Online Coursework
For your convenience, all Reading and Literacy courses are offered online (either synchronous or asynchronous) during in the fall, spring and summer. Coursework includes 21 graduate credit hours including a clinical practicum. A description of each course is provided below.
You may choose to take the Reading and Literacy course sequence in combination with the Advanced Specialties in Educational Practice M.Ed, or as a stand-alone sequence in preparation for the transcript review process for the Specialized Literacy Professional Vermont educator endorsement.
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Contact
Please email us at crclmins@uvm.edu if you have questions.
Coursework
DLT 5220 Cultivating Children’s Literacy in the Elementary and Middle School
This course focuses on current research and best practice related to the development of strategic, motivated, and independent readers and writers. Though the course is influenced by the Common Core State Standards, it is through the lens of poverty that the components of literacy and teaching literacy are studied, emphasizing the joint study of reading and writing in collaborative environments.
EDLT 5360 Culturally Responsive Approaches to Literacy and Literature
Through this course, you will further develop your understanding of the role that culturally responsive approaches to literacy and children’s literature selection can play in multicultural and social justice education. We will read widely both research on culturally responsive pedagogy and practice as well as authors of high-quality multicultural literature, evaluate multicultural texts/resources for use in our classrooms, and develop lesson plans and activities using high-quality examples of multicultural literature. To address the needs and interests of education students at various stages of their careers.
EDLT 6750 Literacy Assessment: Understanding Individual Differences
Learn to identify, evaluate, and document literacy development, with an emphasis on assessment and instruction for disabled readers and at-risk students. In contrast to older courses in diagnosis, which emphasize dysfunction and deficits, this course focuses on designing and using assessment strategies to improve and adapt instruction. Both alternative assessment processes and normative tools will be examined. The influences of materials and methods and the role of cultural diversity in school learning will be explored and utilized to plan interactive assessment-instruction strategies in the classroom or clinical settings.
EDLT 6760 Literacy Instruction and Intervention Practicum
This 3-6 credit (6 for students seeking licensure) supervised clinical practicum is an opportunity for you to implement your knowledge of literacy research and practice, as well as your broader knowledge of education and learning in an intensive teaching context. An important part of your work will be to demonstrate an understanding of the cultural, linguistic, and ethnic diversity of the children with whom we work as you plan and make recommendations to parents and school. You will be asked to use and explain research-based teaching strategies as you collaborate daily with your colleagues to help each of them develop the best research-based instructional program for each of their children. You will work with two children experiencing difficulty in literacy learning. The selected children will "stretch" your skills in a variety of ways, including working with children at an age level with which you are less familiar.
EDLT 6990 Literacy and Leadership for Equity and Efficacy
In this course, we will address the essential elements and dispositions of being a literacy leader in a K-12 education setting. Topics include: creating, maintaining, and improving literacy systems, literacy coaching, understanding the role of assessment as well as supporting literacy instruction and systems that promote equitable access to literacy learning for all students. Significant trends in literacy leadership are also discussed, as we make connections between theory, research, and practice. We will also discuss the role of the specialized literacy professional in a school setting. Participants will apply knowledge of research and practice through program analysis and the development and implementation of professional development.
EDLT 6850 Critical Issues in Language and Literacy
This hybrid course provides experienced literacy educators with knowledge and expertise related to critical issues in language and literacy acquisition and the implications for students, teachers, educational systems, and parents. Participants will read broadly from contemporary research to learn about various contexts and their influence on language and literacy acquisition, including: socio-cultural, linguistic, and the influence of learning English as a second language. We will closely examine implications from contemporary research and practice for instruction, assessment, and policy. Participants will apply knowledge of research and practice through collaborative action research and the development and implementation of professional development.