Extraordinary K–12 teachers show us what social equity literacy teaching looks like and how it advances children's achievement. Chapters identify six key dimensions of social equity teaching that can help teachers see their students' potential and create conditions that will support their literacy development. Serving students well depends on understanding relationships between race, class, culture, and literacy; the complexity and significance of culture; and the culturally situated nature of literacy. It also requires knowledge of culturally responsive practices, such as collaborating with and learning from caregivers, using cultural referents, enacting critical and transformative literacy practices, and seeing the capacities of English Language Learners and children who speak African American Language.

Using assessment systems to improve student outcomes requires shared understanding and collaboration among education stakeholders at multiple levels. Assessment Education: Bridging Research, Theory, and Practice to Promote Equity and Student Learning presents a powerful call to action for an assessment system that advances equity and offers educators practical applications that promote sound instructional decision making. Each section outlines a research-based approach that supports classroom teaching and student learning. We then draw on the expertise of various education leaders (most notably members of the National Taskforce on Assessment Education) to provide case studies of on-the-ground examples of what these strategies look like in different settings. Every chapter includes stories from the field from various perspectives—teachers, principals, district administrators, and other educational leaders. We conclude with reflection questions that provide an opportunity for readers to examine how the chapter connects to their own context.

Today's students use their digital expertise and the power of their voice to respond to issues of inequity in society. It is essential that teacher educators develop their own racial literacies and those of their preservice and classroom teachers to support student digital activism. From talking about race and racism to resisting the harmful narratives that circulate online but impact face-to-face interactions in the classroom, teacher educators must navigate sociotechnical spaces with a critical lens and develop strategies to help their preservice teachers do the same. This book is designed to increase educators' capacity and agency to respond to inequities that plague our educational system. The authors provide a framework to help readers rethink how curriculum and pedagogy impact classroom instruction. In Advancing Racial Literacies in Teacher Education, Price-Dennis and Sealey-Ruiz provide theoretical and practical entry points into a conversation about race in the digital age that aim to increase equity in schools and better prepare teachers entering the U.S. school system. Book Features: Provides examples of how racial literacy can be fostered in teacher education programs. Offers reflection questions designed to assess the status of racial literacy in both teacher education programs and K-12 classrooms. Helps educators develop curricula that leverage multimodal ways of cultivating racial literacy. Offers a conceptual model of racial literacy for the digital age that advances civic engagement for equity in education. Focuses on pedagogical practices that support racial literacy development in teacher education. Includes a Foreword by Jabari Mahiri and an Afterword by Rebecca Rogers, leading scholars in the field of racial literacy.

Drawing on sociocultural theories of learning, this book examines how the everyday language practices and cultural funds of knowledge of youth from non-dominant or minoritized groups can be used as centerpoints for classroom learning in ways that help all students both to sustain and expand their cultural and linguistic repertoires while developing skills that are valued in formal schooling. Bringing together a group of ethnographically grounded scholars working in diverse local contexts, this volume identifies how these language practices and cultural funds of knowledge can be used as generative points of continuity and productively expanded on in schools for successful and inclusive learning. Ideal for students and researchers in teaching, learning, language education, literacy, and multicultural education, as well as teachers at all stages of their career, this book contributes to research on culturally and linguistically sustaining practices by offering original teaching methods and a range of ways of connecting cultural competencies to learning across subject matters and disciplines.

A step-by-step guide to developing equitable literacy instruction by adapting curriculum to support diverse learners. In Teaching with Literacy Programs, Patricia A. Edwards, Kristen L. White, Laura J. Hopkins, and Ann M. Castle present a model that allows educators to address educational inequity through the critical and adaptive use of existing literacy curriculum materials. In this accessible work, they advise educators on ways to combine common classroom materials, such as basal readers and core reading programs, with instructional practices that provide high-quality, responsive instruction to all students. Edwards, White, Hopkins, and Castle credit literacy instruction as a core part of overall educational equity, and they recognize the crucial role that educators play in translating materials into instruction that benefits all learners. Here they offer teacher education in support of this essential role, deftly guiding educators through a four-part development process, CARE, an acronym for cultivating critical consciousness, analyzing materials, reconstructing curricula, and evaluating instruction reflectively to advance equity. Built upon culturally relevant, sustaining, and antiracist pedagogy, CARE enables teachers to provide literacy instruction that meets the range of needs and performance levels in classrooms, supporting students in attaining academic achievement, cultural competence, and critical consciousness. The approach outlined in this work, which can be put into immediate practice, helps educators to provide literacy instruction that builds on students' multiple literacies and reduces educational inequity.

Improve student achievement through academically focused family nights! Research confirms the link between family involvement and academic success. Yet, as student populations become increasingly diverse, educators face a daunting challenge in establishing close connections with families. Bridging School and Home Through Family Nights: Ready-to-Use Plans for Grades K-8 offers all the information, materials, and resources for planning and implementing events that build effective relationships. Drawing on their own experiences and extensive research, the authors include information on adapting events for special populations, issues around providing food and incentives, cost-saving ideas, and additional resources. Each of the book’s thirteen family night chapters is a self-contained unit that provides event procedures, needed materials, connections with national standards, and numerous reproducibles, including: • Invitations • Agendas • Sign-in sheets • Evaluation forms • Activity worksheets • Handouts • Overheads Productive family night experiences offer an enjoyable and meaningful way for schools to reach out to families and get them involved. This book is appropriate for K-8 teachers and principals or anyone in the school or district responsible for family events.

Examines factors that collectively create and sustain the present inequalities in student access to digital technologies, and discusses some of the challenges and opportunities for addressing the issue. The 15 chapters explore philosophical and sociocultural aspects of digital equity, consider the needs of particular populations of learners, and suggest organizational structures and policies for instituting systematic change. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR