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Strengthening Professional Learning in an Urban District: Linking Language Development, Literacy, and Disciplinary Practice

Sat, April 9, 8:15 to 10:15am, Convention Center, Floor: Level One, Room 143 B

Abstract

Literacy is dynamic, historic and culturally bound. As society changes, so does literacy. Recently, the International Reading Association changed its name to the International Literacy Association to capture the expansion of defining literacy as reading to the 21st century definition of reading, writing, listening speaking and technology. NCTE argues that the 21st century demands that a literate person possess a wide range of abilities and competencies, many literacies. New academic standards no longer focus primarily or exclusively on sets of facts, but instead define and describe what learning and thinking looks like in particular academic disciplines. In order to carry out disciplinary activities and related analytical tasks, students must understand, ask relevant questions and learn to communicate in the language of that subject. Meeting this challenge successfully requires commensurate changes in pedagogy at both the teacher and leadership levels.

The Common Core State Standards in English-Language Arts (CCSS-ELA) recognize language as the primary medium for cognitive development for all students in all grade levels. With this recognition comes an understanding that language and literacy development is a shared responsibility across content areas, and that every teacher should be expected to be a teacher of the language and literacies fundamental to their discipline and to learning as a whole. Language development is foundational to developing high-level academic knowledge as well as the competencies necessary for success in college, career and life. The language focus of the ELA standards holds the promise of advancing all students, including English language learners and students with diverse learning needs. However, unless support is given to teachers and schools about the implications of language development in high levels of learning, the achievement of the complex cognitive and performance goals outlined in the new standards will be limited for some groups.

The urban district in which this problem is being addressed has taken steps to work on the higher standards in literacy and language. In a school district with 400,000 students that are 39.3% African American, 45.6% Hispanic, 16.7% English Learners and 86.02% economically disadvantaged students, high priority is being given to:
• Development of deep literacies in all students,
• Practice grounded in sociocultural ideas,
• Guiding assumptions that learning takes place through processes of high cognitive demand, scaffolded support, and student interaction, and
• Instructional practice that deepens and accelerates students’ abilities, enabling “exponential growth” (Tatum, 2012).

Knowledge about what supports language development and literacy learning is necessary for all teachers at all levels, and especially by those teaching students who need support. Profound changes in instruction are needed to enable all students to succeed academically. The paper argues that developing the understanding, shared language and capacity of district instructional leaders supports strong teaching at high levels for all students.

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