Discussion Post #1

● What is literacy to you? How do you define literacy? What types of reading and literacy

instruction do you currently do in your class? If you are not teaching, select a grade and

give examples of the types of reading and literacy instruction you would provide.

Literacy is commonly understood to mean something along the lines of an ability to read or

write. I think it goes beyond that to include the ability to understand and interact with text,

language, and mechanisms of any field. Gee connects the idea of literacy to discourse which

emphasizes the social nature of literacy. Literacy does not just include one's ability to read text

but also one’s ability to take in that information, be able to engage in conversation about it, and

potentially to internalize it as to influence future thought and decision-making (Gee, 1989, p.19).

Currently in the classroom, my students are presented with different avenues for literacy. The

main being in the context of reading. We use independent reading time, choral reading groups,

and audio read--alongs, etc. to accommodate different learners. We also have been emphasizing

the use of digital literacy since the majority of their exams are online and since they may very

well be transitioning to virtual learning throughout the school year. Using Social Studies and

classroom culture building, we also emphasize civic literacy so students feel connected to the

classroom community, and understand their rights and responsibilities as community members.

● Compare and contrast summative and formative assessments. Which of the two is the

assessment of learning and which is the assessment for learning? Please explain.

From my understanding, formative assessments aim to check understanding frequently and

incrementally. This is typically seen as quick checks or exit tickets after individual lessons.

Formative assessments can be said to be assessments for learning, since you can catch
misconceptions early on and adapt future lessons for review or reteaching if needed. Summative

assessments tend to not be as frequent and aim to test a sum of understanding and retention of

materials. These are typically administered after each topic or unit of study which is why I would

say they are assessments of learning (Roskos & Neuman, 2012, P.)

● How does CCSS inform your literacy instruction and your assessments (formal and

informal)? What is CCSS’s role in enhancing educational accountability in the U.S.?

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are the standards of learning instruction to adhere to

when teaching and planning. I think CCSS has a big role in enhancing educational accountability

since it provides guidelines for educators to follow. CCSS can be useful for goal setting

throughout the school year and also can help you see what standards students should have been

taught in previous years and in future years in case you have to do any catching up or moving

ahead. In theory, it makes things so regardless of where a student may live, they should be

receiving an education of a certain standard or quality.

Discussion Post #2

Kopp defines phonemic awareness as “the awareness of phonemes, or sounds, in the

speech stream. It is the awareness that speech consists of a series of sounds” (Kopp, 1995, p. 20)

Phonemes are the smallest pieces of sound so having a comprehensive understanding of it is

integral to being able to piece together sounds when reading, speaking, and writing. Phonics

explores that relationship between sounds and written words. Having these two keys allows

readers to accurately decode unfamiliar or new words with ease. Phonics and phonological

awareness are two parts of a five part process of comprehensive reading instruction. The other
three being vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency. It can not be either or, they must all be

taught and reinforced to ensure students have well developed language skills.

Even though I teach 5th Grade, I have some students reading at a 7th grade level and

some students reading at a 2nd grade level so all five parts of the reading program are still very

relevant in my classroom. According to Harris, “More than eight million students in grades 4-12

are struggling in reading” (Harris, 2007, p.3). Sometimes upper elementary, middle, and high

school teachers tend to shy away from focusing on phonics since it is assumed students have

already been taught that, however, that is a disservice to our students who need that

reinforcement.

From my experience and understanding, assessments are important tools for acquiring

data on student performance. However, I do believe there is a lot more room for improvement

and variation of assessments. Students are often overloaded with exams, especially state

standardized tests. Administering all the diagnostic tests in the beginning of the year was

incredibly taxing on my part so I can’t even imagine for my students. From my experience, when

students are overwhelmed with work or tests, they either burnout or rush through the test just to

finish it. Either way, it no longer gives an accurate assessment of their abilities in objective

conditions. When done right with a proper balance of formative and summative assessments,

they can be a great tool for understanding what students have learned and/or need more support

in. Teale states that teachers and administrators need to be provided with “thoughtful and

engaging professional development about the assessment plan and its specific procedures” (Teal,

2008, p. 361). Ultimately, we need to better educate ourselves so we can better educate our

students.
 Discussion Post #3

According to Paris and Carpenter, Informal Reading Inventories (IRI) assess “multiple

aspects of children's reading skills in authentic situations” (Paris & Carpenter, 2003, p.578). One

of the highlights of IRIs is that they are not inherently uniform or comparative so each student

can get a personalized assessment experience for their diagnostic exams. These assessments can

be seen in the classroom as comprehension questions, oral examinations, etc. According to the

text, teachers of 4-5 grades may find it useful to utilize oral reading assessments to determine the

level and progress of readers that may need more intervention. Since I am teaching 5th grade this

is likely the strategy I would use. Especially in upper elementary, some reading skills are

assumed to have already been learned and it may lead to a great disservice to students that need

extra support. Since I am a first year teacher I do not think I have used IRIs before. However, I

think that they can be a useful tool for me to detect the current limitations of students so that I

can then provide the adequate support that is needed. To feel fully comfortable administering

IRIs I think I would need a clearer understanding on how to collect data accurately. I understand

that percentages are used according to accuracy and comprehension but I would like more

information on how those percentages are determined.

The readings have reinforced the idea that assessments, when done correctly, can be great

tools for determining mastery or varied levels of understanding that students may have. Through

my personal experiences in the classroom, I have also learned that it is very easy to administer

assessments incorrectly so it is important to reflect on why we give certain assessments to

determine if they are truly helpful. One thing I noticed in the beginning of the year and again

when administering my first Assessment Experience is that administering tests can be very

stressful, taxing, and confusing for teachers themselves even if we are not the ones that have to
complete the exams. Having this realization made me empathize a lot with my students since

they are the ones actually taking the exams. It further reminds me to be sure about what

assignments and assessments I am giving so that they are useful and comprehensive without

adding unnecessary stress to myself and, more importantly, my students. I would also like to

learn more about formal assessments for teachers themselves and their effectiveness in the

classroom and during instruction.

Discussion Post #4

● Often the emphasis in primary classes is the instruction of reading, how does this impact

the students?

I definitely see that my school puts an emphasis on reading. While other subjects need

comprehensive attention as well, I see why they may be inclined to do that. Reading is needed

for all other subjects we instruct. For math, reading and comprehension skills are needed for

understanding word problems. Our science and social studies blocks are also very reading heavy

so if students are not yet able to read, they will have a difficult time understanding the content.

Math seems to be the strength of my students this year. However, they seem to struggle with

word problems even if they are able to do the numerical calculations.

During my practicum Summer of 2021, I taught Math and had become familiar with

teaching Math. Thinking about the importance of Reading and Comprehension can be a little

overwhelming because I do feel like teaching Math makes more sense to me and I hope I am still

doing right by my students when teaching reading. During our reading block, we utilize the

Envisions reading curriculum for our group chapter texts and supplement lessons with iReady to

cover individual reading standards. My students also have to complete 30 minutes of iReady’s

personalized instruction for the week.

 ● How might there be a better balance between reading and writing, or is this even

necessary?

Our reading blocks are typically longer than our writing blocks. Due to the pandemic and

virtual learning, many students lost a lot of hand-writing time. Many need more support with

building up their writing stamina. It has improved since the beginning of the year after we

gradually increased our writing practice time. Many students also enjoy sharing their writing

with their classmates which lets them practice writing and reading at the same time. I think

reading blocks usually incorporate writing and writing blocks usually incorporate reading but

there may still be a better distribution of time between the two.

 Work Cited

Gee (1989). What is Literacy?. Journal of Education, 171 (1), 18-25.

Kalantzis, F. and Cope, B. (2016). 1.1 Introduction to the Concept of Literacies. Youtube.

Roskos, K. and Neuman, S.B. (2012). Formative Assessment: Simply, No Additives. Read

Teach, 65: 534-538

Paris, S. G., & Carpenter, R. D. (2003). Center for the Improvement of Early Reading

Achievement: FAQs about IRIs. The Reading Teacher, 56(6), 578–580.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/20205250