Description
Finally, a responsible approach to reading instruction that does not require teachers to abandon everything they know about teaching students how to be literate and how to LOVE reading! Test preparation worksheets and drill and kill activities do not make children into life-long readers. Hollingworth and Drake provide research from the academic community to support the instructional strategies that are offered in this very practical book. In addition, they include stories from the field about the ways the accountability movement is influencing teaching practice and what can be done about it. These authors mix an insiders perspective on assessment research and development with a practitioners experience in achieving reading outcomes at the elementary and secondary levels. Their aim is to show how all students can be prepared for standardized tests, without teaching to the test. The key components of their approach are: 1) aligning instruction to the state or national core standards, 2) using formative assessment, 3) connecting units to real-world contexts, 4) motivating students effectively, and 5) holding on to best practice in literacy instruction. This book affirms the professionalism of the classroom teacher without vilifying standardized tests. Liz Hollingworth is a professor in the College of Education at the University of Iowa. Her research and teaching interests are centered on curriculum, leadership, and assessment. In particular, her work explores how federal school reform policies affect classroom practice. Her other books include Organization and Administration of Iowa Public and Private Schools and Complicated Conversations: Race and Ideology in an Elementary Classroom. Dr. Hollingworth grew up in San Diego, taught in Chicago and Michigan, and now lives in Iowa City with her husband, Andrew, and teenaged daughter, Emily.
