Faculty of Humanities and Education (Postgraduate) - The University ...

POSTGRADUATE REGULATIONS & SYLLABUSES 2012 - 2013
THE FACULTY OF HUMANITIES & EDUCATION
YEAR:
SEMESTER:
COURSE CODE: EDRL 6006
COURSE TITLE: SUPERVISION AND LEADERSHIP IN
READING
NUMBER OF CREDITS: 4
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course, Supervision and leadership
in reading, is essentially about producing leaders in the field
of reading instruction. It has two principal foci: 1) supervision
of school staff responsible for implementing national and
school-based reading policies, and 2) provision of contextappropriate
leadership in issues related to reading for school
communities. These foci will be elaborated through exploration
of major issues such as below-grade-level reading performance,
reading motivation, and reader identity, as well as theories and
approaches to reading leadership, especially as they relate
to motivating staff who may not view themselves as reading
teachers. The exploration will be effected mainly through faceto-face
lectures, e-tutoring, webcasts, podcasts, and individual
and group presentations. The course aims to prepare the
participants to assume leadership and supervisory roles in
schools with respect to the teaching of reading.
Prior to taking this course, participants must complete the
following four (4) courses: Theoretical Foundations of Reading,
Reading Diagnosis, Intervention, and Assessment, ICT for Reading,
and Teaching Reading in the content Areas, all of which are Year
1 courses that provide the content basis for exploration of the
foci mentioned above.
CONTENT
The following units will be covered:
• Motivating content area teachers to be teachers of
reading.
• Creating reading cultures in schools.
• Mentoring non-specialist reading teachers.
• Initiating and supervising study circles.
• Using ICT to disseminate research on best practices.
• Developing and monitoring reading programme
accountability systems.
General Objectives
In order to achieve the goal, the participants will:
• Plan and coordinate school-wide reading projects for
constant improvement of reading in the content areas;
• Monitor classroom reading instruction for the purpose of
gathering data and providing feedback for refinement and
improvement of practice;
• Conduct on-site training seminars to empower fellowteachers
in the integration of reading instruction into their
specific content areas.
• Organise creative and effective reading environments.
Course Assessment
The assessment comprises coursework and a final examination.
Coursework (40%) will comprise
(a) A school-based research project (20%)
(b) A digital portfolio (20%).
The final examination will be of 3 hours’ duration and be worth
60% of the total marks.
Resources
Textbooks
Guth, D. N., Pettengill, S.S. (2005). Leading a successful reading
program: Administrators and reading specialists working
together to make it happen. Urbana, IL: International
Reading Association. ISBN 13 978-0-87207-579-5
Irvin, J.L., Meltzer, J., Mickler, M.J., Phillips, M., & Dean, N. (2009).
Meeting the challenge of adolescent literacy: practical
ideas for literacy leaders. Urbana, IL: International Reading
Association. ISBN 978-0-87207-689-1
Readings
Supervision and Leadership
Alger, C. L. (2007). Engaging student teachers’ hearts and minds
in the struggle to address (il)literacy in content area
classrooms. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 50,
620-630.
Baker, M.I. (2002). Reading resistance in middle school: What can
be done. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. 45 (5),
364-366.
Cavazos-Kottke, S. (2005, November). Tuned out but turned on:
boys’ (dis)engaged reading in and out of school. Journal
of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 49(3), 180–184.
Clay, M. M. (1991). Becoming literate: the construction of inner
control. Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1991
Dole, J. A. (2004). The changing role of the reading specialist in
school reform. The Reading Teacher, 57, 462-470.
Fisher, D. & Ivey, C. (2006). Evaluating the interventions for
struggling adolescent readers. Journal of Adolescent and
Adult Literacy, 50, 180-189.
Humphrey, J. W., Lipsitz, J., McGovern, J. T., & Wasser, J.D. (2005).
Reading matters: Supporting the development of young
adolescent readers. Phi Delta Kappan, Digital.
Knowles, E.; Smith, M. (1997). The reading connection: Bringing
parents, teachers, and librarians together. Englewood: Colo.
Libraries Unlimited. (Available electronically through
U.W.I. subscribed netlibrary.com).
Lenters, K. (2006). Resistance, struggle, and the adolescent reader.
Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 50, 138-146.
Lesley, M. (2005). Looking for critical literacy with post
baccalaureate content area literacy students. Journal of
Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 48, 320-333.
Snow, C. E., & Verhoeven, L. T. (2001). Literacy and motivation:
Reading engagement in individuals and groups. Mahwah,
N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc
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