An Analysis of Critical Literacy in Featured Manuscripts Appearing in Two Major Literacy Journals (2011-2020)

Literacy journals provide an important resource for teachers’ professional development. Although school districts offer in-service education for their faculty and teachers often attend conferences and workshops sponsored by professional teaching organizations, journal reading remains an important source of information for teachers’ ongoing learning. In this study we examined what elementary teachers would learn about teaching critical literacy from reading major journals in literacy education. Critical literacy served as our focus because of the increasing importance of readers knowing how to recognize political, social and cultural perspectives embedded in the texts that they read. Content analysis served as our research method in which all volumes of The Reading Teacher and Language Arts published between 2011 and 2020 were examined. Results yielded 20 manuscripts meeting our criteria, and these clustered into two categories: (1) manuscripts describing effective critical literacy projects in elementary classrooms; (2) manuscripts discussing the use of children’s literature for teaching critical literacy. Given recent national events relating to racial and ethnic injustice throughout the country, we recommend that literacy journals place greater emphasis in publishing manuscripts that help teachers include a critical literacy lens into the lessons they teach children.

Enhancing Classroom Management Skills: Efficacy of a Supplemental Multi-Platform Intervention for Preservice Teachers

Many teachers are ill-prepared to apply practices that can both preempt and address challenging behaviors that interfere with academic instruction. We evaluated the efficacy of a supplemental multi-platform (direct instruction, guided practice, and mixed reality simulations) intervention designed for preservice teachers who do not have opportunities to participate in formal classroom management courses. Efficacy of the intervention was assessed through the quality of classroom management plans, the presentation and implementation of the plan in the virtual classroom, and classroom management self-efficacy. Results indicated that preservice teachers successfully developed quality proactive classroom management plans but struggled to present and implement their plans. However, self-efficacy increased indicating that participants believed they were better able to manage classroom behavior than they did prior to the intervention. Implications of these outcomes are discussed with an emphasis on how adequate opportunities to practice acquired classroom management skills are included in budget-challenged teacher preparation programs.

Think-Pair-Share as a Springboard for Study Buddies in a Virtual Environment

Many powerful teaching techniques have not yet fully transitioned from face-to-face use to the new remote instructional paradigm forced on teacher educators and teacher candidates during the pandemic. Experiences by candidates and by instructors in this new environment need to be compiled and shared as we head forward into structures and situations. This article describes how one such technique, Think-Pair-Share (Lyman, 1981) inspired assigning Study Buddies in a co-taught graduate level teacher education course, Managing Culturally Responsive Classrooms, in the summer of 2020. Two teacher candidates, two professors and Dr. Frank Lyman, offer insight and suggestions about this practice, its possibilities and its limitations as the course moved from a traditional implementation to a virtual setting.

Comparing Special Education Teachers’ Personality Profile With Their Choice to Teach

Researchers have yet to examine the association of Holland personality profiles as it relates to special education teachers. In response to this need, we report the personality and vocational profiles (Holland Codes) of 134 special education teachers across a special education training program. The purpose of this paper is to summarize findings from the Self-Directed Search measure commonly used to assess the personality of participants in an occupation and suggest implications for participants’ choice in becoming a special education teacher. Our focus was on personality match with vocational choice to include participants’ demographic (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity, and geographical location) profile. Findings from the study reveal that while special educators’ overall personality profile is congruent with the Holland Codes associated with special education teachers, other features may explain participants’ choice to pursue a career as a special education teacher. Implications for teacher preparation programs and K-12 schools training are recommended based on the research findings.

Addressing Teacher Shortages in the COVID-19 Landscape: Viewing Teacher Candidates as Assets

COVID-19 continues to impose dire consequences on all sectors of our public education system. Many students, particularly those from vulnerable populations, are receiving reduced amounts of direct instruction and are experiencing significant losses in learning. At the same time, educator preparation programs (EPPs) are struggling to ensure that teacher candidates have ample opportunities to apply their newly acquired pedagogical skills in high quality clinical placements. In this article we describe and provide exemplars as to how teacher candidates can serve as assets to school districts as they complete their field placements. We also offer specific strategies and practices for EPPs and school districts to maximize the productive and efficient integration of teacher candidates in both virtual and in-person environments.

Making the Transition to Virtual Methods in the Literacy Classroom: Reframing Teacher Education Practices

In response to the COVID 19 pandemic universities and colleges abruptly closed and teacher educators had little time to move instruction from face-to-face classrooms to digital learning environments. This sudden shift created a myriad of obstacles as instructors worked to retain pedagogically sound and effective instruction digitally—while also preparing novice teachers to teach online themselves. Adding another layer of complexity was prospective teachers’ lack of knowledge and hesitation regarding technology tools, as well as how to meaningfully integrate the tools into their teaching. Facing these challenges, we as literacy teacher educators drew upon effective methods of teacher education, literacy practices and digital literacy to rethink the way we design lessons and assignments for our literacy methods courses. The framework we created for restructuring the integration of technology into courses can be duplicated across disciplines and guide instructors to reconceptualize their use of tech tools to re-envision face-to-face and digital instruction to expand learning outcomes.

COVID-19 Modifications to a Service-Learning Project Designed to Prepare Special Education Students to Be Effective Participants in Transdisciplinary Collaborations

This research study examined the impact of COVID-19 on university students’ perceptions about the effectiveness of a community-based service-learning project designed to prepare graduate students in special education and undergraduate students in psychology and speech-language pathology to work in transdisciplinary teams in early childhood settings. Students were placed into transdisciplinary teams and assigned to one of two community-based early childhood programs to administer a universal screening tool that assessed young children in several domains. The project was in its sixth year when the country stood still because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project was re-envisioned, mid-course, to provide an equitable and rigorous assignment for students who were unable to complete the original assignment due to the lockdown. Student perceptions were compared, pre and post COVID; subsequent results are discussed in alignment with the original four goals of the project. Additionally, suggestions are posed to position this service-learning assignment for remote delivery should the pandemic persist to disrupt higher education.

Making Remote Learning Engaging

This article provides extant background on online learning including best practice frameworks at multiple educational levels. The authors also discuss important considerations of remote and online learning when one is planning or teaching in that modality. Perhaps most importantly, this piece details the account of one highly qualified teacher’s experience transitioning to remote learning during the spring of the COVID-19 pandemic, which can serve as an exemplar to others. This example will demonstrate how teachers can be effective when mandated to utilize remote or hybrid teaching. The piece will also share implications for the future of teaching and teacher preparation.

Twenty-First Century Middle Schooling in New York: Teachers Share Experiences and Perspectives on Remote Teaching and Learning Early in the Global Pandemic

In early 2020, the Covid-19 virus hit many places, including New York City, with such a force that nobody could have foreseen the events following its spread. The education system was pushed to transition itself to meet with 21st century technology. This study explores this disruption in the education system and how middle school teachers in several New York counties responded. What are middle school teachers’ perspectives and practices during the rapid switch to remote teaching? Professor and graduate students in a Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment class on middle level schooling designed the interview protocol focused on five related areas of the remote learning endeavor: 1) Preparation, 2) Teaching, Learning, and Participation, 3) Social and Emotional effects on Students, 4) Monitoring and Assessment, 5) Looking forward. The findings demonstrate a primarily reactive response and limited preparation. Teachers express a mixed review of successes and struggles with online teaching and the challenges of engagement, participation, and meeting the social emotional needs of restless students who sometimes do not have the parent support or the technological devices that could further assist their success with online learning. Each teacher had their own unique experiences and challenges teaching students through a computer screen.