So it begins...

Hello, welcome to The Learning Curve, a blog about the research I have done during my graduate work, and the conclusions I came too during that time. This is my first time writing a blog, but I will give it my best shot. I also want to insure my readers that I will be backing up my thoughts with research and citations. It is all to often we read blogs and read other resources online that there is not scientific backing to what people are saying. It is my goal to have a continuous weekly submission blog that talks about the inadequacies of our education system, and how research can help us to improve or remove those inadequacies. I also encourage anyone who wishes to, to comment and start a discourse over the weekly topics. “Collaborating usually provides a means for organizations, institutions, or professions to achieve more than they can on their own” (Green and Johnson, p. 2, 2015).

What is literacy? It can be defined sever ways depending on what the content is. In education “we define literacy as the process of using reading, writing, and oral language to extract, construct, integrate, and critique meaning through interaction and involvement with multi-modal texts in the context of socially situated practices” (Frankel, Becker, Rowe and Pearson, 2016, p. 7). Before starting my graduate degree, I thought I knew what literacy was, and how important. I was not as well informed as I thought. Literacy has an impact far greater than I thought, and how it can affect my classroom.

The literacy of our students not only effects their language arts classes, but science, math, social studies, home economics, shop class, and more. I always assumed if a student didn’t want to read or write, it was because they were not interested. I now realize that the problem wasn’t that the students lack interest, it was that many of them struggled with literacy and comprehension. The education system has failed the students in fostering their literacy skills. What really surprises me is the impact of what a little effort could have.

To be honest, before I did the analysis of my own school’s literacy program, I didn’t know much about our program. The short comings of the program were not because of the two teachers that ran it, it was the lack of resources and attention. So, few resources and staff made it difficult for the specialist to really make an impact. A few interventions a week is not going to do much if anything at all. We need a school wide literacy initiative that all teachers have confidence and the knowledge to execute. Every one of us constantly try to make our schools better and more effective. Most of you and I know that at every meeting discussion on ways in which we can help our students succeed is at the core. Yet few schools have addressed literacy issues.

As I researched, I wondered what I could do as a science teacher. I kept seeing a repeating pattern that reading and writing needed to be taught explicitly in every class, not just English class. That is where I focused my thoughts and suggestions to you. We need to improve our knowledge of literacy and how to facilitate that in our classrooms, so that every period students practice reading and writing. When I have talked to some colleagues, they are hesitant because they just don’t know what an effective way to address literacy would be in their classrooms. Ness (2016) found that most secondary teachers won’t spend class time on modeling, coaching or explaining comprehension strategies to their students, because they do not feel qualified. What is the answer? It is professional development in literacy and comprehension education. During my research, I found the teachers that I spoke with were open and intrigued by the idea of revamping their literacy inclusion. I found this willingness to collaborate refreshing. Teachers have been very receptive to the ideas about how to improve the literacy of the students, and eager to get started.

Through all my undergraduate degree, and all the education courses I took during that time, not one addressed literacy as an issue. The problem is many teachers never got literacy training, especially the teachers in the sciences and math. We must address this issue and improve our own skills to help elevate the student’s skills. Literacy should be at the forefront of our minds when we teach a class, asking ourselves every day “Am I improving their literacy with today’s lesson?”.

References

Frankel, K. K., Becker, B. L., Rowe, M. W., & Pearson, P. D. (2016). From “what is reading?” to what is literacy?. Journal of Education, 196(3), 7-17.

Green, B. N., & Johnson, C. D. (2015). Interprofessional collaboration in research, education, and clinical practice: working together for a better future. Journal of Chiropractic Education, 29(1), 1-10.

Ness, M. K. (2016, February 22). Reading comprehension strategies in secondary content area classrooms: Teacher use of and attitudes towards reading comprehension instruction. Reading Horizons, 49(2), 5th ser., 60-85.