Rich Long, the Director of Government Relations for the International Reading Association (IRA), announced registration for three advocacy webinars scheduled this fall. His group of advocates interested in reading-related legislation, the Literacy Action Team (LAT), welcome IRA members and other interested literacy professionals to attend these free virtual seminars. 

The Literacy Action Team (LAT) Briefing Webinar will be held at 8:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday, September 20, 2011. Rich Long will present a 20-minute briefing about reading-related legislation and funding, followed by a 20-minute question and answer period. Click here to sign up for the webinar on September 20.

The International Reading Association will host a program to celebrate International Literacy Day on Thursday, September 8, 2011. Join us from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon, at 444 N Capitol St NW, Washington, DC (Room 283/285) to discuss the theme “Teachers Matter! Effective Teaching: What does it take?” 

The day’s events include coffee at 9:30 a.m., followed by an introduction by Vicki Risko, President of the International Reading Association’s Board of Directors. She will speak about the “Elements of a Good Teacher.” Then, Peggy McCardle (NICHD, Branch Chief), Karen Douglas (Institute of Education Sciences, US Dept. of Education), Matthew Tosiello (Agnes Meyer Teacher of the Year), and Carole Lockwood (Lead Teacher for Reading/Language Arts, Randolph Elementary) will present “What It Takes to Make Good Teachers and How Teachers Reach Hard-to-Reach Students.” 

Lisa Dieker follows with a teaching demonstration with the University of Central Florida (UCF) TeachME Lab Avatar Presentation. This program teaches pre-service teachers how to teach a class of diverse students. (The computer-generated students are acted in real time by a professional actor with education and psychology experience.) This allows pre-service teachers to experiment—and make mistakes—before being responsible for an actual child’s learning. As part of this demo, the audience may teach this real time virtual class. 

Finally, Richard Long, the International Reading Association’s Director of Goverment Relations, presents “Changing from a Defacto Policy of Blaming the Teacher to a Reality That Works.” 

RSVP to irawash@reading.org. Click here for more information about International Literacy Day 2011. 

At 9:30 a.m. EST on August 10, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) hosted a live panel discussion with NCES Commissioner Jack Buckley, Associate Commissioner Peggy Carr, and other educational experts to release the report Mapping State Proficiency Standards Onto NAEP Scales: Variation and Change in State Standards for Reading and Mathematics, 2005-2009.

This data analysis report compares the relative rigor of state proficiency standards in mathematics and reading for students in grades four and eight using the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) as a common yardstick. Panelists answered questions after their remarks. An archived version of the discussion and PowerPoint slides are available at http://nces.ed.gov/whatsnew/commissioner/remarks2011/08_10_2011.asp. 

Read about additional resources for understanding state proficiency standards, including frequently asked questions, and copies of past reports, at http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/studies/statemapping/. 

NAEP is a product of the National Center for Education Statistics within the Institute of Education Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Education. 

Common Core Standards 

Advocacy for Literacy

The SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium released draft content specifications in English language arts/literacy (ELA/literacy) for public comment and review. Public Review will end on August 29. Based on the Common Core State Standards, the content specifications provide a framework for the development of the SMARTER Balanced assessment system.  For more information and the feedback survey, go to:  http://www.k12.wa.us/SMARTER/Resources.aspx

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) announces its public review period for English Language Arts Standards for teachers of students ages 11 to 18+. Practicing teachers fill a majority of seats on standards committees with other members representing districts, states, and higher education. NBPTS Standards reflect the Five Core Propositions that are the foundation of National Board Certification; identify specific knowledge, skills, and attitudes that support accomplished practice, while emphasizing the holistic nature of teaching; illustrate how a teacher’s professional judgment is reflected in action; and describe how the standards come to life in different settings. English Language Arts Standards will be available for public review from July 28 to September 4. Access the standards online at http://surveymonkey.com/ELAPublicComment. Visit the NBPTS website at http://nbpts.org/the_standards/standards_committees, for information on standards development.