THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22nd 5:30 – 7:00p.m.
VIRTUAL (livestreamed via YouTube)
The Illinois State Board of Education has released a new statewide plan for literacy curricula and instruction.
Buyer Beware!: Avoiding the Unintended (But Predictable) Consequences of SOR Legislation [Click for PDF]
P.L. Thomas
All PK-12 teachers in our public schools—especially those who teach reading and language arts; those who work with English Language Learners; and those whose practice includes teaching content-area reading—as well as their administrators, plus those who prepare teachers, are part of this plan Illinois State Board of Education notes is designed to “guide and unify literacy efforts across the state.”
Our panel will help attendees understand the national context within which this plan was developed, along with how ISBE defines the problems in current Illinois literacy teaching. The core components of the plan, and how they will affect the curricular and instructional choices made by classroom teachers and teacher education program faculty, will be described and discussed.
One focus of the panel will be on examining critiques of the plan, what was left out, what the next steps will be for school districts, and the extent to which its provisions promote the complexity and nuances of literacy acquisition and teaching. The crucial question—What do teachers really need to support their literacy instruction? —will be considered from multiple viewpoints by the panel and attendees.
PANELISTS INCLUDE:
Dr. Marie Donovan, Associate Professor & Program Director, Early Childhood, College of Education, DePaul University
Cathy Mannen,Professional Issues Director, Illinois Federation of Teachers; Early Childhood and Literacy Teacher & Mentor
Cristina Sanchez-Lopez, Co-President Paridad Education; Bilingual, Bicultural Instructor, College of Education, DePaul University
https://www.paridad.us/cristina-lopez
Dr. Paul Thomas, Professor, Education, Furman University
This forum will build upon the Spring 2023 forum on the ‘reading wars,’ where expert panelists discussed the ‘science of reading’ as well as what we now know from research are hallmarks of effective literacy instruction. Here is the link to that forum’s recording: https://www.youtube.com/live/wlM4kOgXikU?si=4m8AzgttSKDzj-Rp
All attendees must register individually. If you register and can’t attend you will receive a recording of the forum the following week. Please share this notice and flyer with colleagues and friends.
REGISTER AT: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/coe-winter-forum-the-new-illinois-literacy-plan-tickets-803161476597
We hope to see you there!
Dr. Diane Horwitz, Coordinator Education Issues Forums
dr. p.l. (paul) thomas 