Back to Basics: The Keys to Successful Literacy Instruction

Diana Fedderman, 

Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning

Palm Beach County School District

The role of a school administrator has always been that of a juggler, deftly working to keep multiple balls (literacy, math, science, learning gains) in the air. Now, toss in school security, creating a single point of entry, and managing the fears and expectations of community and parents, and keeping all those balls in the air seems like an even more daunting task. So how do we, as school and district leaders, keep the focus on our central function: teaching and learning?  The instructional core is the foundation of the school, and honing in on the literacy core actions as the building blocks is crucial to developing strong readers and writers as well as successful young adults ready for both college career.

With ever-changing educational initiatives, one of the few constants is the call of the instructional leader to set the course for academic rigor. Defining what that looks like remains the challenge. For me, and for our District’s leaders, the cornerstone has been Elmore’s instructional core. The focus on rigor cannot simply be on what the teacher is using, though high quality instructional materials are critically important. Equal emphasis must be placed on pedagogy as well as student engagement. It is at the intersection of these three elements where learning takes place. Finding that balance, though, can be tricky. Just like the principal must develop the routine that allows for a successful juggling act, so must the classroom teacher. Too much scaffolding and students become passive receivers of information; too little support and students are left to flounder with rigorous text that they can’t decipher.

If the instructional core is the foundation, then strong literacy practices are the building blocks. Though literacy instruction should be embedded within each content area, focusing on literacy instruction in the reading block at the elementary level and in the ELA and reading courses at the secondary level are the natural starting points. The difficulty arises when the administrator, who can’t be an expert in every content area, doesn’t have an instructional background in literacy. This is when it’s critical to rely on a simple structure. One that works for me is Achieve the Core’s “Core Actions.” Though many districts use the coaching tool and core actions as is, our District has modified them to meet our needs:

·         Core Action 1: High Quality Text: lessons should be focused around rigorous text(s)

·         Core Action 2: Standards-Based Tasks: text-based questions/activities/tasks are aligned to grade-level standards

·         Core Action 3: Engaged Students: all students have the opportunity to authentically engage in the work of the lesson

During the 2017-2018 school year, the emphasis on core actions was our focus. “Texts, tasks, and talk” became the mantra among district- and school-based administrators, sand success was evident in the classroom.   

As schools begin to engage in this work, there are several practices that prove useful:

·         Using PLCs (Professional Learning Communities) for collaboration is beneficial. Choosing the right instructional materials is time-consuming, difficult work. Though there are online resources to assist such as Ed Reports and Louisiana Believes, it is still demanding as teachers must consider intended standards, reading level of the text, required background knowledge, and any necessary scaffolds students will need. Having a learning community where teachers can work together to create and share their lessons and resources is critical.

·         Having a simple structure (e.g., Core Actions) and embedding that in professional development, instructional rounds, and ongoing conversations is essential. Such common language united the district around the goal of improving literacy instruction.  

·         Monitoring expectations is key. District and school administrators walked literacy classrooms looking for evidence of the core actions. Moreover, by using Google Forms to note trends, we could graph progress on the Core Actions over the course of the year.

Curricular resources can be strongly aligned to standards and teachers can be highly qualified; however, if students are not engaged in the work, our efforts may be in vain. Involving students is critical to the work that is happening in classrooms as literacy is not only the building block of the educational experience but of a successful life.

Diana Fedderman is the Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning for the School District of Palm Beach County. Diana began her career in the District as a secondary English teacher, spending fourteen years in the classroom honing her craft before leaving to work in the Department of Curriculum as a writing specialist. This is her eleventh year in the central office working to shape educational practices in the District.