Improving Language Skills in Challenging Subject Matter

Partnership Services

The Center's Partnership for Literacy offers professional development products and services to schools, districts, and states seeking to improve their students' literacy achievement. These services include,

For everyone: Summer institutes with onsite and/or web-based follow-up during the academic year.
For school and district leaders: Professional support in becoming instructional leaders.
For on-site trainers: Train-the-trainer sessions with materials and strategies they can use to design and deliver a professional development program for others.
For teachers: Coaching and support as they adopt more effective instructional strategies. Ongoing workshops and follow-up.
For teams: Team building focused on student literacy development across the curriculum.

CELA’s Partnership for Literacy is a program of instructional development and professional growth with the goal to improve student learning and literacy. Professional activities involve teachers and coaches working together in a summer institute, followed by ongoing discussions, classroom visitations, and reflections on and sharing of teaching approaches and student learning throughout the year.

Research Base: The effectiveness of the Partnership was tested through an experimental design that involved pre- and post-testing of student achievement in two cohorts and comparison of the cohorts at the conclusion of two years (2001-3). Classroom observations, teacher reflections, and teacher evaluations of their participation in the Partnership provided data that enabled us to monitor progress and develop approaches to use in partnership with other schools.