A Necessity for Success

The literacy team at my high school chose this book to read together, and it’s been insightful, informative reading. After reading countless how-to books on literacy, it’s been refreshing to read a relaxed collection of the nation’s best literacy teachers’ experiences with students and literacy.

Our group has changed how we organize our study because of this book, too. Each week, we read a new chapter–the book is designed to be read at any point, and the team decides which chapter they want to read next– and we apply a learning / discussion / writing strategy that we haven’t used yet to the chapter. Last week it was table top discussion for “Flying Blind.” This week it will be save the last word for me for “The Essence of Understanding,” and the week after that, it we’ll have a Socratic circle with Burke’s “Teaching English Language Arts in a Flat World.”

Reading a diverse collection of practicing literacy leaders has enlivened our thinking, our work, and our study. Teachers look forward to our study team, which is amazing because it’s at the end of the day, toward the end of the week. They know, however, that the book’s content will invite timely discussion, writing, listening, and thinking, and using the book to show teachers literacy strategies has made my work more effective, more interesting.
Rating: 4 / 5

ADOLESCENT LITERACY is rightfully compared to a dinner party attended by the brightest stars in literacy research. It is also similar to attending an NCTE Convention and meeting all those writers you love to read when it comes to books about teaching. Kylene Beers, Robert Probst, and Linda Rief (no lightweights themselves!) invited over 30 writer/researchers to contribute their latest thoughts on the conundrum of literacy in the 21st century. The result? Let’s just say you’ll be too satisfyingly full to bother with dessert.

The book offers neat features that enhanced its reading. Their are the usual sidebars highlighting key text, but also commentary by the editors, who lead you to other chapters where other writers tackle similar topics. Thus, if you have a key interest, you will be able to jump about the book with ease and compare the different takes offered by various writers. I also liked how each chapter provided a list of books written by the chapter’s author; if you really liked a particular chapter, you could therefor seek out more complete information in the form of a book. Web sites are also provided in this text, and most of them are from established (and, for teachers, practical) sites. We all the know the dangers in publishing web site addresses — they go dead in no time.

This is not just theory you’ll be reading — there are lots of practical ideas as well. Probst’s chapter gives ideas on how to encourage meaningful discussion, and even grade it. Janet Allen shows you how to teach vocabulary effectively. Tom Romano gives tips on joining your students in the writing process. And Harvey Daniels writes a hilarious chapter on the brutal lessons learned from taking home 100 journals to respond to (sounded good in theory until the journals held his weekend hostage!). The whole gamut is covered — working with emerging technologies, using the power of inquiry through key questions (provided), helping underachieving students, learning from assessment so your teaching can change and improve based on the data, etc. The dessert (I was only kidding — I couldn’t resist) comes in the form of an afterword by Nancie Atwell.

Overall, it’s like a “Greatest Hits” book. Instead of buying 30 separate books that would take weeks and weeks to read, you get a chapter each from what these stars in the field of reading and writing literacy feel is MOST important for you to know. Add it to your “must have” list, read it, then share it with fellow teachers, English department heads, and your principal. As the book reminds us: “The times, they are a-changin’,” and if you don’t change with them, you’ll be left in the proverbial dust.
Rating: 5 / 5