Reading Apprenticeship

“It’s Important to Dance with the Text”

Image of the cover from the referenced journal, TETYC.

Research & Publications

“It’s Important to Dance with the Text”

by

Teaching English in the Two-Year College Journal (TETYC) has published a special issue focused on “Teaching Reading in Open Access Contexts.” This volume is a wonderful resource for instructors wondering how best to support students’ reading in a rapidly changing world.

Guest Editors Joanne Baird Giordano and Cheryl Hogue Smith argue in their introductory article, “The Changing Realities of Open Access Reading: Where Are We Now? Where Might We Go Next?” that at a time when both the nature of reading itself and the place of literacy instruction at community colleges are undergoing rapid change, “faculty and administrators in open-access teaching contexts need flexible, evidence-based practices for helping students from diverse social, cultural, linguistic, and academic backgrounds develop the reading skills and strategies required for success across the range of courses that they teach.” The research articles in the issue describe such practices, from strategies for antiracist reading, framing strategic reading as a transferable skill, and supporting returning students to draw on their lived experiences to connect to reading and writing assignments in the composition classroom.

Reading Apprenticeship is featured in an Instructional Note article written by Nika Hogan, “’It’s important to dance with the text’: Enhancing Writing Instruction Through Reading Apprenticeship.” Hogan describes the Reading Apprenticeship’ framework as a support for instructors to orchestrate dynamic, contextualized literacy instruction that supports both student engagement and deeper learning about the discipline of writing studies.

You can download the article here.

Interested in a deeper dive into how Reading Apprenticeship can support students to engage deeply with texts as both readers and writers? Consider the Reading Apprenticeship in College Writing Course.

Read Our Chapter in this New Professional Learning Book

by

Anyone interested in literacy and professional learning will find great value in this 2023 book edited by Dana Robertson, Leigh Hall, and Cynthia Brock. The introductory chapter provides a concise overview of the essential ‘ingredients’ and challenges involved in high quality professional learning. Each of the following chapters include program descriptions, case studies, and research on transformational teacher learning initiatives situated in culturally, linguistically and geographically diverse places. The chapters are grouped into two parts: 1) Professional Learning as Reflexive Growth-in-Practice and 2) Professional Learning In/Through/With Social Networks and Communities.

Reading Apprenticeship is featured in a chapter written by Cynthia Greenleaf, Gayle Cribb, Mira-Lisa Katz and Mary Stump “Professional Learning Designed to Cultivate Continuous Learning and Innovation.” The authors describe Reading Apprenticeship’s design principles, and they illustrate the power of ‘leading from practice’ by describing the journey of Gayle Cribb.

For a limited time, you can download our chapter at no charge, but we highly recommend you check out the book.

“This book conveys leading-edge ideas. It offers practical ideas for professional learning that ensure teachers and students alike are supported to learn and to sustain their learning….It shares insights that will make such professional growth a reality. This powerful work is a major contribution to the development of teacher learning.”
  — Diane Lapp, EdD, San Diego State University

“Leading Literacy Across the Disciplines”

by

WestEd Literacy Director Linda Friedrich, in collaboration with Mary Stump, Associate Director, and Sharon Sáez, Partnership Development Director, published an exciting piece in the AASA School Administrator earlier this year. Their article, “Leading Literacy Across the Disciplines,” discusses the importance of disciplinary literacy and focuses on the successes of two large districts, in Maryland and Michigan respectively, with their implementation of Reading Apprenticeship.

Visit the AASA website to read the article, and check out these additional resources for more on disciplinary literacy: