Reflects on some of the issues that have been raised in this column over the past six years, including readability formulae, reading assessment, and the use of basal readers. (MM)

Despite decades of efforts, alarming statistics about the literacy crisis from secondary school teachers indicate that the reading abilities of the learners are inadequate for the materials to be taught and teachers wonder if adolescents are literate enough, language-wise, to leave school and enter colleges or universities. The common mode of…

Using a grounded theory approach to investigate the multidimensional reflections of two Reading Recovery teachers, this inquiry responds to calls for research on reflection and provides information for the field of education in understanding the nature of teachers' reflections and how they inform teaching practices. Reading Recovery is a…

A recent national study of state and local No Child Left Behind activities indicated that 80 percent of elementary teachers reported participating in 24 hours or less of professional development on reading instruction during the 2003-2004 school year and summer. Reading and professional development experts are concerned that this is not intensive…

Bringing together leading experts, this book presents the principles of effective literacy leadership and describes proven methods for improving instruction, assessment, and schoolwide professional development. The book shows how all school staff--including reading specialists and coaches, administrators, teachers, and special educators--can play…

Does reading practice make perfect? Or is reading achievement related to the quality of practice as well as the quantity? To answer these questions, data on 45,670 students in grades 1-12 who read over 3 million books were analyzed. Measures largely of quantity (engaged reading volume) and purely of quality (success in reading comprehension)…

The use of student assessment data is a key component of a model of instructional coaching, Student-Focused Coaching (Hasbrouck & Denton, 2005), designed to support student achievement by engaging reading teachers in a collaborative problem-solving process to modify instructional strategies with the goal of enhanced student outcomes. In this…

Three literacy teacher-educators chart the ways in which portfolio assessment impacted their program. They discuss the tension between the demands of national accreditation standards and faculty belief systems in more ecological approaches. They describe the processes of change that occurred programmatically and individually which continue to…

This paper explores a middle school teacher's and his students' perceptions of the differences between online synchronous literature discussions and face-to-face literature discussions. Each member of this literature group participated in two face-to-face and two online literature discussions. Participants were interviewed twice to discuss their…

This applied dissertation was developed to determine (a) the impact that Achieve3000, a web-based reading program, had on the reading-comprehension skills of English language learners (ELLs) and (b) the perceptions of students and their teacher on the technology program used at the study school as it relates to the remediation of the reading…

Four responses to speeches regarding William S. Gray presented at the May 9, 1985, Annual Convention of the International Reading Association (IRA) are presented in this paper. Gray--whose accomplishments include his association with the University of Chicago from 1912 (student) to his death in 1960 (Professor Emeritus); his pioneering work in the…

A fictional letter from a typical student to a teacher suggests the qualities of an effective teacher of reading. (DD)

Discusses several books that make the point that readers do and should read stories that are judged to be truly different from stories that are made up. Argues that the responsibility of reading teachers is to help young readers become thoughtfully engaged in their suspension of disbelief. (RS)

Lists five professional periodicals which fit the time and financial constraints of classroom teachers. Reviews "Language Arts,""The New Advocate,""Educational Leadership,""Phi Delta Kappan,""Learning 90," and "Teaching PreK-8." (MG)

Muses over and responds to several "letters" regarding top 10 lists for reading teachers, political correctness, best sellers, and Howard Gardner on drill and discipline. (SR)