Biancarosa, C., & Snow, C.E. (2006). Reading next — A vision for action and research in middle and high school literacy: A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York (2nd ed.). Washington,DC: Alliance for Excellent Education.
Direct Quote - pages 4 & 5. The Fifteen Elements of Effective Adolescent Literacy Programs
This report delineates fifteen elements aimed at improving middle and high school literacy achievement right now.
Instructional Elements
- Direct, explicit comprehension instruction, which is instruction in the strategies and processes that proficient readers use to understand what they read,including summarizing, keeping track of one’s own understanding,and a host of other practices
- Effective instructional principles embedded in content, including language arts teachers using content-area texts and content-area teachers providing instruction and practice in reading and writing skills specific to their subject area
- Motivation and self-directed learning, which includes building motivation to read and learn and providing students with the instruction and supports needed for independent learning tasks they will face after graduation
- Text-based collaborative learning, which involves students interacting with one another around a variety of texts
- Strategic tutoring, which provides students with intense individualized reading,writing,and content instruction as needed
- Diverse texts, which are texts at a variety of difficulty levels and on a variety of topics
- Intensive writing, including instruction connected to the kinds of writing tasks students will have to perform well in high school and beyond
- A technology component, which includes technology as a tool for and a topic of literacy instruction
- Ongoing formative assessment of students, which is informal,often daily assessment of how students are progressing under current instructional practices
Infrastructure Elements
- Extended time for literacy, which includes approximately two to four hours of literacy instruction and practice that takes place in language arts and content-area classes
- Professional development that is both long term and ongoing
- Ongoing summative assessment of students and programs, which is more formal and provides data that are reported for accountability and research purposes
- Teacher teams, which are interdisciplinary teams that meet regularly to discuss students and align instruction
- Leadership, which can come from principals and teachers who have a solid understanding of how to teach reading and writing to the full array of students present in schools
- A comprehensive and coordinated literacy program, which is interdisciplinary and interdepartmental and may even coordinate with out-of-school organizations and the local community
