Shanahan on Literacy

Explore the complexities of accommodating reading challenges in children. The discussion emphasizes the importance of maintaining reading instruction rather than replacing it with listening comprehension. Delve into the pros and cons of supporting students with dyslexia, highlighting the need for balance in their literacy development. The conversation invites listeners to consider how best to empower children facing reading difficulties.

Should we be teaching syllabication? Some schemes for this are pretty time consuming. Is that kind of investment worthwhile? And, if we do teach students to break words into syllables what is the best way to do that and what should we teach them? This podcast will explore these issues.

This podcast explores the role that print awareness plays in learning to read. It sorts out the skills that matter from those that do not and explains how the essential ones can be best taught.

There is strong research that supports the idea of teaching students to recognize and use text structure to understand and remember the information from text. Accordingly, reading comprehension lessons often focus on teaching story structure and multiple expository text structures, too. But are those really always the best organizational plans to focus on. This podcast argues for some more content focused approaches.

Teachers are shifting from teaching at students' instructional levels to focusing on grade-level texts. The discussion highlights the importance of challenging students with complex materials. Listeners learn effective strategies for supporting struggling readers, such as scaffolding and pre-teaching vocabulary. Engaging students becomes a key theme, emphasizing how to build their confidence and improve reading skills with appropriate support. A fresh perspective on literacy empowers educators to rethink traditional approaches.

The podcast dives into the media's role in shaping reading education, critiquing its influence on literacy reform. It highlights the disparity in expertise among reading science authorities and the potential misinformation that can arise. Misconceptions about diverse linguistic backgrounds are challenged, emphasizing the need for evidence-based phonics instruction. Finally, it underscores the necessity for educators and journalists to rely on robust data rather than subjective opinions to enhance literacy outcomes.

School districts want higher test scores. Each year they promote programs of test preparation. Teachers are required to reduce the amount of reading instruction that they provide in the hopes that these efforts will make everybody look good whether the kids can read well or not. This podcast explores what it would take to end up with higher scores which reflect improved reading ability.

Each year, I identify regional, national, and international charities that support children's literacy. Only the highest rated charities are noted. This podcast identifies those charities, explains their good work, and points out how these organizations might help your schools and your children.

This podcast explains the three-cueing approach and why it is not a good idea for instruction. But several states have passed laws or formulated regulations prohibiting the practice. Is that a good idea? Tune in to find out the answer to that question.

Research continues to accumulate indicating that digital text is not comprehended as well as paper text, and some studies suggest that the use of digital texts with kids may stunt their comprehension ability. This podcast explores those studies and draws a surprising conclusion.