Professional Development to Enhance Your EBRI Instruction
The Adult Learning Resource Center(ALRC) offers two types of training in evidence-based reading instruction:
- Face-to-Face Workshops
- Online Courses
- Instructor-based Technical Assistance
Face-to-Face Workshops
Student Achievement in Reading (STAR) - This is the comprehensive multi-day training series that runs over 6 days for the northern region and over 3 institutes for the central/southern region. It is a national training and corresponding online toolkit developed by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE). The training is geared for program administrators, coordinators, and teachers who are implementing evidence-based reading in local programs and classrooms to meet the essential components of reading instruction as defined by WIOA law.
Are You Teaching the
ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS OF READING
as Required by WIOA?
Essential components of reading instruction can instill the strong basic skills necessary for an adult learner to successfully complete a high school equivalency certificate, transition to postsecondary education and enter the workforce. The STAR Training series provides evidence-based reading instruction (EBRI) training on these essential components meeting WIOA’s criteria.
STAR Training Series - Spring, 2017
Northern Region – ALRC, Arlington Heights, IL
Day 2: Friday, Feb. 17
Day 3: Friday, March 17
Day 4: Friday, April 7
Day 5: Friday, April 21
Day 6: Friday, May 12
Attend the 6 days of training with only a $30 material fee in Spring, 2017 at either the ALRC in the Northern Region or at ICCB in the Central/Southern Region. A minimum of 10 participants is needed to hold the training. Registration will begin in January. If you are interested in either series or to hold a spot, please contact the ALRC’s STAR Trainers: Laurie Martin at [email protected], 224-366-8631 or Laura Sherwood at [email protected], 224-366-8622
Online Courses
The ALRC offers several online courses on EBRI topics. Currently the following courses are available for adult education professional development hours:
- Introduction to EBRI for Teachers
- Diagnostic Reading Assessments (in each of the reading components)
- Teaching Reading Fluency*
- Teaching Academic Vocabulary 1
- Teaching Academic Vocabulary 2*
* These courses expand on STAR training.
Additional Free Online PD Available
LINCS (Literacy Information and Communication System) http://lincs.ed.gov
This site contains a large number of research articles and resources pertaining to reading and writing. New pieces are continually added to the LINCS collection. Here are a few resources that may be of particular interest:
- Assessment Strategies and Reading Profiles (ASRP)
The ASRP pages contain extensive information about evidence-based reading
instruction, including in-depth descriptions of the four reading components,
diagnostic assessment and reader profiles. For people who have attended STAR
training, this website can serve as a review of key concepts. For those who have not
attended STAR, it can serve as an introduction to EBRI.
- Developing Reading and Writing, National Research Council of the National Academies
This is a 28-page online booklet which provides an overview of EBRI and
recommended instructional approaches.
- See if your program has a copy of Susan McShane's "Applying Research in Reading Instruction for Adults: First Steps for Teachers." All programs were given a hard copy of this manual and it is downloadable as well. https://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/applyingresearch.pdf
LINCS Learner Web online courses
https://www.learnerweb.org/LearnerWeb/LearnerWeb.html?region=literacyworkslincs&locale=en#REGION_HOME_PAGE
After creating an account, users can access free online mini-courses (called “Goals”) on teaching alphabetics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Each course is based on training workshops developed by adult reading specialists John Kruidenier, Susan McShane, and Rosalind Davidson. The courses are divided into short sections and include videos and links to additional resources. These courses are excellent as a refresher for STAR-trained staff or as foundational training for staff who have not attended STAR training.
CALPRO (California Adult Literacy Professional Development Project)
Virtual Workroom on Best Practices in ABE Reading Instruction
http://www.calpro-online.org/VirtualWorkroom/default.asp
After creating a login, users will find information on direct and explicit instruction, classroom management strategies, research, and resources. Short videos demonstrate evidence-based instructional strategies. They are accompanied by pre- and post-viewing worksheets that could be used by individual viewers or by a group using the Virtual Workroom as the basis for a study circle. This site is useful as foundational training or as review for teachers already familiar with EBRI.
Evidence-Based Reading Instruction
http://www.calpro-online.org/readinginstruction/video.asp
This page of the CALPRO website features a series of videos on EBRI for intermediate ABE students. The videos include interviews with students, teachers, and administrators who speak about the benefits of EBRI and demonstrate the steps of direct, explicit instruction in ABE classes.
Teacher-based Technical Assistance
- EBRI Virtual Classroom Observation - Individual teachers developing competency in delivering evidence-based reading instruction can receive personalized technical assistance (TA) by participating in a virtual classroom and receive professional development credit. Visit www.thecenterweb.org/alrc/reading-ebri.html for more information.