Online Course: Supporting Adolescent Literacy for Successful School Change
Literacy learning in secondary classrooms has become increasingly essential for students’ success in school and future opportunities. It is vital that schools effectively develop, implement, and sustain processes that significantly improve literacy levels for all students. Building a culture of literacy within classrooms, schools, and districts takes time. This course will prepare teams of educators to carefully develop a 3-5 year plan that supports a systematic, comprehensive, and programmatic approach to addressing adolescent literacy. The course will also offer an opportunity to explore how the Strategic Instruction Model can foster dialogue, organize teams to solve challenges, and cultivate a literacy-rich culture within secondary schools.
Who Should Participate
This course is specifically designed for teams from schools or districts who can use data to make informed decisions about infrastructure, curriculum, and professional development. Recommended team sizes range from a minimum of three to a maximum of seven participants. Examples of potential team members include:
District Curriculum Directors
Special Education Directors
School Administrators
Interventionists
School Improvement Team Members
Literacy Coaches/Consultants
Course Content
The six units contained in the course cover the critical components of adolescent literacy and successful school change.
Part I:
Unit 1: The “Why” of Successful School Change
Unit 2: Developing Infrastructure
Unit 3: The Plan-Do-Study-Act Cycle: Part 1 - Plan and Do
Part II:
Unit 4: The Plan-Do-Study-Act Cycle: Part 2 – Study and Act[1]
Unit 5: Professional Development
Unit 6: SIM As an Agent of School Change
Do we need to number the three units in Part II as 1, 2, & 3 or keep as 4, 5, & 6?
About the Course
Dates: Rolling Registration at your convenience
This course has two parts, each with three units, available through the Canvas Learning Management System. Part 1 includes a 45-minute to one-hour introductory session followed by three unit sessions. These units involve live group sessions to promote discussion about adolescent literacy and practical challenges. Each of the three sessions will be paired with independent study assignments, giving teams extra time to process and tailor the content to their needs. Resources such as handouts, articles, website references, and videos are provided throughout each unit. The dates and times for each session will be scheduled later, with our team working to accommodate participants' specific needs.
Registration:
- Course Price:
- Registering for either Part 1 or Part 2 -$950.00/team (2-6 people per team)
- Registering for BOTH Parts - $1850.00/team (2-6 people per team)
- Participants will receive the following materials as part of their registration:
- Access to the course on Canvas
- Certificate of Participation that can be used for recertification points / continuing education credit in local districts
- Opportunity to earn a micro-credential for Adolescent Literacy Leadership
- Registration Step One: Fill out the Online Registration Form
- Please be sure to register all members of your team (recommended team size 3-6 people)
- Registration Step Two: Payment
- To pay by check or purchase order (PO), download the form (.doc)
- To pay by credit card, call our order desk, 785-864-4780, with your credit card information between 9 am and 3 pm CST
Paula Crawford, Ed. D.
With over 30 years in public education, Paula specializes in educational programming, systematic implementation, evaluation, grant writing, and teacher preparation with a focus on improving instruction for students with disabilities.
She is the President of RedDoc Consulting, Inc. From her home in North Carolina, Paula currently works with multiple state education agencies and Pacific federated states. Paula enjoys collaborative team planning for continuous improvement and implementation sustainability through systems coaching, adaptive leadership, and program fidelity. During her tenure as State Personnel Development Grant Project Director, she submitted two successfully funded Office of Special Programs five-year grant proposals for the state, expanded the focus on adolescent literacy, installed more than 25 regional coaches statewide, improved fidelity measures, and initiated online learning.
In 2018, the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning recognized Paula with the Gordon R. Alley Partnership Award for her leadership in state education partnerships. In 2021, the International Dyslexia Association accredited the programming she had directed for nearly a decade at the NC State Education Agency. Paula is a Strategic Instruction Model Learning Strategies Professional Developer. She completed her Doctorate in Adult and Higher Education and her Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, Special Education both at North Carolina State University.
When not focusing on continuous program improvement, she enjoys spending time outdoors, riding her horse, playing golf, kayaking, and making art.
Pam Leitzell, M. Ed.
Pam is a SIM Professional Development Leader and Co-owner & Educational Consultant with Learning Curve Consultants. Pam has worked in various projects across the United States, helping schools successfully implement SIM through a focus on the Content Literacy Continuum. She is currently collaborating with North Carolina's Exceptional Children Division's Program Improvement and Professional Development Section to support adolescent literacy throughout the state.
Prior to her work as a consultant, Pam worked in the public school systems teaching special education and serving as a secondary special education coordinator. She was a school improvement leader in her home district of Holland, Michigan, where she helped to initiate a district-wide CLC project, which eventually earned Holland Public Schools the SIM Impact Award. Pam is also a past recipient of the SIM Leadership Award. She received her M.S. in Special Education at West Virginia University.
Karen Mitchell, Ed.D.
With more than 25 years of experience as a public school, secondary educator including social studies teacher, Assistant Principal of Instruction, MTSS Coordinator, and Director of Secondary Education, Karen specializes in supporting teachers, administrators, and district leadership in planning for and implementing with fidelity adolescent literacy instruction.
As a SIM professional developer, Karen has worked with schools and districts within North Carolina to lead professional development to support mastery of the critical content for all students. She enjoys collaborating with secondary educators to implement the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle to support adolescent literacy. In 2021, the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning recognized Karen with the Strategic Instruction Model Initiative Award.
Karen earned her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership with a focus in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She earned her Master of Arts in Educational Administration as well as her Bachelor of Arts in Medieval and Renaissance History from the University of Michigan.
Karen and her husband reside in North Carolina. She enjoys spending time with their granddaughters, reading, cooking, and volunteering with Communities in Schools.