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Full-Text Articles in Education

The Professional Development Practices Of Two Reading First Coaches, Charlotte A. Mundy, Dorene D. Ross, Melinda M. Leko Jul 2012

The Professional Development Practices Of Two Reading First Coaches, Charlotte A. Mundy, Dorene D. Ross, Melinda M. Leko

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

To establish job-embedded, ongoing professional development recent policies and initiatives required that districts appoint school-based coaches. The Reading First Initiative, for example, created an immediate need for coaches without a clear definition of coaches’ responsibilities. Therefore, the purpose of this case study was to investigate how two Reading First coaches interpreted and enacted their professional development responsibilities. Cross-case analyses identified similarities and differences in coaches’ enactments. Findings revealed that while each coach engaged in similar professional development responsibilities (e.g. modeling, observing, and classroom walkthroughs) their approach to these responsibilities differed — collaborative versus expert driven. These differences in approaches indicate …


Building Conceptual Understanding Through Vocabulary Instruction, William H. Rupley, William Dee Nichols, Maryann Mraz, Timothy R. Blair Jul 2012

Building Conceptual Understanding Through Vocabulary Instruction, William H. Rupley, William Dee Nichols, Maryann Mraz, Timothy R. Blair

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

Instructional design is an integral part of a balanced approach to teaching vocabulary instruction. This article presents several instructional procedures using research-based vocabulary strategies and explains how to design and adapt those strategies in order to reach desired learning outcomes. Emphasis is placed on research-based principles that guide effective vocabulary instruction and on the importance of incorporating vocabulary instruction into all phases of the reading lesson framework--before, during, and after reading (Blair, Rupley, & Nichols 2007; Vacca, Vacca, & Mraz 2011). Vocabulary instruction should encourage students to make associations and accommodations to their experiences and provide them with varied opportunities …