrator, David Roberts, who is dyslexic, says author Andrea Beaty. “As a kid he struggled mightily through school, just struggled mightily. But he could draw. And he had teachers who saw in him this gift he had, and they just tried to sort of pave the way for him to help him find successes through his art,” she says.”Because he had things to say.”

Black history is American history, and it should be taught throughout the year across the curriculum—not confined to a single month. No matter what subject you teach, there are ways you can infuse Black history into your daily lessons in a way that is purposeful.

A study published in the journal Pediatrics expands validation evidence for a new screening tool that directly engages preschool-age children during clinic visits to assess their early literacy skills. The tool, which is the first of its kind, has the potential to identify reading difficulties as early as possible, target interventions and empower families to help their child at home, according to researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) has announced finalists for the Golden Kite Awards for the first time in the award’s nearly 50-year history. The Golden Kite Awards recognize excellence in children’s literature in seven categories: Middle Grade/Young Reader Fiction; Young Adult Fiction; Nonfiction Text for Younger Readers; Nonfiction Text for Older Readers; Picture Book Text; and Picture Book Illustration. The Sid Fleischmann Humor Award is given to the author who exemplifies excellence in humor writing. The awards will be announced February 19 in a virtual ceremony that will launch SCBWI’s virtual conference.

“Teachers should draw on students’ background knowledge and experiences and build on what they already know in order to enhance their language and literacy learning,” says Assistant Professor Jackie Relyea. Early literacy skills and knowledge that bilingual students establish in their native language can be transferred to the development of literacy skills in a second language. It is also important that teachers provide rich and meaningful classroom experiences for English language learners to solidify their understanding of new academic vocabulary knowledge and the concepts they learn. To help emergent bilingual learners gain reading comprehension proficiency in English teachers can also utilize reading interventions.

As families nationwide fret about “COVID learning loss” due to months of remote instruction and uncertain class schedules, key educators are advocating an unusual remedy: a national volunteer tutoring force, a sort of digital Peace Corps meets Homework Helpers.

A new study offers some guidance for striking a balance between class cohesion and privacy. Plus, strategies from teachers to encourage camera use in context.

Echoed across the research is that there are two things Black children need to further their emotional and academic development. First, is to develop strong racial and cultural identities. Second is opportunities to develop their critical consciousness. When inclusive, culturally responsive books are kept out of or are limited in the curriculum and on library shelves, the message becomes clear to all students about whose lives matter and whose don’t. Books offer powerful mirrors for Black children that are joyful to read in school and at home. Here’s what to consider.

Good news parents, there’s a way to give kids a screen break without forgoing engrossing and educational content. Podcasts, and in particular musical ones, offer a dynamic, attention-grabbing learning opportunity that by their very nature, incite a theater in the minds of little listeners. Below are some hidden gems of musical podcasts that have the potential to teach and delight.

It’s been 11 months since schools first shut down across the country and around the world. And most students in the U.S. are still experiencing disruptions to their learning — going into the classroom only a few days a week or not at all. To respond to this disruption, education leaders are calling for a reinvention of public education on the order of the Marshall Plan, the massive U.S. initiative to rebuild Western Europe after the devastations of World War II. Education experts, parents and students are thinking about what is going to be necessary to recover — and at the same time the things that are not worth returning to. Here are four key ideas.

In “Have I Ever Told You Black Lives Matter” and “The ABCs of Black History,” U is for Unfinished. The week I wrote this review, Kamala Harris became the first woman, first African-American and first Asian-American to take the oath of office as vice president of the United States. At the same event, Amanda Gorman, the nation’s first National Youth Poet Laureate, dazzled the world with her inaugural poem. There will be more firsts before the sun sets on this day, and already Black authors and illustrators across the country are dreaming up ways to get these new accomplishments down on the page. But which breakthroughs should they include? Shani Mahiri King (an associate director of the Center on Race and Race Relations at the University of Florida, where he is also a law professor) addresses this dilemma directly in “Have I Ever Told You Black Lives Matter,” choosing to focus on the “collective” power in “the breadth and richness” of 116 individuals. They embody an impressive range, from the early American revolutionary Crispus Attucks to up-to-the-minute figures such as Jay-Z and Chadwick Boseman.

Pressure is building on school systems around the U.S. to reopen classrooms to students who have been learning online for nearly a year, pitting politicians against teachers who have yet to be vaccinated against COVID-19. While some communities maintain that online classes remain the safest option for everyone, some parents, with backing from politicians and administrators, have complained that their children’s education is suffering from sitting at home in front of their computers and that the isolation is damaging them emotionally.

Ernesto Cisneros won the Pura Belpré Children’s Author award with his debut novel “Efrén Divided,” released in March 2020. The book follows 12-year-old Efrén Nava as his life changes when his mother is deported to Mexico. He becomes responsible for his siblings as his father takes on a second job and is determined to reunite with his mother. Cisnernos started writing the book during the 2016 election and was inspired by some of the deportation experiences of the middle school students he teaches at Mendez Fundamental Intermediate School in Santa Ana. After a day of teaching virtually from his makeshift closet-office, Cisneros talks about growing up in Santa Ana, what kept him motivated to write and his upcoming second novel in this edited interview.

When students who are learning English struggle in school, it can be especially difficult to figure out why—and how to help. There are plenty of “myths and misconceptions about services and supports” for English language learners (ELLs), writes Lydia Breiseth for Understood, leading schools to sometimes refer language learners for special education services when they don’t need them. It’s important to “know the facts behind these myths,” she writes, so educators can “make changes that can result in better outcomes for students.” Start by getting to know English learners in your classroom and becoming better informed about their needs. In all cases, but especially when they’re struggling, Breiseth recommends gathering important information about them—including strengths, challenges, and background experiences—to help determine how to support them as they progress through the stages of language acquisition.

A deluge of data released late last year confirmed what has long been suspected: The coronavirus pandemic caused widespread learning loss while also amplifying gaps across racial and socioeconomic lines. The situation is especially concerning among younger children: one analysis of reading level data by Amplify Education, Inc., which creates curriculum, assessment and intervention products, found children in first and second grade experienced the most dramatic drops in grade level reading scores compared to previous years. This year, 40 percent of first grade students and 35 percent of second grade students are “significantly at risk” of needing intensive intervention compared to 27 percent and 29 percent last year. Here are some of the ways experts and educators are proposing to close the gap.