Academic literacy - prepare to learn is different from traditional courses in that it is task-based: it requires of language learners who are developing their academic literacy to do authentic academic tasks and to solve real academic problems. It assumes that telling students about how tasks must be done is never enough - they must be allowed to demonstrate that they can actually do real academic work.

Feeling exhausted after guided reading? Are you working tirelessly while your students aren't even breaking a sweat? Do you ever wonder if other teachers feels the same way you do about guided reading-that it's not working the way you think it should? You are not alone. There seems to be much confusion surrounding guided reading-the term even means something different from school to school. Now you can turn to the 50 years of collective experience of authors Jan Burkins and Melody Croft to prevent guided reading from going astray in your classroom. Jan and Melody present personal clarifications, adaptations, and supports that have helped them work through their own tricky parts as they guide readers. The book's six chapters each clarify a misunderstanding about guided reading instruction in the following areas: The teacher's role and the gradual release of responsibility Instructional reading level Text gradients Balanced instruction Integrated processing Assessment With 27 strategies, you're sure to find the help you need to work through your own challenges as you guide groups of readers.

This monograph offers a novel investigation of the Edwardian picture postcard as an innovative form of multimodal communication, revealing much about the creativity, concerns and lives of those who used postcards as an almost instantaneous form of communication. In the early twentieth century, the picture postcard was a revolutionary way of combining short messages with an image, making use of technologies in a way impossible in the decades since, until the advent of the digital revolution. This book offers original insights into the historical and social context in which the Edwardian picture postcard emerged and became a craze. It also expands the field of Literacy Studies by illustrating the combined use of posthuman, multimodal, historic and linguistic methodologies to conduct an in-depth analysis of the communicative, sociolinguistic and relational functions of the postcard. Particular attention is paid to how study of the picture postcard can reveal details of the lives and literacy practices of often overlooked sectors of the population, such as working-class women. The Edwardian era in the United Kingdom was one of extreme inequalities and rapid social change, and picture postcards embodied the dynamism of the times. Grounded in an analysis of a unique, open access, digitized collection of 3,000 picture postcards, this monograph will be of interest to researchers and postgraduate students in the fields of Literacy Studies, sociolinguistics, history of communications and UK social history.

Today's children spend more time than ever before watching television, playing computer games and reading comic and pulp fiction. Many of these are directly designed by the toy and media industry. Are children therefore simply being manipulated? There is widespread concern that because of these kinds of popular fiction, children do not read `quality' literature, resulting in lower standards of literacy. There is also the further fear that because many of these popular media portray highly stereotyped, gendered images, this too will have a damaging effect on children. Mary Hilton's fascinating book proves that there is another side to the argument. We do not have to view popular culture as a threat to our children or their education. The writers of this collection show how, used carefully alongside other types of literature, popular culture can actually help teachers to develop literacy in a broad and positive sense.

*Combines the author's own cutting edge research in writing development with a 'how to' guidebook approach, making it the complete package for students starting out in this area of research. *Cross-disciplinary market of students of both Education and Applied Linguistics in areas of Language Acquisition and Language and Literacy. Requires no background in Corpus Linguistics as it walks students through the basics. *The first book to combine research in this area with an activity-based approach- none of the competition demonstrates how to put theories and methods into practice like ours does.

This unique and timely book follows the experiences of four Arabic teenagers, their families and their community, focusing on the role of literacy in their daily lives and the differences between home and school. The author looks at the conflict between expectations and practices at school and in the home, arguing that problems are inevitable where class and cultural differences exist. Emerging themes include: how literacy practices in the community are undergoing rapid change due to global developments in technology how the patterns of written and spoken language in English and Arabic in the home are linked with social practices in logical and coherent ways how many of the family practices that differ from school culture and language become marginalised. Built around these insightful case studies yet grounded in theory, this book is of immediate relevance to teachers working in multicultural contexts and students and lecturers in language/literacy or on TESOL courses.

This is the first hands-on methods guide for second-language (L2) reading research. The authors expertly and critically situate L2 reading and literacy as a multivariate, interactive process and define terms, concepts, and research tools in connection with theory and a rich body of past empirical work, with lessons to learn and pitfalls to avoid. They concretely detail how to design empirical studies, collect data, and analyze findings in this important area. Authored by world experts on first-language (L1) and L2 reading, this book provides a comprehensive, critical, theory-driven review of methods in L2 reading research, offering a step-by-step guide from research design to study execution and data analysis. With useful pedagogical features and a unique database of L2 reading studies from around the world over three decades, this will be an invaluable resource to students and researchers of second-language acquisition, applied linguistics, education, and related areas.

Using literacy practices in the newly independent post-apartheid Namibia as a lens through which to examine the effects of globalisation, this broad case study looks at issues surrounding tourism, state control and the new forces of consumerism. By placing literacy at the centre of an investigation into social and cultural change as experienced by individuals, Papen shows that in times of change, reading and writing are always implicated in structures of power and inequality. The book considers language practices that can exclude some members of Namibian society and also looks at the strategies used by local people to accommodate and even embrace the onward march of global English and the influx of foreign visitors, practices and modes of commerce and interaction.

Drawing on autoethnographic research on literacy autobiographies from a Chinese EFL writing context, this book provides unique insights into literacy, voice, translingualism, and critical pedagogy from a Global South perspective. The book presents literacy autobiographies as a cultural tool for analyzing and refashioning learners' and teachers' sense of self in ever-expanding dialogical spaces. In addition to highlighting teachers' own stories around autoethnographies and translanguaging, it showcases literacy autobiographies from Chinese students themselves. The book theorizes the Global South as an ontological positioning that challenges colonial mindsets and practices concerning literacy, language learning, and narratives. It argues that literacy autobiographies from a Global South perspective can be reimagined as critical pedagogy for EFL writing teaching and learning, as well as teacher development. Validating and expanding student voices by presenting these literacy autobiographies, this book will be of great interest to researchers and students in the fields of TESOL, applied linguistics, English language teaching, second language writing, and literacy studies.

Today's reading standards require K-12 teachers to teach multi-modal texts that combine print and images. Teaching Reading Comprehension with Graphic Texts: An Illustrated Adventure shows teachers how to read, understand, and teach the unique vocabulary and anatomy of the graphic text format alongside traditional, print-based literature and content-area selections. Make the most of the graphic text-driven format in your reading program with this engaging and innovative professional resource from Dr. Katie Monnin.

This Handbook provides a comprehensive and international representation of state-of-the art research, theory, and practice related to principal areas in which significant developments are occurring in the study of literacy and technology. It offers a glimpse of the commonalities faced by literacy educators around the world, together with specific challenges raised by unique circumstances. Volume I of this Handbook endeavored to lay essential groundwork for the study of literacy and technology; it retains an explanatory value that will not weaken over time. Volume II differs considerably in conception. It assumes for the most part a higher level of expertise on the part of readers, and the projects and applications described by the contributors are characterized by greater sophistication. The scope of technology use is broader, and the challenges that have emerged are in sharper focus. A powerful feature of this volume is the addition of commentaries from experts across the field on the potential of technology in key dimensions of literacy. The title of Volume II has changed slightly to reflect the inclusion of contributions on a broad geographic basis. It is now a truly international Handbook, with chapter authors from six countries and five continents. The International Handbook of Literacy and Technology: Volume II is organized in five sections: *The Role of Technology in the New Literacies; *Technology Applications with Specific Populations; *Literacy Software and the Internet; *Teacher Education and Professional Development; and *The Potential of Technology in Key Dimensions of Literacy. The effects of technology on literate activity have been both sweeping and subtle, marked by an increasing variety of changes that are difficult to evaluate and project. Perhaps the only prediction that can be offered with certainty is that the impact of technology is irreversible. Specific changes may come and go, but literacy and technology seem inextricably linked. This Handbook is dedicated to that linkage and to examining the intricacies that define it. International Handbook of Literacy and Technology: Volume II is an essential reference for researchers, professionals, and students in reading/literacy education, literacy and technology, educational technology, and related areas, and will serve well as a text for upper-level and graduate courses on these topics.

Teaching comprehension with informational texts is a critical component of any reading program and one that many children struggle with as they progress through their schooling. Nonfiction can be overwhelming to young readers, presenting them with complex vocabulary and a new density of information that may combine text, diagrams, pictures, captions, and other devices. In this book, Tony Stead provides wonderful ways to enhance children's understanding and engagement when reading for information. Based on many years of working in K-7 classrooms, he outlines practical approaches to ensure all children can become confident and competent readers of nonfiction.

"Reality Checks" offers insights into why children struggle when faced with informational reading, and practical concepts, skills, and strategies that help them navigate nonfiction successfully.

Part one examines effective ways to teach children how to extract the information that is explicitly stated in a text. Covered are strategies such as using prior knowledge, retelling, locating specific information, and the role of nonfiction read-alouds.

Part two explores interpreting information, including making connections between the text, the reader, and the outside world, making inferences and making revisions to inferences based on reflection.

Part three looks at evaluating information, assisting children in developing critical reading skills, differentiating fact from opinion, locating author bias, and identifying techniques writers use to persuade readers' thinking.

Part four offers an array of practical ways to reinforce and extend children's nonfiction reading skills, including working with visual information such asmaps and diagrams. It also provides pre-and-post-assessment strategies, procedures for monitoring progress, curriculum planning ideas, and instruction on guided reading.

A helpful appendix provides graphic organizers, assessment rubrics, curriculum mapping sheets, and more.

The field of female literacy in Morocco is devoid of any academic research that is centred on how non-literate women need and acquire literacy. The goal of this text is to fill that gap. Its aim is to contribute to gender research efforts for a better integration of non-literate women in sustainable development. One of the distinctive features of this book is that it does contend itself with revealing the traditional definition of literacy that has not been adopted for more than forty years after the launching of the first literacy campaigns, but it also suggests ways of designing emancipatory and empowering gender based-literacy programs.

Raising Standards in Literacy represents the best current thinking and research about literacy. The book is the outcome of a high-profile series of seminars on raising standards in literacy, and includes contributions from an impressive group of international researchers and policy makers. By offering a rich and unique mix of contemporary perspectives on literacy education, this book provides an invaluable source of study and insight into the latest research and developments in the teaching of literacy.
It includes sections on:
*how research into literacy teaching can inform new approaches found in England, the USA and Australia
*the issues involved in assessing progress in literacy and the validity of research claims made about standards of attainment
*the ways in which literacy education is developing in England, the USA and Australia
The book celebrates the apparent success of current literacy initiatives at the same time as raising questions about the feasibility and relevance of such initiatives to the literacy co-ordinators and consultants and for all those undertaking further study or research in literacy education.

eBook available with sample pages: HB:0415263506

This timely and thought-provoking book addresses the sensitive issue of difficulties in literacy development. The authors begin by exploring different conceptualisations of literacy and their implications in terms of addressing the barriers to literacy acquisition. They then go on to discuss practical strategies and programmes to help reduce these barriers at school, family and community level. Throughout, the authors relate cognitive, psychological, and socio-cultural perspectives to current curriculum policies, controversies and ethical considerations.
This book enables practitioners to reflect critically upon the choices available to them in assessing and supporting students who experience difficulties in literacy development. It will be essential reading for students on initial teacher training courses, and teachers on CPD courses in the area of special needs, literacy and dyslexia.

African American Literacies is a personal, public and political exploration of the problems faced by student writers from the African American Vernacular English (AAVE) culture.
Drawing on personal experience, Elaine Richardson provides a compelling account of the language and literacy practices of African American students. The book analyses the problems encountered by the teachers of AAVE speakers, and offers African American centred theories and pedagogical methods of addressing these problems. Richardson builds on recent research to argue that teachers need not only to recognise the value and importance of African American culture, but also to use African American English when teaching AAVE speakers standard English.
African American Literacies offers a holistic and culturally relevant approach to literacy education, and is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the literacy practices of African American students.

In Volume III, as in Volumes I and II, the classic topics of reading are included--from vocabulary and comprehension to reading instruction in the classroom--and, in addition, each contributor was asked to include a brief history that chronicles the legacies within each of the volume's many topics. However, on the whole, Volume III is not about tradition. Rather, it explores the verges of reading research between the time Volume II was published in 1991 and the research conducted after this date. The editors identified two broad themes as representing the myriad of verges that have emerged since Volumes I and II were published: (1) broadening the definition of reading, and (2) broadening the reading research program. The particulars of these new themes and topics are addressed.

The central question in this volume is how to create a society of "engaged readers" in today's world, where reading is increasingly overruled by other media, such as television and personal computers. Engaged readers, as the term is used in this book, means readers who are socially interactive, strategic, and motivated.
This state-of-the-art review contains research on integrating cognitive, social, and motivational aspects of reading and reading instruction, the chapter authors argue that coming to grips with the notion of engagement in literacy requires redefining literacy itself to acknowledge the degree to which it is not only a cognitive accomplishment, but a social activity and an affective commitment as well. Promoting literacy acquisition thus requires interventions that address attitudes and beliefs as much as those that assure cognitive changes in learners.
Equally important, the authors posit that literacy engagement involves the integration of cognitive strategies and motivational goals during literate activities. This necessary link between literacy and motivation is addressed from a variety of perspectives.
Acknowledging the value of cross-national and cross-cultural comparisons, the book features chapters on the promotion of literacy in different regions around the world.

Innovative and practical, this text helps prepare teachers to support the literacy learning needs of all children in grades K-6, including academically, linguistically, and culturally diverse students. It features original teaching cases written by preservice teachers enrolled in field-based reading/language arts methods courses, accompanied by commentaries written by experienced teacher educators and skilled classroom teachers. High-interest content and a reader-friendly format encourage critical and reflective thinking about topics important to effective literacy instruction. By promoting reflection about case issues, the text helps prepare future teachers to respond to teaching narratives presented on the practical applications section of the PRAXIS II, an examination required in most states for teacher licensure.
The authentic cases candidly and poignantly describe preservice teachers' plans, problems, hopes, disappointments, dilemmas, and reflective thinking as they address the multilayered complexities and ambiguities associated with learning to teach reading and language arts in elementary classrooms. These teaching stories reveal glimpses of literacy instruction and allow us to enter real classrooms and experience the wide varieties of situations that reading/language arts teachers encounter daily. Although the cases are grouped according to specific dimensions of literacy theory and pedagogy, just as in real classrooms, other issues are woven through each case as well.
The commentaries provide scholarly, and sometimes contrasting, perspectives and approaches through which readers might consider the issues presented in the cases. The commentaries represent only particular perspectives, but readers are encouraged to explore and consider as many perspectives and issues as possible regarding each case.
Each chapter includes helpfulpedagogical features:
* New or critical concepts and terms listed at the beginning of each chapter alert readers to what might be unfamiliar vocabulary.
* Applications and Reflections pages help readers take an active part in analyzing, documenting, and talking about the particular issues portrayed in the case narratives. Using the questions on these pages, the cases and accompanying commentaries can be read and discussed as a whole class activity, in small collaborative groups, or by individuals. The questions can also be used by readers to guide their own case writing initiatives.
* Margin References direct readers to correlated readings for the strategies and parallel concepts mentioned in the cases and commentaries. Suggested readings can be discussed within the format of literacy study groups.
* Annotated Bibliographies at the end of each chapter help readers construct more in-depth knowledge for the instructional strategies and activities discussed in the teaching cases.
The cases, commentaries, and pedagogical features in this distinctive text provide rich opportunities for readers to discover what they need to know and how they need to think in order to teach reading and language arts effectively and successfully.

Hypertext, email, word-processing: electronic technologies have revolutionized the way we write language. How does language on screen work differently from language on the page? What new literacy skills are needed and how do we teach them?
"Page to Screen" collects some of the best contemporary thinkers in the fields of literacy and technology to discuss the impacts of new media on language. The contributors analyze the potential of new forms of text, the increased emphasis on visual representation, new forms of rhetoric, learning in the age of global communication networks and new approaches to storytelling.
Timely and important, this collection tackles important questions about the future of language and the way we use and teach it.

This volume presents in-depth investigations of the processes of meaning-making during reading at both local (discourse) and global (general knowledge) levels. It considerably extends our knowledge of how mental representations are constructed and updated during reading. The book also provides insight into the process of representation construction by using online measures and relating this process with final memory representations; provides detailed models of these processes; pays attention to the coordination of multiple representations constructed; focuses on the monitoring and updating of mental representations; and applies all this knowledge to richer and more complicated texts than are often used in laboratories.

Against a background of press reports of declining literacy standards, there is a dominant idea that both the responsibility for literacy learning and the key to literacy success lies as much within the family as in the school.; Using a historical framework, this book explores the lives of mothers born after 1870, through accounts from the Mass Observations's archives of correspondence and on interviews by the author with children of these mothers. The study reveals an enormous variety of attitudes of mothers to their own and their children's literacy and the author investigates the relationship between gender and literacy, revealing the ways in which the family, and women in particular feel pressurized to be responsible for the literacy of their children.