In the last three decades, several strands of research have produced compelling evidence justifying a focus on the family with a particular emphasis on early years in order to raise literacy standards. Partners in Literacy is an evidence-based model which is built on these key research findings, these are: (1) Families and parents are critical to children's attainment. Parental involvement in their child's literacy practices positively affects children's academic performance and is a more powerful force for academic success than other family background variables, such as social class, family size and level of parental education; (2) The home is crucial. Parents have the greatest influence on the achievement of young people through supporting their learning in the home rather than supporting activities in school; and (3) Early intervention is vital. The earlier parents become involved in their children's literacy practices, the more profound the results and the longer-lasting the effects. Children learn long before they enter formal education. This paper looks in detail at the range of research underpinning the Partners in Literacy (PiL) model. (Contains 4 figures and 9 footnotes.) [This document was originally written by Angelica Bonci in 2008.].

Why Tutoring?: A Way to Achieve Success in School offers educators, school administrators, policymakers, parents, caregivers, and community members a practical and research-driven perspective on tutoring that links theories, research, and practice. The book examines tutoring as a viable strategy to increase academic success in education. In addition, it provides readers with information on establishing tutoring programs within educational institutions or ventures outside formal education, such as after-school study programs. It is a resource that provides stakeholders with an effective educational strategy that helps them meet the demands of twenty-first century learning challenges and enhance academic achievement of all students.

The Science of Reading: A Handbook brings together state-of-the-art reviews of reading research from leading names in the field, to create a highly authoritative, multidisciplinary overview of contemporary knowledge about reading and related skills. Provides comprehensive coverage of the subject, including theoretical approaches, reading processes, stage models of reading, cross-linguistic studies of reading, reading difficulties, the biology of reading, and reading instruction Divided into seven sections:Word Recognition Processes in Reading; Learning to Read and Spell; Reading Comprehension; Reading in Different Languages; Disorders of Reading and Spelling; Biological Bases of Reading; Teaching Reading Edited by well-respected senior figures in the field

Originally published in 1992. This book brings together the work of a number of distinguished international researchers engaged in basic research on beginning reading. Individual chapters address various processes and problems in learning to read - including how acquisition gets underway, the contribution of story listening experiences, what is involved in learning to read words, and how readers represent information about written words in memory. In addition, the chapter contributors consider how phonological, onset-rime, and syntactic awareness contribute to reading acquisition, how learning to spell is involved, how reading ability can be explained as a combination of decoding skill plus listening comprehension skill, and what causes reading difficulties and how to study these causes.

Drawing on the contributors' practical and academic experiences, this is the complete guide for those working towards successful completion of teacher inquiry-oriented courses.

Talk for Writing, developed by Pie Corbett and supported by Julia Strong, is a proven approach to teaching writing that is engaging and motivating for students and teachers alike. Building on best practice, this practical guide takes you step by step through how to establish quality written communication across the secondary curriculum. It can be used as a handbook by a literacy coordinator to lead the approach as well as being a source of practical ideas for each subject area. Every teacher can help students internalize the pattern of language of their subject through focused talk activities related to exemplar text. This enables students to independently generate the sentence patterns and structures that are key to effective communication in any subject. Julia Strong puts the experience of the learner at the centre. By establishing some consistent approaches across the curriculum, the learner can see how what they learn in one area can be transferred to support learning in another. The approach progressively builds up students' linguistic competence involving them in co-constructing the next steps they need to take to make progress. This practical resource offers: • Wide range of examples from all subject areas with a particular focus on science • Online Learning Centre with training session with teachers showing Talk for Writing in action suitable to use on training days to help introduce and embed the approach • Over 80 customisable handouts downloadable from the Online Learning Centre • Customisable PowerPoint slides to train all staff in the approach Thoroughly grounded in the principles of formative assessment, Talk for Writing if systematically applied across the curriculum really can turn secondary students into powerful communicators. Try it, it works! 'Silent classrooms do not lend themselves to progress, the Foreword to this important new book reminds us. What follows is an exceptionally well-informed and practical guide to how high quality talk can lead to high quality writing. I strongly recommend it for all teachers across all subjects'. Geoff Barton, Headteacher of King Edward VI School, Suffolk, UK, author and speaker

Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and the education of young children bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Despite the fact that they share the same objective - to nurture young children and secure their future success - the various practitioners who contribute to the care and the education of children from birth through age 8 are not acknowledged as a workforce unified by the common knowledge and competencies needed to do their jobs well. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 explores the science of child development, particularly looking at implications for the professionals who work with children. This report examines the current capacities and practices of the workforce, the settings in which they work, the policies and infrastructure that set qualifications and provide professional learning, and the government agencies and other funders who support and oversee these systems. This book then makes recommendations to improve the quality of professional practice and the practice environment for care and education professionals. These detailed recommendations create a blueprint for action that builds on a unifying foundation of child development and early learning, shared knowledge and competencies for care and education professionals, and principles for effective professional learning. Young children thrive and learn best when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning and are responsive to their individual progress. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 offers guidance on system changes to improve the quality of professional practice, specific actions to improve professional learning systems and workforce development, and research to continue to build the knowledge base in ways that will directly advance and inform future actions. The recommendations of this book provide an opportunity to improve the quality of the care and the education that children receive, and ultimately improve outcomes for children.