Kathy Meyer Reimer

Office: CC 115D

Phone: 535-7443

Home Phone: 533-3995

Class meeting: T, R 2:00-3:30

Tutoring clinic: T, R 3:45-4:45

At Chamberlain M, W 2:30-3:30



Course Description

A second course in the teaching of reading with an emphasis on evaluation of reading and writing and on developing strategies for working with students who are experiencing difficulty with reading and writing. Ways to prevent difficulties in learning to read at various levels of the learner's development will also be discussed.

Guiding Principles

The syllabus for this course is based on the Guiding Principles of the Education Department at Goshen College. The Principles are listed below to make links between the Guiding Principles and the syllabus explicit.

At Goshen College we seek to graduate teachers who...





1. comprehend the content disciplines to be taught so as to draw relationships a) within disciplines, b) between disciplines, and c) to students' lives.


2. build a learning community based on the diversity of students' backgrounds and the ways in which they learn by a) starting from each individual's strengths and cultural resources, b) sharing responsibility for teaching and learning, and c) advocating for alienated and powerless students.


3. flexibly employ a wide variety of teaching and evaluation strategies that enable students to make meaning of content disciplines.


4. manage a classroom effectively, incorporating principles of peacemaking, in a wide variety of settings.


5. sense a strong call to serve and to nurture students with patience and humor.


6. develop a sense of self as an educational facilitator and leader who continually reflects on her/his teaching in reference to her/his own guiding principles.








Learning Intents


1. Gain a better understanding of reading and writing processes and of the factors that may cause a learner to have difficulty with reading or with reading instruction.


2. Develop familiarity with a variety of evaluation strategies appropriate for groups and individuals and be able to use the information gained from evaluation to plan instruction.


3. Identify and plan appropriate instructional procedures and materials to meet the specific need of individual learners and be able to theoretically support this instruction.


4. Evaluate a child's current reading strengths and needs, write a reader profile and an instructional plan, implement an instructional program, and write a case report.

Readings

Cambourne, B. & Turbill, J. (1994). Responsive evaluation. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Phinney, M. Y. (1988). Reading with the troubled reader. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Routman, R. (1991). Invitations. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann

Books you might also want to consider:

Harste, J. & Short, K. (1994). Creating classrooms for authors and inquirers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Johnston, P. (1992). Constructive evaluation of literate activity. NY: Longman.

Pappas, Keifer, & Levstik. (1990). An integrated language perspective in the elementary school. NY: Longman.

Rhodes, L. & Dudley-Marling, C. (1988). Readers and writers with a difference: A holistic approach to teaching learning disabled and remedial students. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

.Other articles and chapters

Professional book for literature circle.

Course Requirements

1. Keeping up with readings and responses to those readings.

2. Successfully completing the mid-term and final.





3. Assuming a professional stance with respect to class attendance, active involvement in class, and in relating to the student you tutor and the student's family.





4. Completing a portfolio of your work with the student and in class and of your self-evaluations.





5. Tutoring a student twice a week in 1-hour sessions. This includes evaluating the student's strengths and needs, writing a reader profile, planning an appropriate instructional program and writing a case report. Tutoring will begin on the week of January 27 and end the week of March 31. Tutoring will be done in the context of the clinic.





a. Teaching log (loose-leaf notebook).


For each session you have with your child, you will make two entries: an entry before the session and an entry after the session.


Before entry -- Write about your plans for the session, including a list of materials and procedures. Always indicate why you have planned certain activities. What do you intend for the child to learn in that session? You may use the green planning forms available in the bookstore if you find them helpful.


After entry -- Write about what actually happened during the session. This should be a reflective entry, not just descriptive. Describe what happened and reflect on both your teaching decisions and on the child's responses. Write about your plans for following lessons based on the child's responses to this lesson.





During the first several weeks your after entries will summarize what you are learning through your evaluations of the student.


b. Use the following evaluation strategies with your student:


Interview of child and parents


Observation of child's classroom


Oral reading inventory/analysis of miscues


Writing sample


Other evaluation strategies as appropriate





c. Observe in your student's classroom during his/her reading period sometime in the first two weeks of tutoring--and write an entry in your teaching log summarizing that visit.





d. Complete a reader profile in which you pull together what you currently know about the student as a reader and then propose an appropriate instructional program. This is due February 18.





e. A final case report is due by April 10 and needs to be discussed with the parents by April 15. A rough draft should be submitted to me by April 8, even though you will have one tutoring session remaining. You will need 4 copies of the final report--1 to be sent to the school, 1 to give to the parent, 1 to keep on file at the college, and 1 for your own files.





f. Share with the class one activity you have made for and/or done with your student (open-ended language game board, directions for a cooking/construction project, etc.). These will be shared and handed in on March 4.





g. At the end of the class, the home report, teacher report and 1 copy of the case report needs to be turned in to be filed at the college. Keep copies of all evaluative tests, summaries, and lesson plans available for reference at the end of the term.

6. Course assignments

a. Book discussion


Choose one curriculum book on reading or writing to read with at least two other members of the class. Record your thoughts about the book as you are reading it in your journal. Plan a brief presentation to other class members on your book.





b. Reading process


Choose one readings during the term to write a journal entry that analyzes and reflects on your reading process. You are not reflecting on the content of what you read but on what you thought about and did as you read the article or chapter. You can choose to write an entry on your writing process rather than your reading process. This will be due January 16.





c. Current articles


Choose three articles in current journals on topics that interest you to read and to which you will respond (Language Arts, Reading Teacher, Reading Research Quarterly, etc.). These will be due February 7, February 25, and March 19.

Evaluation:

As this is a course in evaluation, diagnosis, and assessment it is only appropriate that the evaluation of each person is the course is a part of the learning process. You will evaluate yourself on your work both in the course and in your tutoring. These will be a part of the course portfolio.

Your portfolio should include assessments of yourself in aspects of tutoring as well as your work in the course at least four times throughout the term. You may use any sort of format that is helpful to you. I will provide self-assessment forms at least twice during the term and will also be giving you feedback. You will probably want to keep a record of the number of hours you spend preparing for tutoring as well as reading and preparing for class.

Because of the amount of this course that is involved with tutoring and the fact that there is no way to determine ahead of time what the needs of those we tutor will be, the course is based on a credit rather than letter grade plan.