Language and Literacy Education Commons^™

Supporting The “Feelings And Language Of Thinking” And Meaning-Making In Elementary Student-Directed Inquiry Projects, Katarina N. Silvestri

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

This qualitative study investigates how three teachers attend to and pedagogically support socioemotional aspects of fifth-grade students’ learning during student self-directed inquiry projects called the Kids Inquiry Conference (KIC) using Spradley’s domain and taxonomic analyses of classroom observation and interview data. Theoretical underpinnings meet at the intersection of affective neuroscience, socioemotional competencies, and a Deweyan perspective of inquiry learning, emplacing this study within literature exploring the range of affective factors impacting elementary learners engaged in student-centered inquiry projects (e.g., identity work, motivation, self-regulation, etc.). KIC involved students self-selecting and developing research questions, designing a science activity, writing up a scientific …

Centering Black Girl Love: Unearthing Black Girls’ Truths In A Predominantly White, Loveless Elementary School, Tyana R. Velazquez-Smith

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

This study examines the transformative power of literacy as a tool for healing, resistance, and revolutionary love in the lives of BLACK girls navigating predominantly white elementary school spaces. Revolutionary love is conceptualized as practices of care, affirmation, and joy that challenge systemic oppression while fostering belonging and possibility. Conducted in an elementary school in upstate New York, this research follows eleven participants from kindergarten through fourth grade, exploring their lived experiences and literacy practices during English Language Arts (ELA) instruction.

Drawing on Brian Street’s (1984) assertion that literacy is a social practice shaped by cultural and power dynamics, this …

Maybe It Really Is Those Damn Phones, Sarah F. Garvin

Honors Projects

Technology is an integral part of modern life and has extended into elementary classrooms where one-to-one device programs have become the norm. While technology can increase accessibility to education, its widespread integration in learning environments raises concerns about its long-term impact on students and teachers. This research critically examines gamified learning applications and technology use in elementary education, questioning whether they enhance learning, curiosity, and problem-solving skills. A qualitative methods approach was employed, using surveys and interviews conducted with educators in Seattle Public Schools to assess the effects of technology-driven instruction. The resulting data were analyzed through thematic analysis to …

Equipping Teachers To Support Comic Literacy: An Analysis Of The Educational Potential Of Toon Book, Kayla Whitlock, Jewel Yoder Kuhns, Sara Kersten-Parrish Dr.

SANE journal: Sequential Art Narrative in Education

Teachers frequently reach for leveled readers to help facilitate their guided reading groups; however, there can be limits in using these leveled readers. One such limit relates to enjoyment and engagement. An answer to this is using TOON books during guided reading time. TOON books are graphic novel leveled readers and were created in response to a need for high quality books for readers of all levels. However, in reading these books teachers need to be aware of the comics form and how those features impact the reading process. In this article, we outline the features common in graphic novels …

Clarifying Background Knowledge - Understandings And Practices That Scaffold Comprehension, Justin M. Stygles

Wellspring: A Practitioner-Oriented Journal of Literacy and Language Education

Background Knowledge is a hot topic, though not new to our understanding of reading and comprehension. Background knowledge is more than just knowing facts and a scaffold to comprehension. What kinds of background knowledge students posses has a significant impact on their ability to interact with text cognitively and viscerally. What happens when they don't have the necessary background knowledge? Students must learn to clarify to acquire new knowledge that becomes the background knowledge for future literacy endeavors.

El Deafo Bibliotherapy, David S. Wolff

OER Materials

The goal of this assignment was for preservice teachers to practice writing a chain of questions that focused on the social and/or emotional needs of young learners. Bibliotherapy is therapeutic in nature to help individuals understand themselves and the world around them through guided reading experiences (American Library Association, 2025; Delisle & Galbraith, 2002). Further, bibliotherapy allow individuals to identify a personal problem mirrored by a character in a book. As the reader connects with the character, the reader experiences the emotions expressed by the character. Finally, the reader applies the character’s experience to their own personal problem (American Library …

Horrible Harry In Room 2b Bibliotherapy, David S. Wolff

OER Materials

The goal of this assignment was for preservice teachers to practice writing a chain of questions that focused on the social and/or emotional needs of young learners. Bibliotherapy is therapeutic in nature to help individuals understand themselves and the world around them through guided reading experiences (American Library Association, 2025; Delisle & Galbraith, 2002). Further, bibliotherapy allow individuals to identify a personal problem mirrored by a character in a book. As the reader connects with the character, the reader experiences the emotions expressed by the character. Finally, the reader applies the character’s experience to their own personal problem (American Library …

Mitigating The Negative Effects Of Over And Early Exposure To Media With Joint Media Engagement: A Literature Review, Mary K. Littlepage

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

This paper examines the negative impact of over and early exposure to media on children’s developmental domains. Among other deleterious effects, early and over exposure to media has been associated with attention deficits, language delays, and interrupted social interactions. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) addresses these concerns with recommendations, discouraging the use of screens for children birth to eighteen months and recommends that children over two years old limit their viewing to one to two hours or less per day (AAP Council on Communications and Media, 2016). For children within the recommended viewing and age parameters, many studies have …

Teacher Decision Making In Guided-Reading, Brittany Worthen

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Guided reading provides teachers the opportunity to support students in literacy learning. When planning for and implementing this instructional approach, teachers are required to make various in-advance and in-the-moment decisions that involve responding to students’ instructional needs through adaptive teaching. Grounded in sociocultural and social constructivist theories, this study was designed to understand teacher decision-making within the context of guided reading instruction.

This research was a collective case study aimed at providing a better understanding of the various decisions teachers make when teaching in a guided reading context. Findings pertaining to in-advanced decisions that emerged from the data can be …

Power Of Partnerships, Joni Meade

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

No abstract provided.

Using Diverse Picture Books To Strengthen Social And Emotional Skills, Jessica L. Edwards

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Social and emotional learning skills are inherently interconnected with culturally responsive teaching, as any progress with equity and justice requires intrapersonal, interpersonal, and cognitive competence. This article discusses the significance of this connection, providing numerous ideas for using diverse picture books to establish and further strengthen social and emotional learning skills within any classroom environment.

Teaching Vocabulary Graphic Organizers To Students With Disabilities Using The Constant Time Delay Procedure, Kera B. Ackerman, Channon K. Horn

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

This study examined the effectiveness of constant time delay (CTD) as a systematic instructional technique to teach three elementary-aged students identified with mild to moderate disabilities how to complete a vocabulary graphic organizer using words identified from their grade level social studies textbook. The researcher used CTD to teach the participants how to complete the graphic organizer while embedding instructive feedback. A multiple probe design across three participants was used to examine the effectiveness of the intervention. Results indicate that CTD was effective in teaching participants how to complete the graphic organizer. Additionally, participant acquired information through instructive feedback (e.g., …

Embracing Language Diversity: An Exploration Of Elementary Teachers' Perception Of African American English, Manijeh Hart

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Students of African descent often speak in a dialect that differs from the Dominant American English (DAE) dialect, known as African American English (AAE). Since this dialect is not considered mainstream, students who speak and write in this dialect may be at a disadvantage when being assessed on literacy skills and responding to literacy instruction. However, it is possible to address this issue by preparing and supporting teachers in recognizing AAE use in literacy activities and providing them with instructional strategies to support students who use AAE. The goal of this research was to investigate the perceptions that elementary school …

Mentoring And Supporting All Writers: Strengthening Writing Instruction In Pk To 5th Grade With Halpern’S “Interactive Writing” And Anderson’S “Mentor Texts”, Chad H. Waldron, Meghan K. Block, Alicia D. Fluker, Mariah C. Schepak, Michelle R. Snyder

Michigan Reading Journal

Shared, co-authored book review by educators and researchers of Matt Halpern’s (2023) A Teacher’s Guide to Interactive Writing, Grades PreK-2 and Carl Anderson’s (2022) A Teacher’s Guide to Mentor Texts, Grades K-5 (Heinemann)

Interactive Read Aloud Planning Template For The Story, The Letter From The Book Frog And Toad Are Friends, Lauren Dehmer, David Wolff

OER Materials

This is a read-aloud planning template for the story The Letter from the book Frog and Toad are Friends, which holds five stories. The goal of the assignment is to create an effective read-aloud. Research supports these as they can expose children to new words and language structures (Burkins & Yates, 2021). Cunningham et al. (2023) also explain interactive read-alouds as a way to “immerse students in rich content.” The author was given a list of stories from the anthology, The 20^th Century Children’s Book Treasury: Picture Books and Stories to Read Aloud, from instructor Dr. David Wolff, who …

Nourishing Flourishing: Elevating Elementary Educator Jouissance, Julie T. Siemianowski

Dissertations of Practice

This study was conducted, predicated on the following theories: Nel Noddings’s ethics of care, Albert Bandura’s self-efficacy theory (social cognitive theory), and positive psychology’s Martin Seligman’s PERMA (well-being). For the purposes of this study, Seligman’s PERMA (positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, accomplishment) theory encompasses both Kerry Howells’ gratitude and David Chan’s gratitude and subjective well-being. Qualitative methodology, specifically, the combination of narrative inquiry and case study guided and informed my data collection. Through semi-structured interviews and story-telling, teachers and literacy leaders shared their stories of external distressers and internal factors contributing to their professional jouissance or lack thereof.

Key words: …

Language And Literacy In Childhood Education, Ele203, Spring 2022 Syllabus, Natalie Willens

Open Educational Resources

Language and Literacy in Childhood Education is a designated capstone course. This writing intensive course provides a comprehensive overview of the development, learning, and teaching of literacy from grades one through six.

This course is designed to promote students’ understanding of the importance of issues concerning language and literacy in childhood education and their relevance to classroom practices. Topics covered throughout the semester include the relationship between written and spoken language and oral language development in children in culturally, academically, and linguistically diverse groups; literacy assessment; emergent literacy; phonemic awareness; fluency; reading comprehension; and literacy across the curriculum. We …

Modern Classical Christian Education?, Donna Lybarger

Master of Arts in Classical Studies

This thesis asks if the ancient tradition of classical education is an education method for the modern world. More specifically, this thesis questions, how might classical education methods be implemented for the acquisition of wisdom in the modern world? The literature review gives a brief history of classical education from the Greeks, and a history of why classical education is again a topic of conversation in the modern world. The three stages of classical education, the trivium, is explained. Classical Christian education is defined noting the method remains the same, but the difference is the nuances of the virtues of …

The Shifting The Balance Duology: A Book Critique From A Teacher Education Perspective, David Wolff

Essays in Education

Reading instruction has become a critical focus in many states in the country. Both in-service and pre-service teachers are adopting innovative approaches in reading instruction embedded in the Science of Reading. However, the transition to these new methods require a shift in practice that should be differentiated for both groups. In-service teachers have a wealth of knowledge and experience to draw upon, while pre-service teachers because of the lack of prior knowledge of past practices in literacy that include the Balanced Literacy approach. This book critique examines the Shifted the Balance duology, offering insights to its implications to Teacher Education.

Penetrating The Academic Echo Chamber Through Podcasting, David A. Wilson Phd

Intersections: Critical Issues in Education

The scope and breadth of the content of college courses is often limited to the students who attend them. This is particularly true regarding theoretical courses, such as those involving theories and practices related to bilingual education. A new podcast created by an instructor of such a course aims to expand the reach of the course content to other students, educators, and the general public, who may not have taken such courses. This opinion piece addresses how the podcast came into being, as well as its current and future goals.

A Qualitative Study Of Iranian Efl Teachers’ Perceptions Of A Digital Diversified Education, Seyed Mohammad Reza Marvasti Zadeh, Azizollah Dabaghi Varnosfadrani Advarnosfadrani, Mohammad Amiryousefi

The Qualitative Report

Because Iran is a country of learners of diverse languages, socio-economic classes, genders, and ages, digital diversified education seems appropriate to address needs in English language education. However, there is a notable gap in research on teachers’ perceptions about this type of education. To fill this gap, this study aimed to investigate the perspectives of Iranian teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) regarding a diverse digital education. Data were collected via an open-ended survey with 30 EFL teachers, both male and female, who were selected through convenience sampling. Analysis revealed several key themes, including the utilization of diverse …

Reflections From A Summer Literacy Intervention: Unlocking A Love Of Literacy For Struggling Readers, Rory Cantwell

Honors Projects

Summer literacy interventions offer a solution to the devastating impacts that summer literacy loss can have on struggling readers and writers. However, these interventions should consider the impact of student attitudes towards literacy on their learning and strive to develop positive associations between literacy and enjoyment. Camp Curious, a summer literacy intervention developed as a collaboration between the Virginia Association of Teachers of English and Shrine Mont, a retreat and conference center, embodies this idea. The intervention, in the form of a week-long camp experience, strives to provide third through sixth graders with positive and varied experiences related to literacy. …

Losing Identity Or Regaining Confidence? A Collaborative Autoethnography On Teachers' Self-Efficacy, Geraldine Jiménez Grajales, Mariana Arias Torres, Keren Hapuc Guisao Bohórquez, Leslie J. Lopera

The Qualitative Report

This collaborative autoethnography analyzes the role of self-efficacy within our teacher identity crisis. As English teachers in training, we have experienced situations inside and outside the classroom that motivated a professional identity crisis and led us questioning our efficacy as teachers. Through this study we explore the intricacies of our very own selves as prospective English teachers. We blended storytelling and analysis through a set of data generation procedures that included collaborative witnessing, written personal narratives and semi-structured interviews, which allowed us to co-construct our stories. Our findings reveal three main themes that display the roles of self-efficacy within the …

Inquiry Into Equity Practice In A “White Space”: Student-Led Discussions And Academic Discourse, Caran Mullins

Journal of Practitioner Research

In this study I used teacher inquiry to explore how to better engage my Black and Brown elementary students in student led discussions that could enhance academic discourse. The research questions driving my work emerged at the intersection of my beliefs and commitment to creating an equitable learning environment. Specifically, I wanted to know: (1) How do I scaffold my minority students to increased participation in academic discourse?, (2) How might these scaffolds support their development of metacognition, reading comprehension, and deeper critical thinking?, And (3) How do these scaffolds contribute to student feelings about their voice and place in …

The Impact Of Early Teacher Bias And Academic Risk On Children’S Current And Future Academic Achievement, Damira S. Rasheed

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The racial academic achievement gap continues to plague child academic outcomes in American public schools and teacher bias may be a contributing factor. Through the theoretical lens of critical race theory and the cultural synchrony hypothesis, this study contemplated how longstanding racism in the US may function to hinder the academic achievement outcomes of minority-race children. Moreover, cultural mismatches in the classroom between teachers and students may be associated with lower quality teacher-child relationships and perceived academic risk. A growing body of work has examined the association between teacher bias and child academic-risk factors—with risk defined by children’s sociodemographic characteristics …

“Without Boundaries, Something Great Might Just Be Created”: Examining Preservice Teachers’ Radical Imagination Through Becoming Writers And Teachers Of Writing, Erica Holyoke, Susan Tily

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

This study investigates how preservice teachers (PTs) created and enacted innovative views of writing instruction through course experiences in a field-based writing methods course as writers and teachers working with early elementary authors. Theoretically, we drew on radical imagination (Sailors, 2018) to interpret PT’s narratives and experiences in the course. We used constant comparative data analysis across sources, which included field notes, observations, and course artifacts. The findings explore interrelationships between being a writer, establishing a writing identity, and teaching and envisioning writing instruction through liberating perspectives through writing for social change. The implications of this work argue for integrated, …

Teaching Writing With The Digital Feedback Protocol: A Peer-To-Peer Intervention To Increase Elementary Student Writing Motivation, Karyn Keenan

Dissertations

Writing is a complex task, especially for elementary school writers; motivation in writing leads to greater writing performance and writing quality. Teachers enter their careers underprepared to teach writing and have to seek out professional development on writing for themselves. Technology can be leveraged in the elementary writing classroom, but it is an under researched area. The Digital Feedback Protocol is a case study dissertation study with an embedded professional development opportunity that supports teachers to implement a protocol for students to provide digital feedback to each other’s writing. The study was conducted with four third grade teachers and their …

Culturally Sustaining Pedagogical Practices In Early Literacy Classrooms: A Qualitative Case Study Of Two Kindergarten Classrooms, Elizabeth Carlton Phd

Dissertations

Students who attend school possess their own “funds of knowledge” from their home life and prior experiences (Moll et al., 1992). Yet, learners from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds are not viewed from a strengths-based perspective but rather a deficit perspective. The deficit perspective perpetuates the oppression and marginalization of students of color and multilingual students. Using a qualitative comparative case study research design, the study is rooted in the tenets of Critical Pedagogy (Freire, 2000), Critical Literacy, and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy as it sought to uncover insights into asset-based instructional strategies that allow multilingual learners opportunities to participate equitably …

Shifting The Balance: 6 Ways To Bring The Science Of Reading Into The Upper Elementary Classroom- A Review, Mary-Jo Morse

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

In recent weeks, the New York State Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled her “Back to Basics” plan to improve reading achievement in New York State. As part of her plan, Governor Hochul has proposed that millions of dollars be allocated in the state’s budget to train “20 thousand teachers in Science of Reading Instructional best practices and announced an expansion of SUNY and CUNY’s microcredentialing programs for teachers focused on the Science of Reading.” (Hochul, 2024). With the Science of Reading becoming a major component in reading instruction, this new text, Shifting the Balance: 6 ways to Bring the Science of …

Incorporating Books As Strength-Based Examples Of Characters With Dyslexia, Vera Sotirovska, Margaret Vaughn

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

Incorporating books that facilitate inclusive understandings of dyslexia can be a challenging yet important pedagogical approach to promoting equitable practices. As realistically portrayed characters and stories provide a way for students to see not only themselves but also others, and enter different worlds, the need for multiple representations of children with dyslexia is necessary when working to create equity-oriented classrooms. First, we discuss strategies on how to select and use books with diverse representations of individuals with dyslexia. Next, we provide book selection criteria to guide teachers in curating their own classroom libraries with similar texts. Finally, we include activities …