The voting period for the 2012 IRA Board election closed on February 10, the ballots have been tabulated, and the results have been confirmed. 

Jill Lewis-Spector, (bio) Professor, Literacy Education and Chair, Graduate Program, New Jersey City University, Jersey City, NJ, has been elected as IRA’s new Vice President.  

Three new board members were also elected: 

• Douglas Fisher, (bio) Professor of Education, San Diego State University, and Teacher Leader, Health Sciences High, San Diego, CA
• Rona Flippo, (bio) Professor, University of Massachusetts, Boston, Boston, MA
• Shelly Stagg Peterson, (bio) Associate Professor, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

Their terms will run from 2012 to 2015. 

The entire IRA community extends best wishes to the newly elected vice president and board members.

International Reading Association (IRA) Global Operations Director Sakil Malik was present for Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid’s launch of the Global Literacy Professional Development (GLPDN) project at Ruposhi Bangla Hotel in Dhaka City, Bangladesh, in December 2011. 

The GLPDN project’s goal is to enhance primary school teachers’ literacy instruction skills via mobile technology, aiming to provide training to 600 teachers in Bangladesh over the next three years. Nokia and Pearson Foundation will work with IRA and the Bangladesh Reading Association (BRA) to implement a pilot training project supported by professional development in the IRA Diagnostic Teaching Model (DTM) and literacy leadership development. The project is managed and conducted through IRA’s country affiliates. The Directorate of Primary Education (DPE) of the ministry of Primary and Mass education supports the project. 

For more information about IRA Global Operations, see http://www.reading.org/General/LocalAssociations/AsiCouncil.aspx.

Photo caption: Nokia EA country manager Abu Daud Khan, Bangladesh’s Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid, and International Reading Association Global Operations Director Sakil Malik.

Estonia is a small Nordic country that celebrates high rates of literacy amongst its population. Yet, like most educated societies, teachers seek ways to improve literacy for all. Although literacy is high, parents are often uninformed on strategies to encourage and celebrate reading at home.

Since 2004 the Estonian Reading Association (www.lugemisyhing.ee, www.tallinn2011.ee) has conducted “Reading Nest” workshops for teachers to equip them with ideas and advice on how to create child-friendly, comfortable reading nooks in kindergarten and elementary school classrooms. These workshops use a variety of creative activities and games to support learning how to read. 

Reading Nest project won the International Reading Association Award for Innovative Reading Promotion in Europe 2009. Over those seven years while the Reading Nest Project has been active, almost 2000 teachers all over Estonia have attended the workshops. Now those teachers are willing and able to maintain better reading environments for children. The Estonian Reading Association has trained volunteer mentors who have spread their knowledge and know-how to other teachers in workshops. The enthusiasm of those mentors is the reason why this project has been so sustainable.

After success was gained from these services, it was decided that these techniques would be beneficial to parents’ understanding of developmental literacy approaches as well.

Adding Parents to the Mix

In 2011, Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, was named the European Capital of Culture and the Estonian Reading Association applied for and was awarded a grant from the organizing group to increase literacy by preparing a project called “Tallinn Reads in a Reading Nest” in Estonian, Russian, and English. This new program was to introduce techniques to help parents to support reading at home.

As a result on September 8, International Literacy Day workshops were given in ten different locations in Tallinn. Workshops were given by professional and experienced educators from the Estonian Reading Association. With funding support, the professional educators of Tallinn welcomed parents, grandparents and other caregivers to spend an afternoon exploring the topics of reading development, reading interest, supportive attitude, environment, and activities.

Parents were given training that answered such questions as:

• How to ignite and sustain interest in reading?
• How to help a child to become a reader?
• How to support a child’s reading development?
• How to create a supportive reading environment?”

In a friendly and encouraging atmosphere adults asked questions, shared examples, listened to advice, looked at books and played literacy games. The primary message was that reading is a process and everyone will learn to read at their own pace. Educators spoke to the fact that learning to read happens best in a caring, positive, fun and enjoyable environment. Parents were advised to give their children easy access to an abundance of print material (from labels and selfwritten notes to books and magazines).

Reading Regularly to Children

The most important piece of advice was for parents to regularly read aloud to their children. Teachers emphasized that listening to captivating stories and a beautiful rich language is a major influence in igniting reading passion in many children. At the “Tallinn Reads in a Reading Nest” workshops, parents were encouraged to set an example as readers, give a child new opportunities to share thinking, spend time talking about texts, and foremost notice and comment on the progress their children are making.

According to Sirje Torim, the project coordinator and Reading Nest Mentor of the Year, parents left workshops with a better understanding of how they already support their children’s reading development at home and were given more ideas on how to do it naturally. The feedback from workshop leaders and parents was quite positive and there were requests for more workshops in future.

This article was re-published from the December 2011/January 2012 print issue of Reading Today. Get news faster--join IRA today!

Educators from all around Asia recently gathered for the 2011 Asian Literacy Conference in Penang, Malaysia. International Reading Association (IRA) Global Operations Unit staff, in conjunction with the Chair for the International Development in Asia Committee (IDAC), organized a full day leadership workshop on October 11, 2011, at the Berjaya Georgetown Hotel. The main focus of the leadership workshop was to encourage council and affiliate leaders in Asia to work on literacy leadership and capacity building activities for their organizations and to take advantage of the IRA resources available to members.

In attendance were representatives from Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand, as well as the IDAC Chair Ms. Merlene Alon from the Philippines, former board members Rizalina Labanda and Dr. Maryanne Manning, Amy Awbrey Pallangyo (Project Manager of the IRA-GLPDN project), and three members of the IRA Global Operations staff, Sakil Malik, Amy Kushner, and Elizabeth Ndungu.

The leadership workshop included various topics such as: modeling and mentoring in leadership, capacity building, and membership development. The participants were also updated on the new IRA member network Engage as well as other online resources available to IRA committees. The IDAC committee members were presented with a handbook to guide them on IRA’s online resources and a guide to IRA awards and grants.

The workshop also featured a session on work plan development and affiliate capacity building presented by the Global Operations Unit director, Sakil Malik. Amy Awbrey facilitated the session on modeling and mentoring in leadership, and former board members Rizalina Labanda and Dr. Maryanne Manning presented on IRA’s Strategic Plan, membership development, and Celebrating Literacy Leadership around the World.

Preceding the leadership workshop was the IDAC business meeting conducted by IDAC Chair Ms. Merlene Alon. Participants discussed issues concerning the national affiliates in Asia, future national and regional conferences, and promising contacts and potential new affi liates in Timor-Leste, Nepal, Iraq, and Iran.

Pictured above: Sally Labanda

Leaders from the IRA’s International Development in Asia Committee (IDAC) and IRA staff met in Penang, Malaysia

This article was re-published from the December 2011/January 2012 print issue of Reading Today. Get news faster -- join IRA today!

 

The moment has come! Registration for IRA’s 57th Annual Convention, to be held in Chicago on April 29 to May 2, 2012, is open. Register now for this exciting and unparalleled professional development opportunity by utilizing any of four convenient options including online, phone, fax, or regular mail. Housing registration for the convention is open as well. Book now to make sure you can stay at the hotel of your choice.

Engage your passion while connecting with 10,000 colleagues from around the globe and more than 500 specially selected programs to ramp up your professional repertoire and energize your classroom. As IRA President Victoria Risko explains, “This year we offer multiple thematic strands of sessions focusing on current literacy topics that include early literacy, comprehension and critical thinking, adolescent and adult literacy, instruction for English Language Learners, culturally responsive teaching, and Common Core.”

The theme for the convention is “Celebrating Teaching.” Attendees will be able to enjoy programs, institutes, workshops, and luncheons, as well as the opportunity to visit the extensive Exhibition. Details can be found on the convention website, www.iraconvention.org, as well as in the special convention preview that mailed with the latest issue of Reading Today.

Teaching Edge

Back by popular demand, the Teaching Edge Series will offer incisive and valuable teaching strategies from a variety of well known reading professionals. The lineup of outstanding presenters currently includes Regie Routman, Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell, Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey, Kelly Gallagher, Alfred Tatum, Ernest Morrell, Lori Oczkus, and Gail Boushey and Joan Moser (The 2 Sisters).

Institutes

For those interested in full day courses, IRA will be offering 18 separate institutes on Sunday, April 29 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Topics covered will include: Common Core, vocabulary, cognitive engagement, digital literacy, early literacy, language learners, content area literacy, metacognition, IRA/NCATE partnership, differentiated literacy instruction, literacy leadership, and reading research. Registration for the Institutes is available with or without annual convention registration for an additional fee.

General Sessions and Invited Speakers

At IRA Chicago, attendees will also get to hear from outstanding speakers, including Dr. Steve Perry, founder of the acclaimed Capitol Preparatory Magnet School and author of Man Up, and Ron Clark, Disney’s American Teacher of the Year, and author of The End of Molasses Classes: Getting Our Kids Unstuck—101 Extraordinary Solutions for Parents and Teachers.

Invited speakers include such luminaries as Ellin Keene, Mary Bigler, Peter Afflerbach, Valerie Ellery, Dick Allington, Beverly Tyner, Debbie Diller, and Janet Allen. They will offer insights and guidance on such compelling topics as enhancing understanding through discourse, teaching with pizzaz, formative assessment, creating strategic readers, summers and the achievement gap, literacy work stations, and the Common Core.

Authors

Once again the convention will offer ample opportunities to hear and meet well known authors of children’s and young adult book titles, both in the luncheon series and in publisher sponsored panels. Book signings will be conducted in the exhibit hall at various times throughout the convention. Consult the convention website for additional details.

Website Provides Planning Tools

Once you register, you’ll want to start planning your convention experience so that you can realize all of your personal goals for this event. To facilitate this process, you may want to use the convenient tools provided on the convention website. These include a program grid for each day, an itinerary planner, and an event search feature. There is also a special sign resource for convention speakers. Click on "Featured Video" to view the latest Convention Insider episode. In January's video, host Wes Ford talks to Douglas Fisher.

Easy Ways to Register

Online: www.iraconvention.org (Credit Card Required)

Fax: 415-239-4399 (Credit Card Required)

Phone: 888-294-9167 or 415-979-2278 (Credit Card Required)
Available M-F 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. EST

Mail: Download registration form from above website and mail with full payment to:
IRA Registration
c/o Convention Management Resources
33 New Montgomery, Suite 1100
San Francisco, CA 94105