Upcoming Events
Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 13, 2023
Program title and description: Making Complex Text Accessible to Experienced Multilingual Learners
This session addresses the specific needs of multilingual learners who have reached the ‘developing’ stage of language acquisition. These students in grades 3-12 can decode text, but they may not always understand what they’ve read. This session provides concrete strategies for making even grade level content texts comprehensible for these students.
Guest Speaker Bio:
Beth has over 30 years of experience as a language educator and holds a master’s degree in multicultural teacher education. She has worked with early childhood, elementary, middle, high school and adult language learners in rural, urban, suburban, and international school settings. She is the co-author of Long-Term Success for Experienced Multilinguals, a best-selling book published by Corwin, and Putting it Together, materials for teaching adult English learners using a story-based curriculum. She is an active board member of Colorado TESOL. Beth currently provides professional development, coaching, and consulting with schools around the world focused on providing equitable education for multilingual learners.
Program title and description: Making Complex Text Accessible to Experienced Multilingual Learners
This session addresses the specific needs of multilingual learners who have reached the ‘developing’ stage of language acquisition. These students in grades 3-12 can decode text, but they may not always understand what they’ve read. This session provides concrete strategies for making even grade level content texts comprehensible for these students.
Guest Speaker Bio:
Beth has over 30 years of experience as a language educator and holds a master’s degree in multicultural teacher education. She has worked with early childhood, elementary, middle, high school and adult language learners in rural, urban, suburban, and international school settings. She is the co-author of Long-Term Success for Experienced Multilinguals, a best-selling book published by Corwin, and Putting it Together, materials for teaching adult English learners using a story-based curriculum. She is an active board member of Colorado TESOL. Beth currently provides professional development, coaching, and consulting with schools around the world focused on providing equitable education for multilingual learners.
Past Events
June 9, 2020 - Enhancing reading intervention programs
Description
In this panel, Tracy Johnson and Joy Dangora Erickson will share the results of their recent studies involving reading. Tracy will focus on how we can support reading development of students and guide instruction by looking at students' self-correcting behaviour. Joy will focus on how reading intervention programs can be modified to make them more motivating. Tracy will present first, followed by Joy. There will be a chance for questions after each presentation.
Bio
Tracy Johnson is a doctoral student and graduate research assistant in the Department of Teaching and Learning at The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA; email [email protected]. She is the co-author of “Scaffolding Self-Correction During Oral Reading.” Tracy was a classroom teacher, intervention specialist and literacy specialist over her 19-year career in K-12 education before she left to pursue her doctorate. Tracy is passionate about working with teachers and helping students.
Link to Dr. Johnson’s article in The Reading Teacher:
https://ila.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/trtr.1896
Joy Dangora Erickson is an assistant professor in the School of Education at Endicott College, MA, USA; email [email protected]. She is the co-author of “Harnessing the Power of Young Readers’ Perceptions to Support Motivation.” Previously, Joy served as an elementary educator, reading specialist, and literacy coach. Literacy motivation, early literacy, critical literacy, and early education for citizenship comprise her primary research interests. In addition to “The Reading Teacher,” Joy's more recent work has appeared in “Teachers College Record,” “Reading & Writing Quarterly,” “Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice, and Democracy & Education.”
LINK to Dr. Erickson’s website
Description
In this panel, Tracy Johnson and Joy Dangora Erickson will share the results of their recent studies involving reading. Tracy will focus on how we can support reading development of students and guide instruction by looking at students' self-correcting behaviour. Joy will focus on how reading intervention programs can be modified to make them more motivating. Tracy will present first, followed by Joy. There will be a chance for questions after each presentation.
Bio
Tracy Johnson is a doctoral student and graduate research assistant in the Department of Teaching and Learning at The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA; email [email protected]. She is the co-author of “Scaffolding Self-Correction During Oral Reading.” Tracy was a classroom teacher, intervention specialist and literacy specialist over her 19-year career in K-12 education before she left to pursue her doctorate. Tracy is passionate about working with teachers and helping students.
Link to Dr. Johnson’s article in The Reading Teacher:
https://ila.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/trtr.1896
Joy Dangora Erickson is an assistant professor in the School of Education at Endicott College, MA, USA; email [email protected]. She is the co-author of “Harnessing the Power of Young Readers’ Perceptions to Support Motivation.” Previously, Joy served as an elementary educator, reading specialist, and literacy coach. Literacy motivation, early literacy, critical literacy, and early education for citizenship comprise her primary research interests. In addition to “The Reading Teacher,” Joy's more recent work has appeared in “Teachers College Record,” “Reading & Writing Quarterly,” “Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice, and Democracy & Education.”
LINK to Dr. Erickson’s website
May 27, 2021- Early Reader Teachers’ Professional Learning
Description
This presentation opens a window upon the complexities of early reading teacher learning and practice and the challenges teachers face in meeting the needs of their struggling readers. There will be a discussion on the three main variables that comprise my framework for conceptualizing teachers' early reading professional learning: student well-being, teacher state and stage, and the learning community. I will discuss who our struggling readers are and the challenges this presents to early reading teachers. Following this, the variables interacting within teachers' own lives and the influence of teachers' learning communities are opened. Clarifying the challenges and complexities that exist within school boards, yet also shining a light on the similarities, opens avenues for considering how early reading professional learning can be conceptualized for teachers' inservice professional learning and positively influence students' reading achievement. Concluding this presentation are practical implications for considering when designing teachers' early reading professional learning.
Bio
Dr. Michael Fairbrother is an adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa, in Ottawa, Ontario. He teaches in the Faculty of Education’s bachelor and graduate programs and is a former elementary classroom and special education teacher. His research focuses on inclusive literacy practices, professional learning, and the processes of teacher change. He is a research associate for the Canadian Research Centre on Inclusive Education collaborating to expand, develop and mobilize knowledge of research-informed inclusive practices.
Link to Dr. Fairbrother’s website
Description
This presentation opens a window upon the complexities of early reading teacher learning and practice and the challenges teachers face in meeting the needs of their struggling readers. There will be a discussion on the three main variables that comprise my framework for conceptualizing teachers' early reading professional learning: student well-being, teacher state and stage, and the learning community. I will discuss who our struggling readers are and the challenges this presents to early reading teachers. Following this, the variables interacting within teachers' own lives and the influence of teachers' learning communities are opened. Clarifying the challenges and complexities that exist within school boards, yet also shining a light on the similarities, opens avenues for considering how early reading professional learning can be conceptualized for teachers' inservice professional learning and positively influence students' reading achievement. Concluding this presentation are practical implications for considering when designing teachers' early reading professional learning.
Bio
Dr. Michael Fairbrother is an adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa, in Ottawa, Ontario. He teaches in the Faculty of Education’s bachelor and graduate programs and is a former elementary classroom and special education teacher. His research focuses on inclusive literacy practices, professional learning, and the processes of teacher change. He is a research associate for the Canadian Research Centre on Inclusive Education collaborating to expand, develop and mobilize knowledge of research-informed inclusive practices.
Link to Dr. Fairbrother’s website
March 2, 2021- The Future of the Science of Reading
Description
Dr. Gabriel will give us an overview of her recently published article entitled, "The Future of the Science of Reading." She will explain the 'telephone game' that happens with research and will walk us through some examples of how the message can break down.
Bio
Dr. Rachael Gabriel is an Associate Professor of Literacy Education at the University of Connecticut. She is the author of more than forty refereed articles, and author or editor of five books for literacy teachers, leaders and education researchers. Rachael currently teaches courses for educators and doctoral students pursuing a specialization in literacy. She serves on the editorial boards of six journals focused on literacy, education research and education policy, and serves on the boards of the International Literacy Association and Reading Recovery Council of North America. Rachael’s research is focused on literacy instruction, leadership and intervention, as well as policies related to teacher development and evaluation.
Link to sample reading: https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/the-sciences-of-reading-instruction
Title: Adaptive Expertise at Facilitating Dialogic Text Discussions
Description
Dr. Correnti will present research looking at the discussion of text, highlighting how educators can support students' thinking and allow for more dialogic discussion.
Bio
Dr. Richard Correnti is an Associate Professor and Research Scientist at the University of Pittsburgh. His research interests center on measurement and determinants of teaching and how to improve teaching practice at-scale. His current projects focus on analyzing teaching development in the context of interventions such as literacy and mathematics coaching.
Link to Dr. Correnti’s website
Description
Dr. Gabriel will give us an overview of her recently published article entitled, "The Future of the Science of Reading." She will explain the 'telephone game' that happens with research and will walk us through some examples of how the message can break down.
Bio
Dr. Rachael Gabriel is an Associate Professor of Literacy Education at the University of Connecticut. She is the author of more than forty refereed articles, and author or editor of five books for literacy teachers, leaders and education researchers. Rachael currently teaches courses for educators and doctoral students pursuing a specialization in literacy. She serves on the editorial boards of six journals focused on literacy, education research and education policy, and serves on the boards of the International Literacy Association and Reading Recovery Council of North America. Rachael’s research is focused on literacy instruction, leadership and intervention, as well as policies related to teacher development and evaluation.
Link to sample reading: https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/the-sciences-of-reading-instruction
Title: Adaptive Expertise at Facilitating Dialogic Text Discussions
Description
Dr. Correnti will present research looking at the discussion of text, highlighting how educators can support students' thinking and allow for more dialogic discussion.
Bio
Dr. Richard Correnti is an Associate Professor and Research Scientist at the University of Pittsburgh. His research interests center on measurement and determinants of teaching and how to improve teaching practice at-scale. His current projects focus on analyzing teaching development in the context of interventions such as literacy and mathematics coaching.
Link to Dr. Correnti’s website
October 20, 2021 - Homes: Observations and Insights
Description
Winnie Yeung will talk about the award-winning book she wrote with Abu Bakr Al Rabeeah, a child refugee and former student. Observations and insights will be shared about the challenges faced by refugees as they build new lives in Edmonton and elsewhere. Winnie will describe the process of writing and publishing 'Homes,' as well as some of the strategies she employs within her ESL classroom.
Bio
Winnie Yeung is an English teacher with Edmonton Public Schools. In 2018, she published her first book, Homes, with her student Abu Bakr al Rabeeah. The book is an account of al Rabeeah's experience as a young boy in Syria during the civil war and his family's journey to safety in Canada.
Link to a review of Homes
Description
Winnie Yeung will talk about the award-winning book she wrote with Abu Bakr Al Rabeeah, a child refugee and former student. Observations and insights will be shared about the challenges faced by refugees as they build new lives in Edmonton and elsewhere. Winnie will describe the process of writing and publishing 'Homes,' as well as some of the strategies she employs within her ESL classroom.
Bio
Winnie Yeung is an English teacher with Edmonton Public Schools. In 2018, she published her first book, Homes, with her student Abu Bakr al Rabeeah. The book is an account of al Rabeeah's experience as a young boy in Syria during the civil war and his family's journey to safety in Canada.
Link to a review of Homes
April 27, 2022 - Exploring Secondary Discipline-Specialist Teachers’ Engagement with Discipline-Specific Texts
Description
Dr. Marylou Dickson will provide insight from her doctoral research, exploring how secondary disciplines specialists engage with discipline-specific texts. Her doctoral research findings will provide insight from her implications regarding supporting in-service and pre-service teachers’ metalinguistic awareness as they read and teach discipline-specific texts. It seems to her that if secondary discipline-teacher specialists are aware of how they think when they read discipline-specific texts, they are more likely to communicate to their students how to think as discipline specialists.
Bio
Marylou BPE, BEd, MEd, EdD recently defended her Doctor of Education on Exploring Secondary Discipline-Specialist Teachers’ Engagement with Discipline-Specific Texts. Marylou is currently providing literacy intervention for Division I, II, and III students and teaching ELA 30-1 and 30-2 and Foods at Argyll Centre in Edmonton, Alberta.
Link to Dr. Dickson’s Dissertation
Description
Dr. Marylou Dickson will provide insight from her doctoral research, exploring how secondary disciplines specialists engage with discipline-specific texts. Her doctoral research findings will provide insight from her implications regarding supporting in-service and pre-service teachers’ metalinguistic awareness as they read and teach discipline-specific texts. It seems to her that if secondary discipline-teacher specialists are aware of how they think when they read discipline-specific texts, they are more likely to communicate to their students how to think as discipline specialists.
Bio
Marylou BPE, BEd, MEd, EdD recently defended her Doctor of Education on Exploring Secondary Discipline-Specialist Teachers’ Engagement with Discipline-Specific Texts. Marylou is currently providing literacy intervention for Division I, II, and III students and teaching ELA 30-1 and 30-2 and Foods at Argyll Centre in Edmonton, Alberta.
Link to Dr. Dickson’s Dissertation
October 12, 2022
UPCOMING PRESENTATION and MEETING
5:00 – 6:00 p.m. Social at Cafe Felice (10930 - 84 Street NW Edmonton)
Welcome to new members and guests
6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Dinner & Program
Guest Speakers: Dr. Katie Brubacher & Dr. Sonya Sachar
About the presenters:
Dr. Katie Brubacher is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta specializing in language and literacy in elementary school settings. She has been a K to 12 teacher for almost twenty years. Her research interests include the experiences of newcomers in elementary schools especially those who arrive beyond the primary years not having learned about print literacy in any language.
Dr. Sonya Sachar is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta specializing in the area of language and literacy in elementary schools. Her teaching experience spans ten years across post-secondary and elementary school levels in Toronto, Ontario. Her continued research and interests focus on applied linguistics, working with linguistically diverse student populations, families, and communities to advance social justice in language and literacy education and to counter persistent inequities among minority students in the Canadian context.
Members and non-members are welcome! We request that you register in advance. If you are interested in attending, contact [email protected]
The Presentation will be followed by the first NARSC meeting of the new school year. Please contact us if you haven't received a copy of the agenda.
February 8, 2023
Looking Back, Moving Forward
Guest Speaker: Dr. Anne Brailsford
Biography
Anne Brailsford was an educator in British and Canadian school systems for 35 years. She taught in regular and special needs classrooms in elementary, junior high and high school settings. She also served as a Reading Specialist and taught courses at the university level. Anne worked on community literacy projects such as Paired Reading and started the Balanced Literacy approach in Edmonton Public Schools, having a strong belief in the need for a proactive role, as well as a diagnostic assessment function, as a Reading Specialist. After ‘retirement’ Anne worked as a consultant with Scholastic Canada to build a Balanced Literacy program with accompanying materials for Kindergarten through Junior High school students. Anne has always been an active member of NARSC until moving to Vancouver Island, and now advances in technology have enabled her continued involvement with fellow Reading Specialists.
Program Description - Looking Back, Moving Forward
Anne believes that ‘looking back’ can provide a context for current experiences and a springboard for future thought and action. With the idea that you can’t know where you are going until you know where you’ve been, she will focus on Balanced Literacy as a significant segment of her career as an educator. She will trace the literacy context of the times when Balanced Literacy emerged, and the grassroots development of the approach in Edmonton Public Schools and other school districts in Alberta and beyond. This historical view leads us to the NOW, arguably the most important time as it has a direct impact on the learning of children in our current classrooms, and to thoughts about how we can use key ideas and concepts to offer enriched literacy learning for them tomorrow.
Here is the link to Dr. Anne Brailsford's presentation
UPCOMING PRESENTATION and MEETING
5:00 – 6:00 p.m. Social at Cafe Felice (10930 - 84 Street NW Edmonton)
Welcome to new members and guests
6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Dinner & Program
Guest Speakers: Dr. Katie Brubacher & Dr. Sonya Sachar
About the presenters:
Dr. Katie Brubacher is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta specializing in language and literacy in elementary school settings. She has been a K to 12 teacher for almost twenty years. Her research interests include the experiences of newcomers in elementary schools especially those who arrive beyond the primary years not having learned about print literacy in any language.
Dr. Sonya Sachar is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta specializing in the area of language and literacy in elementary schools. Her teaching experience spans ten years across post-secondary and elementary school levels in Toronto, Ontario. Her continued research and interests focus on applied linguistics, working with linguistically diverse student populations, families, and communities to advance social justice in language and literacy education and to counter persistent inequities among minority students in the Canadian context.
Members and non-members are welcome! We request that you register in advance. If you are interested in attending, contact [email protected]
The Presentation will be followed by the first NARSC meeting of the new school year. Please contact us if you haven't received a copy of the agenda.
February 8, 2023
Looking Back, Moving Forward
Guest Speaker: Dr. Anne Brailsford
Biography
Anne Brailsford was an educator in British and Canadian school systems for 35 years. She taught in regular and special needs classrooms in elementary, junior high and high school settings. She also served as a Reading Specialist and taught courses at the university level. Anne worked on community literacy projects such as Paired Reading and started the Balanced Literacy approach in Edmonton Public Schools, having a strong belief in the need for a proactive role, as well as a diagnostic assessment function, as a Reading Specialist. After ‘retirement’ Anne worked as a consultant with Scholastic Canada to build a Balanced Literacy program with accompanying materials for Kindergarten through Junior High school students. Anne has always been an active member of NARSC until moving to Vancouver Island, and now advances in technology have enabled her continued involvement with fellow Reading Specialists.
Program Description - Looking Back, Moving Forward
Anne believes that ‘looking back’ can provide a context for current experiences and a springboard for future thought and action. With the idea that you can’t know where you are going until you know where you’ve been, she will focus on Balanced Literacy as a significant segment of her career as an educator. She will trace the literacy context of the times when Balanced Literacy emerged, and the grassroots development of the approach in Edmonton Public Schools and other school districts in Alberta and beyond. This historical view leads us to the NOW, arguably the most important time as it has a direct impact on the learning of children in our current classrooms, and to thoughts about how we can use key ideas and concepts to offer enriched literacy learning for them tomorrow.
Here is the link to Dr. Anne Brailsford's presentation