September 30, 2015
Reading Education Faculty Highlights
At this time in the semester, students are showcasing what they have learned through papers, projects and mid-term exams. We thought we would share a few highlights of what the ECU College of Education Reading Faulty have been doing since the start of the fall 2015 semester.
Dr. Caitlin Ryan has presented multiple professional development sessions for Pitt County Teachers working on Literature Circles. Dr. Ryan shared, “I really enjoy helping teachers learn about texts and activities that help students love reading. We focused on how talk about text is an important component of both student engagement and comprehension instruction in the reading curriculum.”
Dr. Anne Ticknor and Dr. Katie Schwartz (Associate Professor in Mathematics Education) led a mathematics-specific induction program, LAUNCH into Mathematics, for 20 beginning elementary teachers in eastern North Carolina. The induction program included over 60 hours of mathematics professional development and specialized mentoring across two years. The Z Smith Reynolds Foundation funded the program. Ticknor and Schwartz are continuing research and publications related to the initiative and are facilitating a social media campaign, Teach for Changency, to showcase program guest bloggers, participant quotes, and key findings from the study. See: teachforchangency.com
Kelly Bahoric (Elementary Education, K-12 Reading License, ’15) and Dr. Elizabeth Swaggerty co-authored a journal article that explores fanfiction as a valuable literacy practice in both the real world and the K-12 classroom. Bahoric notes, “Reading and writing fanfiction is an exciting practice for students because it allows students to expand upon ideas they already love and enjoy. There is also a subversive element to the practice. One could rewrite established works in a way that is more challenging and less conservative than the original. The potentially subversive nature of the practice is highly appealing to young people.” Article available here: http://www.ccira.org/colorado-reading-journal/SUMMER-2015.html
Dr. Ran Hu is investigating Western teachers’ English teaching experience in China. She hopes to help more people understand the experiences and challenges of those who taught English in a foreign country. If you have taught English in another country or have an interest in learning more about teaching English abroad, please contact Dr. Hu (hur@ecu.edu).