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In organizing strategies and programs in pursuit of greater literacy equity, setting a goal of building "civic fluency" for all brings greater coherence, inclusivity, and genuine partnership with constituents than strategies guided predominantly by rights-based or deficit discourse. Civic fluency invites a forward-looking, inclusive discourse that expands the variety of literacies; builds on diverse strengths; and avoids some negative, if unintended, consequences of other frameworks. Using the concept of civic fluency in library programming to orient services, outreach, and advocacy can enhance the civic role of libraries and libraries' impact on literacy equity. Furthermore, this goal can, when shared across libraries (enduring institutions) and literacy nonprofits (problem-focused organizations), support more efficient, effective, and equity-oriented partnerships, allowing both libraries and literacy nonprofits to maximize their strengths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What role should libraries play to ensure citizens develop the competencies they need to fulfill their vital civic roles in our democracy? Alarms raised over widening civic knowledge gaps have prompted a renewed commitment to building more civically literate, active citizens. Like their counterparts in schools and universities, librarians teach many of the skills and dispositions that citizens need to participate in civic life. Yet their information literacy frameworks equip twenty-first century learners primarily for success in college and career, not citizenship. With schools and colleges launching new initiatives to bolster civic participation, librarians must join forces with other civic literacy proponents to empower citizens to emerge as civic agents that cocreate their future together. While the nation's great experiment in democracy undergoes a momentous test, libraries must assert their role in fostering civic literacy as central to their mission as cornerstones of democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we analyse a group of 6 and 7 year olds' interactions during a literacy event. We explore the complexities of their meaning-making following a read aloud of Where the Wild Things Are (Sendak 1963). Our focus is on discourses of gender/sex/uality, a term that acknowledges the complex relationship between gender, sex and sexuality, and how these discourses are enacted. Our guiding question was: How did discourses of gender/sex/uality circulate in this group of young children's multimodal and playful responses to a literacy event? By considering the relationship between reader response, play and gender/sex/uality, we gained insight into how children's responses to texts are connected to their own identities and lived experiences. We used critical multimodal discourse analysis to understand the children's meaning-making processes. This revealed how the children were drawing from varying scripts to inform their play and creative processes. The children referenced gender/sex/uality to collaborate, to compete and to seek inclusion or status in the group. We discuss four children who drove this collective dialogue and who guided the group's interactions. Another child's responses pushed against and evolved in tandem with the emerging consensus. This study deepened and expanded our consciousness of children's enactments of gender/sex/uality and how such enactments reinforced heteronormativity. The children's artefacts, actions and talk are testimony of dominant discourses that guided and ultimately led them to adopt storylines that aligned with heteronormative scripts. Our analysis of how the children's responses unfolded revealed how power asymmetries were reinforced and hegemonic ideologies persisted. Understanding the influences of social norms during interactive literacy events may help educators create opportunities for all learners to write themselves into these events and classroom interactions more broadly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Argumentation is a fundamental communicative ability that children develop over time through formal schooling and daily practice with peers and family members. Literature on children's argumentation appears to have focused on their social interactions out of school, clinical environment, or informal pedagogic contexts. Even though there are research inquiries into children's argumentation in formal academic learning, many have been focused on argumentative writing in math or science classes. Much less is known about teacher-led argumentation and the youngest children's emerging argumentation in language art classes, where argumentation is formally and systematically introduced and learned. This paper reports a year-long ethnographic study on argumentation in a first-grade English language art classroom in the United States. Ethnographic discourse analysis was conducted to analyze two key literacy events from the daily reader's and writer's workshop. It is supplemented with qualitative analysis of the researchers' field notes and the students' artifacts. Our findings highlight the inherent intertextual nature of children's argumentation and a critical role the teacher played in eliciting and steering the children's argumentation construction through strategic instructional conversations (especially accountable talk). Our findings also revealed teacher-led children's intertextual argumentation as a powerful heuristic process and tool to enrich students' learning. The paper concludes some classroom argumentation teaching practices based on the research findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inspired by research in language play and linguistic ethnography, this article examines children's language play in early childhood education and care (ECEC) as a locally situated generic practice created through children's semiotic repertoires. The article is based on video-recorded linguistic ethnographic fieldwork in a Danish day care centre. By analysing two play sequences with 3–4 year old children, we examine how the children align to each other in an improvised way while co-creating social worlds. The multimodal micro-ethnographic analysis reveals how an assemblage of chunks of language, musicality, movements, affect and materiality is constitutive of children's language play, and how language play appears as an integral part of children's local language practices. The children's use of a broad range of semiotic repertoires in language play represents a unique practice that might enhance our theoretical and empirical understanding of child language. We argue that empirical insight into children's language play has the potential for developing paths to language and literacy that challenge the often highly prioritised 'precursors to literacy' strategy as the central aim for language learning in ECEC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores and displays some of the literacy events taking place in the context of early childhood education in Sweden. More specifically, the literacy events are part of the educational practices in the atelier of Reggio Emilia inspired preschools in Sweden. As parts of an ethnographic study of aesthetic activities, including digital technology, these literacy events awoke the researcher's interest. The literacy events are analysed from a sociocultural perspective reinforced by the use of multimodal theory. The results show how the literacy events in the ateliers become playful explorations. The children use the atelier's specific cultural and social potentiality to explore and develop written and oral language as part of the visual and aesthetic literacy practices taking place there. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Adoption of sustainable investing exchange-traded funds is shaped by various factors. • Insurance companies and pension funds with positive effects. • Also supporting impact of stock markets, new technologies and financial development. • Lesser importance of the financial motives. • In case of mutual funds and institutional variables results are mixed. Despite the growing interest in various topics related to sustainable (ESG) investing, some issues remain understudied, such as the determinants of their utilization at the macro level. This paper contributes to the state of knowledge two-directionally. First, it shows the development of sustainable investing exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in European countries. Second, it traces the significant determinants of adopting sustainable investing/ESG ETFs in Europe. More specifically, we aim to determine which financial, technological, social or institutional factors have the most significant impact on the growth of levels and over-time dynamics of the sustainable investing ETFs. The empirical sample covers five European economies: France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom and the period of the analysis is 2006–2020. Adopting panel regression analysis, we investigate twenty different variables that potentially impact the development of sustainable investing ETFs across examined countries. Our results confirm the positive effects of the development of insurance companies and pension funds for the assets of the ESG ETFs. Also, factors such as stock markets development, ICT adoption, financial access and literacy, and the prevalence of tertiary-level education demonstrate a positive impact on ESG ETFs. The role of the financial performance and tax levels resulted in being neutral, thus indicating the lesser importance of the financial motives in relation to the other factors. The results were mixed in the case of the mutual funds and institutional variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the effects of education system types and characteristics on changes in the distributions of literacy and numeracy skills during the upper secondary phase of education and training. Whereas there is a substantial literature on system effects on skills during the primary and lower secondary phases of education, much less has been written about these effects in relation to the upper secondary phase. This article reports on research using quasi-cohort data for 15-year-olds in PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) and 18- to 20-year-olds in the Survey of Adult Skills to test the effects of a range of system indicators on changes in skills distributions during the upper secondary phase. Consistent with some dominant theories, our difference-in-difference analysis identifies a range of system characteristics associated with skills inequality reduction in upper secondary education and training, which relate to 'system standardisation' and 'parity of esteem', and which can explain why some 'system types' are more effective than others in reducing skills inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the response of two students in the Southwestern United States with autism spectrum disorder and IQ in the intellectual disability range to a comprehensive, text-based reading intervention. The intervention, Friends on the Block, includes multiple strands of literacy providing explicit instruction in phonics, phonemic awareness, high-frequency irregular or temporarily irregular words, decoding, vocabulary, oral language, and comprehension. Multiple supports for students with intensive needs are embedded within the intervention, such as specially designed multi-criteria books, extensive scaffolding, and intensive cumulative review. Teachers customize the program to address the varying needs of students. We used single-case multiple baselines across levels of instruction design to assess growth on a measure of reading (words read correctly). Results indicated a positive, functional relation between reading intervention and word reading. Both students also demonstrated modest growth on measures of phonemic awareness, letter–sound knowledge, and word identification from pre- to post-intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In early childhood classrooms, increased pressures to prioritize literacy acquisition skills have shifted learning environments from more open-ended and exploratory to regulatory in nature particularly in the field of literacy. Despite that research suggests the important role of exploratory and agentic literacy practices, the field is experiencing an ever greater resurgence on reading acquisition skills at all costs. In this research, the ethic of care framework (Noddings, 1988) is explored alongside understandings of agency during a year-long study of literacy interactions in a second grade classroom. Specifically, this research explores how incorporating discussions of agency are vital when planning for literacy instruction that embodies an ethic of care, especially in today's highly charged early childhood landscape. Using sociocultural understandings of agency, students and their teacher engaged in discourse rooted in embodied knowledge to carve spaces for agency in their classroom. Analysis focused on the interplay between agency and an ethic of care. This study underlines the complexity of student agency in literacy practices, the considerations in which spaces for agency can occur, and proposes a conceptualization of an ethic of care alongside of agency that can work to support young learners. Findings highlight the role of care as a tangible framework to infuse the literacy curricula with agentic opportunities for young students. Implications for research and practice in early childhood settings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On February 2 2023, one of the guiding lights in the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) for more than four decades, David E. Yoder, passed away at the age of 90. A voracious reader and gifted storyteller, David was particularly fond of a quote from George Bernard Shaw's Back to Methuselah, "You see things; and you say 'Why?' but I dream things that never were; and I say 'Why not?'" That vision led him to take on multiple leadership roles and influence the field of AAC in multiple ways. He played a pivotal role in establishing both the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ISAAC) and the United States Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (USSAAC). Additionally, he chaired the panel for the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR)'s inaugural Consensus Validation Conference on AAC, advocated for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association to recognize AAC within the profession's scope of practice, and served as the first editor for the Augmentative and Alternative Communication journal. In this tribute, we describe David's diverse and unique contributions to improving the lives of people with communication challenges with a focus on some of his central insights and actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Literacy skills can assist in the navigation and enjoyment of adult life. For individuals who have reached adulthood without strong literacy skills, opportunities for continued literacy learning are few. Redesigning AAC technologies to support literacy skill development could extend literacy learning opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities who have limited speech. The current preliminary study evaluated an AAC technology feature designed to support literacy development. The study used a multiple probe across participants design. Three adults with Down syndrome who had limited speech and only basic decoding skills participated. Results suggest the participants made modest gains in decoding accuracy after interacting using the AAC app with the literacy supportive feature, though performance was highly variable. Results also offer emerging evidence that, for two participants, some generalization to encoding performance may have also been achieved. Results showed that, for all the participants, interacting using the literacy supportive feature increased their reading confidence. Altogether, the study's results show preliminary evidence that the feature can support adults with Down syndrome in their ongoing literacy learning, though access to formal instruction is still critical. Future research is needed to continue to explore this and other AAC technology redesigns to increase learning opportunities for the people who use the technology every day to communicate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of identity has been used to interrogate a wide range of topics about children's learning in the content areas, including learning in literacy, math, and science. Despite this, there is a paucity of attention to how the construct of identities is conceptualized across content areas. This systematic integrative review aims to develop an empirically grounded view of how identities are conceptualized in childhood across content areas and to consider the feasibility of a shared conception of content area identities. To do this, the review examines 66 articles on content area identities in early childhood and childhood (birth through Grade 5). Findings show diverse theories are used to examine content area identities in children and at the same time significant consensus in the underlying assumptions about what content area identities are and how they develop. These findings suggest that researchers move away from the current siloed approach to content area identity research and toward a more connected field of study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We conducted a meta-analysis to investigate reading-writing relations. Beyond the overall relation, we systematically investigated moderation of the relation as a function of linguistic grain size (word reading and spelling versus reading comprehension and written composition), measurement of reading comprehension (e.g., multiple choice, open-ended, cloze), and written composition (e.g., writing quality, writing productivity, writing fluency, writing syntax), and developmental phase of reading and writing (grade levels as a proxy). A total of 395 studies (k = 2,265, N = 120,669) met inclusion criteria. Overall, reading and writing were strongly related (r =.72). However, the relation differed depending on the subskills of reading and writing such that word reading and spelling were strongly related (r =.82) whereas reading comprehension and written composition were moderately related (r =.44). In addition, the word reading-spelling relation was stronger for primary-grade students (r =.82) than for university students/adults (r =.69). The relation of reading comprehension with written composition differed depending on measurement of reading comprehension and written composition—reading comprehension measured by multiple choice and open-ended tasks had a stronger relation with writing quality than reading comprehension measured by oral retell tasks; and reading comprehension had moderate relations with writing quality, writing vocabulary, writing syntax, and writing conventions but had weak relations with writing productivity and writing fluency. Relations tended to be stronger when reliability was higher, and the relation between word reading and spelling was stronger for alphabetic languages (r =.83) than for Chinese (r =.71). These results add important nuances about the nature of relations between reading and writing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic empowerment (EE) services promote survivors' economic stability and well-being. A target for intervention and prevention, then, is to offer more effective EE services. The study purpose was to develop a clearer picture of what EE services agencies offer, and how prepared staff are to provide these services. We collected data from 154 providers. Survivors most requested, and agencies most frequently provided, housing services. EE services offered did not differ by agency location, staff size, or number of clients. Providers' confidence was greater if they completed high school; their agency offered more EE services; and they completed voluntary training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We conducted a study on a local scale targeting the relationship of economic capital, cultural capital, young people's literacy, numeracy achievements, and the school-to-work transition. We investigated whether participation rates by very young children in early childhood education (ECE) may mediate the historical effects of economic and cultural capital. We analysed longitudinal data from a high-quality national database that included information from 103 Italian provinces. We used structural equation modelling (SEM), multi-sample SEM to investigate spatial inequalities, and mediation analyses. Vector Autoregression models were estimated to determine the temporal trend and the relationship occurring between economic capital and ECE. Results indicate that economic capital is associated with young people's literacy and numeracy achievements and with the NEET rate, with only partial mediation played by the rate of participation in ECE. The association of cultural capital on the NEET rate is near to significance, but it is strongly mediated by participation in ECE. Together, these results imply that the rate of participation in ECE in the Italian provinces may mediate the effect of cultural capital, but only partly that of economic capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The importance of health literacy (HL) and digital health literacy (e-HL) in promoting healthy behavior and informed decision making is becoming increasingly apparent. This study aimed to assess the effects of HL and e-HL on the quality of life (QoL) of men who underwent radical prostatectomy (RP) for localized prostate cancer. Materials and methods: This prospective observational study included 104 patients who underwent RP for localized prostate cancer. HL and e-HL were evaluated using the validated eHealth Literacy Scale and European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire Short Form before RP. We evaluated patients' physical, psychological, social, and global QoL using the validated EORTC QLQ-C30 8 weeks after RP. The exclusion criterion was any difficulties in language and comprehension. We employed one-way ANOVA to compare continuous variables across groups in univariate analysis and used MANOVA for exploring relationships among multiple continuous variables and groups in the multivariate analysis. Results: Multivariate analyses showed that poorer e-HL and HL were associated with being older (p = 0.019), having less education (p < 0.001), and not having access to the internet (p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis revealed significant associations between improved e-HL (p = 0.043) and HL (p = 0.023), better global health status, and higher emotional functioning (p = 0.011). However, the symptom scales did not differ significantly between the e-HL and HL groups. Conclusion: Our study showed a positive association between self-reported HL/e-HL and QoL, marking the first report on the impact of HL/e-HL on the QoL in men who underwent RP for clinically localized prostate cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS) is the recommended treatment for renal stones up to two cm in size. As digital health literacy (e-HL) has become increasingly important in promoting informed health decisions and healthy behaviors, it is necessary to investigate its impact on RIRS treatment outcomes. We aimed to explore the influence of patients' e-HL level on their postoperative quality of life (QoL). We conducted an observational prospective study of 111 patients who underwent RIRS for renal pelvis stones. Before RIRS, we evaluated patients' e-HL using the electronic health literacy scale (eHEALS). QoL was evaluated using the five-level EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L) one month after RIRS. SFR was determined by a negative CT scan or asymptomatic patients with stone fragments < 3 mm. Adult individuals aged 18 years or older with typical calyceal anatomy met the eligibility criteria for enrollment. Exclusion criteria for the study included patients with ureteric stones, anomalous kidneys, or bilateral renal stones. The relationship between patients' QoL and stone-free rate was explored using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. The mean stone burden was 14 ± 3 mm (6–19 mm). The overall SFR was 83.3% after one month. The median EQ-5D-5L utility index and VAS score were 0.826 (0.41–1) and 70 (20–100) respectively, for the overall population. We found that poorer e-HL was associated with being older (p = 0.035), having less education (p = 0.005), and not having access to the internet (p < 0.001). A significant difference was observed between patients with sufficient e-HL and patients with limited e-HL in the self-care (p = 0.02) and anxiety/depression (p = 0.021) dimensions. To date, no study has examined the impact of patients' e-HL levels on postoperative QoL in patients undergoing RIRS. This study also revealed that e-HL levels in patients undergoing RIRS were related to postoperative QoL, especially self-care and anxiety/depression dimensions, whereas there was no relationship between them and SFR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Low-quality data presents a significant challenge for community health workers (CHWs) in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Mobile health (mHealth) applications offer a solution by enabling CHWs to record and submit data electronically. However, the barriers and benefits of mHealth usage among CHWs in informal urban settlements remain poorly understood. This study sought to determine the barriers and benefits of mHealth among CHWs in Banda parish, Kampala. Methods: This qualitative study involved 12 key informant interviews (KIIs) among focal persons from Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) and NGOs involved in data collected by CHWs, and officials from the Ministry of Health (MOH) and two mixed-sex Focused Group Discussions (FGDs) of CHWs from Banda parish, Kampala district. Data analysis utilised Atlas Ti Version 7.5.7. Thematic analysis was conducted, and themes were aligned with the social-ecological model. Results: Three themes of institutional and policy, community and interpersonal, and individual aligning to the Social ecological model highlighted the factors contributing to barriers and the benefits of mHealth among CHWs for iCCM. The key barriers to usability, acceptability and sustainability included high training costs, CHW demotivation, infrastructure limitations, data security concerns, community awareness deficits, and skill deficiencies. Conversely, mHealth offers benefits such as timely data submission, enhanced data quality, geo-mapping capabilities, improved CHW performance monitoring, community health surveillance, cost-effective reporting, and CHW empowering with technology. Conclusion: Despite limited mHealth experience, CHWs expressed enthusiasm for its potential. Implementation was viewed as a solution to multiple challenges, facilitating access to health information, efficient data reporting, and administrative processes, particularly in resource-constrained settings. Successful mHealth implementation requires addressing CHWs' demotivation, ensuring reliable power and network connectivity, and enhancing capacity for digital data ethics and management. By overcoming these barriers, mHealth can significantly enhance healthcare delivery at the community level, leveraging technology to optimize resource utilization and improve health outcomes. mHealth holds promise for transforming CHW practices, yet its effective integration necessitates targeted interventions to address systemic challenges and ensure sustainable implementation in LMIC contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors draw on posthumanism to expand Reggio Emilia’s pedagogical documentation techniques through a diffractive montage. Analysis of a phenomenon involving 4- and 5-year-old children singing a lullaby in a school in Seville (Spain), considers how this diffractive montage leads to a reconfiguration of the pioneering work of Reggio Emilia. The authors also contemplate the narrative of relationships, intra-actions and literacies materialised in this posthumanist diffraction of Reggio Emilia. The diffractive montage sheds light on the new material relations in the phenomenon to enable an expansion of the relational perspective of Reggio Emilia. Throughout this process, learning/play, observer/observed and human/non-human binaries dissolve which troubles the ontological premise of humanistic research. In the diffractive montage epistemic injustice relating to childhood literacies emerges, and so does the imperative to map their multiple familiarities from a de/colonising perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the analysis of the life histories of buraku women in the latter half of the 20th century, this paper explores the empowering potential of literacy classes and other educational activities. The paper focuses on the case study of Yamamoto Eiko, a woman born in the pre-war period in a poor buraku family in Kyoto who dedicated her adult life to the literacy movement and education. To have a deeper understanding of how multiple, interconnected factors such as buraku discrimination, poverty and gender have impacted buraku women’s life experiences, the paper adopts an intersectional perspective to look at education as a specific field of discrimination. I argue that literacy can become a tool for empowerment both on a personal level, making women more independent and raising their self-esteem, and on a societal level because it allowed them to participate more actively in the liberation movement and advocate for women’s needs. Still, buraku women’s experiences reveal the deep-rooted patriarchal social structure inside buraku communities and the gender discrimination they encountered inside the liberation movement itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe manuscript describes Chinese immigrant children’s literacy and identity in online and in-person Chinese heritage language classrooms. The theoretical perspectives on multimodality and positioning theory are utilized as theoretical perspectives. The data were collected with the same heritage language teacher and the students during the COVID-19 and post-pandemic. Data sources included field notes based on observations, video recordings of class conversations, and interviews with the teacher. The findings present similar and different patterns in relation to multimodal literacy activities in both online and in-person settings. The findings also show that the students’ identities shifted in these settings. Implications include offering more multimodal activities for immigrant children in both settings in the post-pandemic period, providing more digital tools and resources for the children, and calling more attention from funding agencies to support heritage language education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topic: The COVID‐19 pandemic affected adolescents' physical and psychological health. There must be specific services to cater to the needs of adolescents during COVID‐19 in Indonesia. Lessons learned from previous pandemics will be beneficial for nurses and other health professionals to prepare services for future pandemics. Purpose: This mixed‐method study aimed to examine 459 Indonesian adolescents' health, literacy, preventive measures, and preferred health services during the COVID‐19 pandemic. This study also examines sociodemographics, respondent characteristics, health information sources, and media choices. Results: A total of 47.5% of adolescents knew about COVID‐19, 26.8% experienced physical health changes, and 61.7% considered wearing masks. Adolescent health information came from teachers (26.6%) and the Internet (32.9%). Psychological changes showed 67.8% irritation. Indonesians preferred online counseling (53.8%) and WhatsApp (45.8%) for pandemic health services. COVID‐19 literacy did not affect physical or mental health (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Most adolescents reported mental and physical health changes during COVID‐19. Our data suggest that adolescents' strong COVID−19 knowledge did not prevent anxiety and other psychological difficulties. The longitudinal studies could be utilized if pandemic demands social and physical distance. The government, as well as nurses, might utilize WhatsApp‐based remote online treatment for health services. Key points: Adolescents experienced physical and psychological changes during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Irritability is the most common change. There was no correlation between COVID‐19 literacy and physical and psychological wellness.Adolescents preferred online counseling and WhatsApp counseling as part of health services during the COVID‐19 pandemic.If there is a recurrence of a pandemic that necessitates social distancing, akin to COVID‐19, the government should contemplate including remote online counseling through WhatsApp as a component of their healthcare services delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the discussion on framework for culturally and historically responsive literacy (HRL) can be used to design socially just and inclusive literacy instruction for multilingual adolescents. Topics include adaptation of HRL for multilingual learners, the integration of students' cultural and linguistic strengths into teaching practices, and strategies for fostering bilingual identities and literacy skills.

This evaluation study explored a two-year literacy reform effort in a school district with 10 of its 13 elementary schools in the improvement process. Schools were placed in three groups. Group 1 (four schools, 80 teachers) implemented new instructional practices in Year 1 and then added a new curriculum. Group 2 (four schools, 102 teachers) changed both the pedagogy and curriculum for both years. Group 3 (five schools, 107 teachers) did not make any changes in Year 1 and then implemented both components. After propensity score matching students, reading scores were analyzed with three-level change score models. Results suggested that two years of the combined reforms generally were effective at improving students' oral reading fluency, and two years of the pedagogical changes were effective at improving students' performance on a computer-adaptive test of overall reading ability. However, improvements on the computer-adaptive test as well as the state reading test were small, which might reflect the stability in reading comprehension found in other studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For years, educational practitioners and decision-makers have encouraged teachers to implement a balanced literacy approach in class. However, the effects of balanced literacy on the reading comprehension of students from different backgrounds have not been carefully examined in the current literature. Using the large data sets from the 2016 International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), this study examines the effects of balanced literacy on the performance in getting direct information and interpreting skills of native-English speakers and English Language Learners (ELLs). This study indicates that teacher-directed activities benefited 4th-grade native- English speakers and ELLs' reading outcomes in getting direct information and interpreting skills. However, the other components of balanced literacy, including student-centered instructions and independent learning activities, could not contribute to 4th-grade students' reading performance in getting direct information and interpreting skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study extends the research on the preschool home literacy environment (HLE) in the context of the family risk (FR) of reading disability (RD) by examining a multiple-deficit model of RD. A total of 1,171 six-year-old Norwegian children were assessed at school entry, the onset of formal reading instruction in Norway. Their parents completed a questionnaire regarding their own RD, education, and the HLE. The final sample after applying the inclusion criteria was 794 children and their parents. The findings suggest, first, that two HLE factors (access to print and reading-related activities) should be distinguished rather than treated as a single factor (“exposure to print”) as the majority of previous studies have done. This finding suggests a three-factor HLE model that includes parents’ reading interests and habits, reading-related activities, and access to print. Second, family risk of RD is related to some extent to the HLE, even after controlling for parents’ education. Third, children’s experiences in their home environments and their emergent literacy may not be independent of their family risk of RD. More importantly, this study highlights the potential protective role of the HLE, especially when there is a history of RD within the family. The reason is that the positive association between the HLE and children’s code-related emergent literacy remains significant when controlling for family risk of RD (access to print → emergent literacy: 0.39 [0.01, 0.68], p < 0.01; reading-related activities → emergent literacy: 0.37 [0.02, 0.35], p < 0.01; parents’ reading interests and habits → emergent literacy: 0.26 [0.001, 0.15], p < 0.01). This finding supports that children’s emergent literacy can be improved via a modifiable, dynamic factor such as the HLE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the nature of young children's literacy interest, the predictability of literacy interest for early literacy skills, and gender differences in literacy interest using a sample of Head Start children (N = 263). Literacy interest was compared across parent-, teacher-, and child-reported measures of literacy activity participation and enjoyment. Results showed parents rated their children's literacy interest higher than teachers and preschoolers. Multilevel regression analyses found that teacher and parent reports, especially teacher-reported literacy participation and parent-reported literacy enjoyment, significantly predicted early literacy skills in the fall and spring of a school year. Further analysis demonstrated gender differences in literacy interest and gender by literacy interest interaction effects. Girls scored higher in literacy interest than boys, and teacher-reported literacy participation predicted children's fall literacy skills more for boys. However, spring literacy skills were predicted more strongly for girls by teacher-reported literacy participation, parent-reported literacy enjoyment, and child-reported literacy enjoyment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa has low literacy levels and teachers face multiple challenges in their endeavours to elevate levels of literacy. This is especially prevalent in rural and township schools where teachers face the additional challenges of isolation, limited resources and access to professional development. This article reports on the findings and learning from a preliminary research study which piloted a handheld mobile phone App. This collaborative project, between a university in KwaZulu‐Natal and one in England, aimed to support in‐service and preservice teachers in rural and township settings to use the App to assess and match books to learners' (aged 9–12) stage of reading development in order to facilitate their independent reading and provide teachers with a range of strategies for teaching comprehension that could supplement other professional development available. In‐service teachers (n = 120) and preservice teachers (n = 93) took part in this mixed‐methods study. The main finding from the study was that whilst participants were positive about the App, many did not access the App independently. This article discusses the broader issues, including participants' foundational knowledge and literacy research participation considerations, that may have underpinned this finding in this collaborative Global North and South research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reading for Pleasure (RfP) acknowledges the importance of reader engagement and the role of the teacher as a reader of children's literature. The foundational work of the Teachers as Readers (TARs) programme successfully illustrated the impact of RfP activities on student learning. Previous studies of teachers' reader identities have shown a strong need for professional learning to boost teachers' confidence with children's literature. However, less emphasis has been placed on the adoption of RfP pedagogy within initial teacher education (ITE) to develop pre‐service teachers' (PST) knowledge of children's literature, as well as their understanding of teachers as reading role models for future students. This paper analyses data from research into RfP undertaken in two ITE programmes for primary teachers informed by contrasting policies in Scotland and Australia. Though both countries aim to improve school student literacy success, the curriculum mandates differ, shaping the potential pathways available in ITE courses. It is within this context that we report on 3 years of data on PST reader knowledge collected from 300 students using survey tools adopted from the original TARs study. Emerging findings provide evidence that teacher educators need to act as circuit breakers to alter PST attitudes to reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study was to examine the effect of interactive radio instruction (IRI) in improving the literacy skills of out-of-school children in IDP camps in Nigeria. The study was a quasi-experiment involving 470 children who were out of school at the time of the study. The indices for measuring literacy skills included phonological skills, letter knowledge, oral comprehension and vocabulary skills. The result of the intervention showed that although all the children scored low regarding their literacy skills at pre-intervention, participants in the IRI group reported a significant improvement in their literacy skills after the intervention. A follow-up assessment was carried out after twelve months and the result showed stability in the literacy skills of participants in the IRI group while those in the control group did not improve in their literacy skills over time. Comparatively, IRI was found to be more efficient in improving literacy skills than a face-to-face learning environment. The implications of these results on learning have been highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on the qualitative findings of a mixed methods study that investigated primary school teachers' beliefs, practices and choices of resources for teaching written grammar. Qualitative data were collected from Primary teachers in Western Australia through semi-structured interviews (n = 10) and analysed thematically. Although all participating teachers reported that they saw the teaching of written grammar as important, it was found that they had insecure Pedagogical Content Knowledge about Grammar (PCKAG). This insecure knowledge base coincided with eclecticism in pedagogical practice and the choice and use of resources that were not optimal for building PCKAG, or for supporting best practices in the instruction of written grammar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health professions educators in low-and middle-income countries are often sceptical about developing online learning units. This scepticism stems from the belief that online programmes are limited in developing clinical competence, and there are concerns about digital proficiency and resource availability. A social constructivist approach in designing online work-based learning units may overcome such scepticism. In this article, we use our experience in developing an online learning unit for healthcare education to suggest 12 tips for developing online learning units in a low-and middle-income context. The tips are nested in a 'promoting theory-practice integration framework' and include context, establishing communities of learning and practice, establishing foundational knowledge, practise in a work-based environment, and showcasing attainment of learning outcomes. By integrating the guidelines and framework, healthcare educators will be better equipped to develop online learning units and contribute to learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Getting all students involved in a class can be a difficult task. Getting students excited about reading, writing, and learning can be an even more difficult task. Fortunately, using dialogues is an easy strategy that any teacher can implement in any grade in any subject area to get students up, moving, and actively engaged in the learning process. Dialogues are essentially two-person plays or skits that students act out in pairs. Each dialogue focuses on a specific topic and introduces key vocabulary terms and concepts in a way that students can understand, using day-to-day conversational language. In addition, all students love using dialogues because they appeal to various interests. The "science-y" students love the content, the lit/drama students love the format, and the class comics love the humor! AND they can be personalized and modified to meet the needs of specific students and educational goals and can be used with other strategies such as exit slips, labs, content review, and more. In short, dialogues are an easy way to create an inclusive classroom where every student is engaged and successful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores how Black teachers have used liberatory literacy practices through a lens of care when working with Black students. The prioritization of care is particularly important for Black students as they often experience a lack of care within schools due to labeling, stereotyping, and a lack of racially and culturally diverse teaching staff, curriculum, and resources. Black teachers are particularly effective in improving literacy outcomes for Black students, and this article emphasizes the importance of the care they provide in implementing culturally and historically responsive pedagogies that foster deep, meaningful learning. This article also emphasizes the funds of knowledge that Black teachers and students possess and highlights approaches that Black teachers have taken that create a warm, caring environment where Black students can thrive instead of being forced to fit into current systems that are unresponsive to Black student needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, one teacher shares her journey using decodable books with her culturally and linguistically diverse students, documenting new understandings and tensions that she has encountered. Four literacy teacher educators augment the teacher's story by connecting it with the current literature on literacy and decodable books. After reading this article, readers will walk away with a stronger understanding of how and when to use decodable books with beginning readers, as well as concrete ideas and resources to support incorporating decodable books into the early grades literacy curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Literacy instruction has an important role in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) because spelling and writing support precise communication. Unfortunately, few students with extensive support needs and complex communication needs (ESN/CCN) develop literacy skills at or above the first grade reading-level. Given that learning to read and write begins with extensive emergent literacy learning opportunities, limited skills may result from insufficient opportunity to learn (OTL) emergent literacy skills. This study examined the instruction provided in early U.S. childhood classrooms to students with ESN/CCN to understand OTL during this critical period. This study used a concurrent embedded mixed methods design integrating a survey of teachers of students with ESN/CCN (n = 26) with a qualitative multiple case study (n = 2). Results suggest the time teachers are devoting to instruction is not translating into increased OTL for individual students. Solutions that may increase learning opportunities and implications for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]