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The term "balanced literacy" was popularized in the mid-1990s to describe a middle ground in terms of text selection, instruction, skills, and strategies. The intention was to merge the promising elements of whole language and phonics. Interactions with educators and literacy leaders across the country currently suggest that a term that had been seemingly well defined 20 years ago had become more vague. This descriptive study polled 25 veteran teachers to identify commonalities among their definitions and instructional applications.

In 2013, the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) was enacted to replace the previous California school finance system. The purpose was to stream various funding sources (e.g., basic revenues, categorical funds, block grants) such that districts could engage in comprehensive planning to support all students. Additional monies designated for English Learners, foster youth, and students living in poverty supplement district funding. We analyzed district Local Control Accountability Plans developed for the 2017-18 school year (n = 50) using qualitative document analysis. Seven coding categories emerged: EL status, personnel, curriculum, instruction, monitoring, counseling, and parent involvement. The second stage of our analysis was in identifying goals, supports, programs, and interventions for English Learners that fell within one of four divisions across two planes. The first is general versus specific, meaning that the approach was intended for all designated groups or for EL students alone. The second plane we used is conventional versus innovative approaches. We saw both conventional and innovative elements across each of the seven categories. Collectively, these findings highlight the strategic ways in which districts are committing to goals and actions in allocating LCFF funding to impact their English Learner populations in meaningful ways.

A project to invite experts in various disciplines to converse with literacy professors and teachers with over 30 participants resulted in several insights about disciplinary literacy and student learning in the disciplines and professions. The authors suggest that such conversations or partnerships strengthen student learning for college, career, and civic life. The authors differentiate between professions and disciplines, highlighting how informed citizenship is an important outcome of teaching the literacies of the disciplines. The authors explore the purposes of communication within and between the disciplines. Insights and recommendations are presented.

In this reflective essay, we explore key life experiences of one African American teacher--(the first author of this paper)--who has taught kindergarten, fifth grade, and is presently a 9th grade English teacher in the high school from which she graduated. We couch the first author's story in the professional literature to analyze and illustrate what happened in her life when her teachers worked effectively with her to help her learn to use language and literacy for her own purposes. The overall story about the first author's memories of her most powerful school experiences serves as a vehicle for sharing ideas that teachers can implement in their own classrooms to foster the language and literacy learning of children.

This article profiles the use of the iPad in classroom literacy activities in three instructional environments: Toronto, Canada; San Diego, United States; and Sydney, Australia. The two-year, qualitative study included observational fieldwork filming students' interactions with tablets in the midst of literacy events. Students in each context used the iPads to make meaning, with the participating classroom teachers affording students some degree of self-determination with respect to technology use. We describe these instructional environments and illustrate how diverse landscapes reflected a variety of ecologies or models that contributed inherently to the nature of learning on the iPads. Our findings show how context and environment allow for different kinds of learning and may elucidate the array of learning potential afforded with this device.

We explore the use of iPads in a diverse urban high school and the ways in which teachers and students were supported to integrate these tools into their instruction. We provided 4 English teachers with 20 iPads with little or no professional development about how to integrate them into their instruction. Using a formative experiment design, we examine what it took to increase the use of the technology tools with a group of diverse students. Over the course of the year, we made several modifications, each of which increased the use of the iPads.

Social media has become adolescents' primary platform for communicating with one another. As a school faculty we wanted to explore our students' ability to contribute new information while being sensitive not to co-opt their out of school literacies for school-based purposes. This article shares how teachers in one urban school redesigned curriculum and instruction to provide experiences that encouraged and supported students as they engaged in the production side of social media.

School-based gardens are increasingly common. The benefits to students reflect principles of global education by modeling sustainability through responsible ecological planning and service to the community, the environment, and humanity. The authors propose a pedagogical framework for planning school gardens and related experiences that demonstrate how gardens promote healthier eating habits, practices that impact global economies, and service to the community, as well as the integration of knowledge of cultures, local and global resources, and sustainable food sources. The article reports interviews with proponents who offer a practical introduction to educators who wish to support students' understanding of how local actions can promote global community building.

A question being asked by teachers across the country is, How can I teach students to acquire both the skills and knowledge demanded by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) while simultaneously guiding them to read challenging texts such as those presented in Appendix B of the CCSS? Answering this invites the integration of ideas and the innovation of novel instructional plans. Illustrating close reading procedures in two classrooms-one 1st grade and one 5th grade- this article provides an answer by detailing the manner in which a student might approach a challenging science text using annotated reading, partner talk, text-based questioning and reflective writing to build competence and a capacity for reading, writing, listening, and speaking about informational texts.

In this article, we focus on instructional support for 91 students who speak African American Vernacular English and who are at high risk for not passing the required state exams. We profile the instruction that was provided and the results from that instruction, providing examples of how students' language was scaffolded such that they could code switch between test language (standard academic English) and the languages of their homes. (Contains 8 figures.)

This article discusses the flexible nature of the gradual release of responsibility (GRR) as a frame for inquiry-based science instruction. Given the mandate for the use of text-supported learning (Common Core Standards), the GRR can be used to allow students to learn as scientists as they collaboratively develop testable questions and experiments that direct them to look at real-world issues. Through various configurations of modeling, guided instruction, collaborative efforts, and independent work, teachers are able establish an environment where investigative inquiry learning thrives. (Contains 8 figures, 4 resources and 1 online resource.)

Academic writing is a mainstay of expression in secondary schools. However, many students think of academic writing in terms of local operations that include spelling, punctuation, use of third person, and so on. Teachers may expect mastery of local operations, but often they want students to navigate the terrain of the content area or discipline by integrating sources, taking up academic vocabulary, synthesizing concepts, or creating new understanding. This article describes the expectations that students in one 10th-grade class hold about their academic writing tasks as compared with that of their teachers. Length of writing tasks, features of academic register in written work, and purpose in writing assignments are explored, and recommendations are provided based on the data. (Contains 6 tables and 1 figure.)

Inside a ninth-grade classroom, we witness one teacher's very intentional instructional attempts that resulted in her students being able to convey well-crafted reasoning and text-supported evidence to mount persuasive arguments. Through personal examples and Internet resources, the teacher concretized pathos, logos, and ethos. The teacher and students together analyzed various documents, including literary and political speeches, for persuasive techniques that manipulated their thinking. As a result, students understood the pitfalls of manipulation while becoming quite sophisticated at mounting evidence-supported claims and counterclaims to present their arguments. Through their writing of ads, students demonstrated their grasp of logical argumentation and also the power of anticipating the knowledge, questions, and concerns of an intended audience as a way to impress a position. (Contains 1 figure.)

What are new literacies and how do they mesh with core curriculum? Classroom teachers who find their students' interests and bases of knowledge about new technologies expanding exponentially often ask this question. While broadening the definition of new literacies beyond internet literacy this article explores the history of new literacies and offers an answer to the question of how to blend new literacies while not losing the focus of the core curriculum. An example of how one teacher remixed new literacies, core curriculum, and intentional instruction to support critical literacy is shared to illustrate the reality and possible process of weaving new and existing literacy instruction.

Survey methods were employed to learn more about teachers' attitudes toward graphic novels and how graphic novels are used in their classrooms. Questions explored participants' attitudes and actual classroom use. The survey research sought to determine if teachers are open to using graphic novels and the extent of their willingness to do so. Though teachers report willingness to use graphic novels and other graphica, they are limited in their attempts to do so by lack of instructional models, lack of graphic novels in the classroom, and their own level of comfort with the genre.

Students enter the middle grades with varying amounts of background knowledge. Teachers must assess student background knowledge for gaps or misconceptions and then provide instruction to build on that base. This article discusses effective strategies for assessing and developing students' background knowledge so they can become independent learners who make personal connections to their learning. Strategies include assessing students' reading abilities, providing direct experiences with content, and building vocabulary. (Contains 5 figures.)

In this article, the authors focus on homework as an adjunct for learning in secondary school classrooms. Four types of students are profiled, with detail on how the students respond to homework assignments when they do not understand the content. The authors then review three changes in homework practices that can engage students, including fluency building, spiral review, and extension learning. (Contains 2 figures.)

One of the most persistent challenges facing teachers is the need to provide effective literacy instruction for adolescent English language learners (ELLs). The literacy crisis for these students is a compelling one; only 4% of eighth-grade ELLs scored at the proficient or advanced level on the reading portion of the 2005 National Assessment for Educational Progress. A lack of at-grade-level literacy development is exacerbated for ELLs who enter the educational system in the later grades, often with below-grade-level literacy skills in their native language. The authors propose that to address the lack of literacy among ELLs and other struggling readers, instruction must support the development of academic language and background knowledge essential for learning in high school content-area classrooms and the workplace. If English language learners in English classrooms are to succeed in critically engaging with academic texts, they need intentionally designed interventions that facilitate mastery of subject-specific academic vocabulary and background knowledge, as well as the forms and functions of academic language. To support teachers as they make these accommodations, the authors share in this article an intervention that scaffolds both background knowledge and language development through tiered texts. First the authors discuss factors involved in acquiring a school or academic discourse. Then they define and describe tiered texts as a way to differentiate literacy learning for English language learners and other struggling readers. Finally they identify ways that teachers can implement tiered texts, using a classroom-based example of how tiered texts can be used with Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." (Contains 2 figures.)

A history teacher examines what is successful and not successful in group work in his high school classroom and gives concrete suggestions for improving group practice. Topics discussed include preparing students for group work, supporting collaboration, inviting critical analysis, and assessing both group and individual performance. (Contains 2 figures.)

Weblogs or blogging may foreground audience needs for a written work and help novice authors grow in audience awareness and elicit and use audience feedback. A case study of a second-grade classroom compared students' growing audience awareness and the ways they addressed audience needs. Analysis of student written work, students' comments to peers on blog posts, and survey data showed improved writing based on near-immediate peer feedback, substantive feedback to others, and motivation to revise based on the feedback received via blog comments.

This article argues that theoretical understandings of multimodality have enormous potential for assessment purposes in secondary school contexts. Informed by the work of three researchers in three North American high schools, the article offers vignettes of the effective assessment of communicative competence in English classrooms that draws on multimodality and design epistemologies. Building on the work of Bearne (2009) and others, the article contributes to the burgeoning literature on new approaches to assessment in a digital and multimodal age by offering three different perspectives on new assessment frameworks with recommendations for a way forward. The article sets out to trouble the notion of assessing modes such as sound, space and visuals in a word-ruled discipline. (Contains 3 tables.)

In this case study, we focus on 2 variables often neglected in conversations about closing the achievement gap. Most recommendations for closing the achievement gap center on extending learning time, including afterschool programs, extended year programs, and supplemental instruction. Our school focused on attendance and student engagement in our effort to close the achievement gap. By developing a schoolwide plan that ensured that attendance was noticed, corrected, and celebrated, students at our urban school began attending on par with their suburban counterparts. In addition, we focused on student engagement once they were at school. Through a number of schoolwide instructional routines, including teacher modeling and productive group work, students became involved in learning and their achievement improved. Together, these initiatives further closed the achievement gap. (Contains 2 tables.)

In an effort to improve student achievement, a group of middle-school teachers at an underperforming school developed a schoolwide literacy plan. As part of the plan, they agreed to model their thinking while reading aloud. Eight teachers were selected for coaching related to think alouds in which they exposed students to comprehension strategies that they used while reading. The achievement of their students was compared with the achievement of students whose teachers participated in the ongoing professional development but who were not coached. Results indicate that the coached teachers changed their instructional practices and that student achievement improved as a result. (Contains 1 table.)

When students make mistakes, have misconceptions, or are simply wrong, how their teachers respond either builds new skills and understanding or reinforces errors. An intentional approach to responding when students don't get it includes questions to check for understanding, prompts for cognitive and metacognitive work, cues to divert attention, and direct explanations.

Although not a new concept, remix has recently gained popularity in mainstream sources ranging from video games to newspaper columns and television commercials for airline tickets, fried chicken, and soft drinks. All these examples draw on a concept that originates from hip-hop culture and refers to the creative blending of materials from different sources. As in "DJ Hero," remixing originally referred to the practice when DJs pulled from various audio sources and mixed the different tracks together to make a new song. Remixing is seen as a creative process that draws on prior knowledge and textual understandings. In the field of literacy research, remix has been conceptualized as a form of writing and comprehending: writing and comprehending is remix. In this article, the authors examine the concept of remix and then discuss classroom practices that connect this concept from popular culture to school-based literacy objectives. (Contains 1 figure.)

Modeled in this column is the teaching of a text mapping routine that supports students reading and remembering the salient features of the text. The authors renamed the story mapping technique "text mapping plus" because they found that as students added relational words and graphics to their maps their retells of both fiction and nonnarrative were fuller, more accurate, and shared with greater confidence. (Contains 1 figure.)

Critical literacy is the practice of evaluating information, insights, and perspectives through an analysis of power, culture, class, and gender. A critical perspective suggests that the meaning within a text cannot be separated from the historical, political, personal, and social contexts in which it was written. Being critically literate, therefore, means that during the reading transaction readers question this contextual frame as a way to position or see themselves and others as enabling or defying the particular situation or belief being posited by the author, the situation, or themselves. The process of preparing critically literate readers provides students and teachers with a forum to analyze their same and differing topical perspectives while promoting increased student engagement and learning. This article describes a lesson sequence that illustrates how the authors supported their students as they developed a critical literacy perspective. The authors' immediate purpose was to support their students' abilities to employ a critical literacy perspective of both text and authorship as a means to identify and position their beliefs about issues of racism, power, and oppression. (Contains 1 figure.)

The authors had the most fantastic teachable moment when they shared book club time with 24 students they teach at Health Sciences High and Middle College. As they reflect on their conversation with the students, they are convinced that the impetus for the students' interest in what they were reading and discussing with their peers was that they followed the lead of the students when they asked if they could partner with them to choose the texts, the topics, and the assignments for their English class. In this article, the authors detail how this happened. (Contains 3 figures.)

This formative experiment was designed to ensure that a group of high school students developed their literacy habits. The intervention consisted of a schoolwide approach to literacy using four instructional routines: think-alouds, note-taking writing to learn, and dedicated reading time. As part of the formative experiment, we document the two-and-a-half-year process required for the school to implement the initiative as well as the outcomes of the effort.

A study of 25 expert teachers and their shared reading lessons in grades 3-8 suggests that teachers focus their modeling during shared reading in four categories: comprehension, vocabulary, text structures, and text features. (Contains 1 figure.)

Shared reading with think-alouds provides adolescent students with the modeling they need to become successful readers and writers. This article provides a sample of this type of interactive comprehension instruction in a science classroom. The authors then focus on the dimensions of effective shared readings with think-alouds that can be used across content areas to develop students' comprehension of texts. (Contains 3 tables.)

It is common for teachers in all districts across the United States to give homework to their students. Given the rising numbers of children from nondominant backgrounds in American schools, a question that merits consideration is how children from nondominant backgrounds--particularly in large urban centers--are impacted by teachers' homework practices. In this study we explored why teachers in one large U.S. urban center assign homework, the kinds of homework teachers assign, and teachers' beliefs about the impact of this homework on their students' success at school. The authors collected surveys from 133 elementary school teachers (grades K through middle school) and interviewed a subgroup of 27 teachers from the larger group. Results revealed that although most teachers engaged in homework practices that were similar to those identified in current research (e.g., giving students skills based practice in math and spelling, in particular), most of the teachers in our study did make provisions for the fact that many of their children came from homes where English was not spoken at home and parents may not have the additional financial resources necessary to purchase materials for children to complete their homework. (Contains 1 note.)

As part of a professional development initiative helping secondary school teachers use assessment data to guide their instruction, teachers in this study changed their knowledge, skills and dispositions. Over time, they were able to identify assessments, administer these assessments, interpret the results and plan instruction. As a result, the students who were tutored by these teachers increased their achievement compared with a control group.

To improve literacy achievement, the authors developed consensus scoring and peer planning as a process of professional development and school improvement. This process allows teachers to (1) gain an increased understanding of the content and performance standards that guide their instruction; (2) work together to assess student work; (3) work together to plan, understand, and provide quality instruction; and (4) reteach content as necessary to ensure student mastery. Two school examples of the use of this process to improve achievement are presented.

The purpose of these two studies was to redirect interest to the Neurological Impress Method, a multisensory approach to reading instruction that occurs between a teacher and a student, which has been largely forgotten in mainstream and special education circles over the past decades. In addition to its emphasis on oral reading, we included a comprehension component that we call the plus (+) to NIM Plus. In our first study, third through sixth-grade below-level readers in a San Diego county school participated in NIM tutoring. On each of the three measures--oral reading fluency, silent reading fluency, and comprehension--students performed statistically better after the five-week (3.3 hours) NIM training than they had at the beginning of the training. In oral reading fluency, the students' scores significantly increased from an average of 96.7 words correct per minute to 112 words correct per minute (p .0001 ). In silent reading fluency measure, students' scores increased from an average of 132 words per minute to 154 words per minute (p .002 ). On the comprehension assessment, students' scores increased from an average of 3.2 questions correct to 4.5 correct (p .001 ). In our second study, which was conducted in an urban San Diego school, similar results were found; the students scored significantly higher on all three measures. In this second study, however, we focused on "glimpses" into the reasons why NIM Plus was so effective. The tutors who provided the NIM Plus training reported that NIM Plus helped both teacher and student to focus on prior knowledge, making connections between and among texts and the world, and overall construction of comprehension. Our findings support the idea that the NIM Plus is adaptable and that it requires further investigation, in experimental settings, as well as in schools and clinics.

Read-alouds are a common component of literacy instruction. However, research on the method for providing read-alouds is limited. To determine if there was a common set of implementation practices, the authors examined the read-aloud practices of 25 teachers who were nominated by their administrators as experts. From these data, the authors identified several factors common to read-alouds. The authors then observed 100 additional teachers to determine how common each of these factors were in read-alouds.

Reading specialists in several San Diego schools assist both in providing tutoring to students and coach peers, a dual role that has helped to create and sustain schoolwide improvements in literacy. In just a few years, these high-poverty schools have doubled the number of 2nd graders reading at grade level.

Examines the effects of students' access to print via a community library. Compares knowledge of authors, words, books, and magazines between the students who accessed the community library and students who used the school library. Indicates that the students who visited community libraries outperformed students who did not. (SG)

Studied the effects of reading the "Weekly Reader" on children's knowledge of current events. Results from 2,331 urban and suburban elementary school students, aged 8 to 12, show increased knowledge of current events among younger children who used the "Weekly Reader," but the effect was less in grades 4 through 6. (SLD)

Disagrees with an earlier article in this journal about the dispute among reading-instruction specialists as to how phonics is best taught. Argues for direct and systematic phonics instruction. Presents a response to Groff, agreeing that children need explicit phonics instruction but arguing that an instructional approach that acknowledges the effects of context is essential. Includes Groff's reply. (SR)