This annotated bibliography is reformatted and customized by the Center for Positive Practices. Some of the authors featured on this page include Alexia Mintos, Barbara Moss, Stephanie Hirsh, Robert Q. Berry, Rich Giacin, Maria Grant, Erin Washburn, Joellen Killion, Kelly Johnson, and Katherine A. Dougherty Stahl.
(2013). Reading Preparation of Secondary ELA Teachers: A U.S. Survey of State Licensure Requirements, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. Secondary teacher preparation in reading in the U.S. has received minimal attention from the research community despite the almost universal implementation of the Common Core State Standards. In response, numerous publications have demanded that secondary teachers be fully prepared to support the needs of struggling readers, especially ELA teachers. The purpose of this review was to survey the requirements of the 51 U.S. State Educational Agencies (SEAs; the 50 states and the District of Columbia) for initial secondary licensure in ELA in order to describe the current status of teacher preparation with regard to the inclusion of reading development. The study begins by reviewing the research in secondary reading preparation, followed by an examination of reading instruction in secondary schools, with a particular focus on ELA. Finally, the author concludes with a presentation of the 51 SEA's licensure requirements for reading development knowledge for secondary ELA teachers. [More] Descriptors: Secondary School Teachers, Teacher Education, Teacher Competencies, Reading Difficulties
(2013). Beyond March Madness: Fruitful Practices to Prepare for High-Stakes ELA¬ Tests, Reading Teacher. Successful implementation of the Common Core State Standards (2010) will require an alignment between learning standards, effective instruction, and the new assessments designed by the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Career (PARCC) and Smarter Balanced (SB) consortia. Both the CCSS and the new generation of assessments call for students to comprehend and respond to complex texts using text evidence and high levels of thinking. Traditional test preparation that focused on isolated skills is not likely to be effective in preparing students for success on the PARCC or SB tests. Instead, fruitful practices are likely to be (a) teaching integrated content units, (b) teaching comprehension strategies, (c) providing opportunities for high levels of speaking, listening and thinking about texts, (d) using official writing rubrics, and (e) providing diagnostic interventions for at-risk readers. [More] Descriptors: Educational Practices, High Stakes Tests, State Standards, Integrated Curriculum
(2013). Supporting Teachers, Principal Leadership. Material resources, personalized support, time to collaborate, and strong principal leadership are necessary for making curricular and instructional shifts. The authors of this article share the lessons they learned about supporting implementation of the Common Core State Standards. They draw on interviews with teachers, as well as field notes taken by curriculum specialists throughout the implementation year. They focus on the supports that teachers found most useful and discuss additional supports that would have improved their initiative. The lessons they learned include, first, teachers should be provided with the right materials. Second, teachers should be given additional, personalized support. Third, teachers should be provided with the opportunity and support to collaborate. Finally, principals need to lead the charge, since they are responsible for arranging teachers' schedules, organizing teacher teams, and generally setting norms for teacher collaboration. [More] Descriptors: State Standards, Literacy, Curriculum Implementation, Language Arts
(2013). Exploring Function Transformations Using the Common Core, Mathematics Teacher. When examining transformations of the plane in geometry, teachers typically have students experiment with transformations of polygons. Students are usually quick to notice patterns with ordered pairs. The Common Core State Standard, Geometry, Congruence 2 (G-CO.2), requires students to describe transformations as functions that take points in the plane as inputs and give other points as outputs. The connection to ordered pairs explored in this Common Core standard can illuminate transformations on functions. Tying the teaching approach to the Common Core Standard for Geometry and Congruence will help students understand why functions behave as they do. This article provides examples where transformations were performed on general functions, y=f(x). The method described can help students understand transformations on polynomials, trigonometric functions, logarithmic functions, exponential functions, or any other type of function. It can even be extended to nonfunctions, such as conic sections. [More] Descriptors: Academic Standards, State Standards, Mathematics, Geometry
(2013). How Rhetorical Theories of Genre Address Common Core Writing Standards, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. This article begins with a review of the forms of writing promoted in the Common Core State Standards. Across content areas, Common Core encourages teachers to attune students' writing to rhetorical concerns of audience, purpose, task, and disciplinary thinking. To address these concerns, teachers might take a rhetorical approach to the study of genres. In this view, genres are seen as resources writers use to build and act in particular situations. That is, genres help writers shape their writing to fit particular audiences, purposes, tasks, and forms of disciplinary thought. This article explains the rhetorical approach to genre studies by describing how particular genres (e.g. lab reports) are used by people to negotiate particular situations (e.g. labs in chemistry classes). Examples are offered throughout the article of how genre studies can be carried out in classrooms. [More] Descriptors: State Standards, Rhetoric, Literary Genres, Writing Instruction
(2013). Investments in Professional Learning Must Change: The Goals Are Ambitious, the Stakes Are High–And Resources Are the Key, Journal of Staff Development. Adapted from the brief "Meet the Promise of Content Standards: Investing in Professional Learning," this article draws on the work of Learning Forward's initiative, Transforming Professional Learning to Prepare College- and Career-Ready Students: Implementing the Common Core. This multidimensional initiative is focused on developing a comprehensive system of professional learning that spans the distance from the statehouse to the classroom. The project will reform policy and practice and apply innovative technology solutions to support and enhance professional learning. With an immediate focus on implementing Common Core State Standards and new assessments, the initiative provides resources and tools to assist states, districts, and schools in providing effective professional learning for current and future education reforms. [To access "Meet the Promise of Content Standards: Investing in Professional Learning" see ED540179.] [More] Descriptors: Faculty Development, Academic Standards, State Standards, Academic Achievement
(2013). Students' Close Reading of Science Texts: What's Now? What's Next?, Reading Teacher. A question being asked by teachers across the country is, How can I teach students to acquire both the skills and knowledge demanded by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) while simultaneously guiding them to read challenging texts such as those presented in Appendix B of the CCSS? Answering this invites the integration of ideas and the innovation of novel instructional plans. Illustrating close reading procedures in two classrooms-one 1st grade and one 5th grade- this article provides an answer by detailing the manner in which a student might approach a challenging science text using annotated reading, partner talk, text-based questioning and reflective writing to build competence and a capacity for reading, writing, listening, and speaking about informational texts. [More] Descriptors: Reading Strategies, Reading Instruction, Content Area Reading, Reader Text Relationship
(2013). The Whole Story: Understanding Fraction Computation, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. What does it look like to "understand" operations with fractions? The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) uses the term "understand" when describing expectations for students' knowledge related to each of the fraction operations within grades 4 through 6 (CCSSI 2010). Furthermore, CCSSM elaborates that students should be able to perform fraction computations using visual models and when such problems are presented in context. These questions then arise: What does it mean to "understand fraction operations"? What types of issues occur that might not be encountered otherwise when solving problems in context and using visual models? In this article, the authors share their experiences working with prospective teachers to describe the teachers' errors and how those errors might be addressed. [More] Descriptors: Computation, Arithmetic, Preservice Teacher Education, Preservice Teachers
(2013). Writing "Voiced" Arguments about Science Topics: Answering the CCSS Call for Integrated Literacy Instruction, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. This teacher-research study responds to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) call for an integrated model of literacy that simultaneously builds deep content knowledge and develops students' proficiency in writing arguments in science. The author notes that while argument is a cornerstone of the CCSS writing standards, little attention is paid to the issue of "voice." Asserting that voice is often what makes arguments compelling, the author urges teachers to engage students in the formal study of "voice" while teaching opinion/argumentative writing. The author describes a "science sleuth" simulation unit she implemented to help students perform the production strategies necessary for composing "voiced" scientific arguments. Using grounded theory methodology, the author presents student writing samples to spotlight the challenges, benefits and potential pitfalls of encouraging sixth graders to write scientific arguments with voice–authority, conviction, commitment, and a command of the subject matter. [More] Descriptors: State Standards, Science Instruction, Persuasive Discourse, Writing (Composition)
(2013). Multidimensional Teaching, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. Multidimensional mathematics teaching, as discussed in this article encourages the use of context in mathematics teaching and learning to help teachers better recognize and build upon the cultural and social resources students bring to the classroom. Such efforts can impact students' performance and can help students make sense of decisions about their choice of problem-solving procedures. Multidimensional teaching also represents a way to address equity concerns in school mathematics by supporting: (1) an understanding of the cultural and social resources that students bring to the mathematics classroom; (2) the development of knowledge within those cultural frameworks; and (3) an understanding of mathematics within varying cultural frameworks. This article specifically focuses on how one seventh-grade teacher engages students by melding the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Process Standards, the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics' Standards for Mathematical Practice, and varied contexts. A bibliography is provided. [More] Descriptors: Mathematics Instruction, Secondary School Mathematics, Middle School Students, Teaching Methods
(2013). Using Argument as a Tool for Integrating Science and Literacy, Reading Teacher. The integration of literacy in science education has been supported by both literacy and science researchers and educators. Recent federal initiatives such as the Common Core State Standards and A Framework for K-12 Science Education have also emphasized the need to integrate literacy and science. However, few tools exist to help educators think about how to integrate best literacy practices into their science lessons. PONG Cycles is an argument-to-learn framework for teaching and learning science that can be used to integrate all aspects of literacy (speaking, listening, reading, writing and viewing). An explanation of PONG Cycles, along with implications and suggestions for its use in the upper elementary classroom, is provided. [More] Descriptors: Persuasive Discourse, Teaching Methods, Science Instruction, Reading Instruction
(2013). CCSSM Challenge: Graphing Ratio and Proportion, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. A renewed emphasis was placed on ratio and proportional reasoning in the middle grades in the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM). The expectation for students includes the ability to not only compute and then compare and interpret the results of computations in context but also interpret ratios and proportions as they are represented in graphs. In this article, the authors illustrate the challenges that teachers face in linking an understanding of ratios and graphs by exploring student work from a ratio comparison problem (the Cherry Syrup problem), highlighting the understandings that are needed to create graphs from such problems, and discussing teachers' insights drawn from examining graphs developed from a ratio comparison problem. As teachers face the demands of CCSSM, they will explore the constraints and possibilities provided by students' strategies and understandings. [More] Descriptors: Mathematics Instruction, Middle School Teachers, Secondary School Mathematics, Graphs
(2013). Research and Policy: Informational Texts and the Common Core Standards: What Are We Talking about, Anyway?, Language Arts. This column responds to a recent push in education policy toward a curriculum that requires students to read and write more informational texts. Most evident in the now well-known Common Core State Standards, these policy moves echo, in some ways, a call by researchers for more informational texts, particularly in primary classrooms. In this column, the authors work to sort out the various ways that researchers and policy documents have defined terms like "informational texts" and "nonfiction." In doing so, they hope to move toward more clarity and consistency in the use of such terms. The discussion in this column lays the groundwork for, and continues in, a future column (July, 2013) in which they review the research on instruction relevant to informational texts. [More] Descriptors: Literacy, Nonfiction, State Standards, Academic Standards
(2013). Scaffolded Silent Reading (ScSR): Advocating a Policy for Adolescents' Independent Reading, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. Structured independent reading among students is often a vital missing component in many school districts' literacy curriculum. The nationwide implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) requires districts to re-think their literacy curriculum and what instruction might entail in order for students to demonstrate proficiency in literacy by the end of high school. Walker discusses Scaffolded Silent Reading (ScSR) as a disciplined way for teachers to support adolescents' independent reading at school. She argues that progressive school leaders prioritize independent reading and establish it as a non-negotiable component of a comprehensive literacy program. A ScSR policy will have greater sustainability as leadership capacity is developed among teachers to implement and facilitate ScSR. [More] Descriptors: Silent Reading, Scaffolding (Teaching Technique), Literacy Education, Reading Instruction
(2013). 21st Century Teacher Education, Education Next. For almost as long as there have been institutions dedicated to the preparation of new teachers, the endeavor has come in for criticism. Teacher education has long struggled both to professionalize and to fully integrate itself into mainstream academia. At the core of this struggle was a perception that there was no body of specialized knowledge for teaching that justified specialized training. Accreditation is now being revamped under a new name, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). In this article, the author evaluates the essential need for teacher training. She goes on to discuss the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), which make the need to train teachers all the more pressing. The next challenge is to find ways to motivate institutions to change in the direction of effective training. The article concludes with five ways policymakers can make a big difference in the quality of teacher preparation. [More] Descriptors: Teacher Education, State Standards, Educational Needs, Teacher Educators