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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY It is now widely accepted that the early childhood period from preschool through third grade (P-3) is an especially significant—and arguably the most significant—period for learning to read and write in an alphabetic language. 1 Research has been notably productive over the past two decades in helping us understand both the nature of early literacy and evidence-based practices for instruction in preschool and primary grades. As a result, we know quite a bit about what to do: the Illinois Early Learning Standards, Illinois Kindergarten Standards, and Illinois/Common Core State Standards- English Language Arts are all aligned with current literacy research and ambitious practice. And yet, state, national, and international indicators suggest that we have not made significant strides in raising overall levels of early literacy achievement in the U.S. or in Illinois, nor in closing the achievement gaps among various cultural and social groups. To inform what can be done to enhance early literacy practice and achievement, the UIC Center for Literacy conducted a comprehensive review of research, policies, and practices, seeking to identify gaps and opportunities that would enable formulation of policy recommendations for enhancing literacy education across our systems of early care and education and elementary schooling. The findings indicated a need for the following key efforts in order to achieve the desired impact: coordination to achieve early literacy curricular coherence across P-3 coordination of early literacy curriculum, instruction, and assessment in preschool and school settings coordination of the early literacy content of teacher education programs, professional learning Early Childhood Literacy: Policy for the Coming Decade By William H. Teale, Melanie Walski, Emily Hoffman, Maureen Meehan, Colleen Whittingham, University of Illinois at Chicago Anna Colaner, Illinois Governor's Office of Early Childhood Development http://ruepi.uic.edu about the authors william teale is a Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is also the Director of the UIC Center for Literacy. Melanie walski is a doctoral candidate in Literacy, Language and Culture in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. emily hoffman is a doctoral candidate in Literacy, Language and Culture in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Colleen whittingham is a doctoral candidate in Literacy, Language and Culture in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Maureen Meehan is the Director of Community Literacy Programs at the UIC Center for Literacy. anna Colaner is the Data & Outcomes Manager at the Illinois Governor's Office of Early Childhood Development. policy BRIEF UIC Research on Urban Education Policy Initiative Vol. 4, Book 1 National Early Literacy Panel, Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Panel (Washington, DC: 1 National Institute for Literacy, 2008); Shanahan, T., & Lonigan, C., Early Childhood Literacy: The National Early Literacy Panel and Beyond (Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes 2013). Policy Brief 3.qxp_Layout 1 4/13/15 4:13 PM Page 2

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  • EXECUTIVE SUMMARYIt is now widely accepted that the earlychildhood period from preschoolthrough third grade (P-3) is anespecially significantand arguably themost significantperiod for learning toread and write in an alphabeticlanguage.1 Research has been notablyproductive over the past two decades inhelping us understand both the nature ofearly literacy and evidence-basedpractices for instruction in preschooland primary grades. As a result, weknow quite a bit about what to do: theIllinois Early Learning Standards,Illinois Kindergarten Standards, andIllinois/Common Core State Standards-English Language Arts are all alignedwith current literacy research andambitious practice. And yet, state,national, and international indicatorssuggest that we have not madesignificant strides in raising overalllevels of early literacy achievement inthe U.S. or in Illinois, nor in closing the

    achievement gaps among variouscultural and social groups. To informwhat can be done to enhance earlyliteracy practice and achievement, theUIC Center for Literacy conducted acomprehensive review of research,policies, and practices, seeking toidentify gaps and opportunities thatwould enable formulation of policyrecommendations for enhancingliteracy education across our systems ofearly care and education andelementary schooling. The findingsindicated a need for the following keyefforts in order to achieve the desiredimpact:

    coordination to achieve earlyliteracy curricular coherenceacross P-3coordination of early literacycurriculum, instruction, andassessment in preschool andschool settingscoordination of the early literacycontent of teacher educationprograms, professional learning

    Early Childhood Literacy: Policy for the ComingDecadeBy William H. Teale, Melanie Walski, Emily Hoffman, MaureenMeehan, Colleen Whittingham, University of Illinois at ChicagoAnna Colaner, Illinois Governor's Office of Early ChildhoodDevelopment

    http://ruepi.uic.edu

    about the authorswilliam teale is a Professor inthe Department of Curriculumand Instruction in the Collegeof Education at the Universityof Illinois at Chicago. He isalso the Director of the UICCenter for Literacy.

    Melanie walski is a doctoralcandidate in Literacy,Language and Culture in theCollege of Education at theUniversity of Illinois atChicago.

    emily hoffman is a doctoralcandidate in Literacy,Language and Culture in theCollege of Education at theUniversity of Illinois atChicago.

    Colleen whittingham is adoctoral candidate inLiteracy, Language andCulture in the College ofEducation at the University ofIllinois at Chicago.

    Maureen Meehan is theDirector of CommunityLiteracy Programs at the UICCenter for Literacy.

    anna Colaner is the Data &Outcomes Manager at theIllinois Governor's Office ofEarly ChildhoodDevelopment.

    policy BRIEFUIC Research on Urban Education Policy Initiative

    Vol. 4, Book 1

    National Early Literacy Panel, Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Panel (Washington, DC:1National Institute for Literacy, 2008); Shanahan, T., & Lonigan, C., Early Childhood Literacy: The National EarlyLiteracy Panel and Beyond (Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes 2013).

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  • National Early Literacy Panel, Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Panel (Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy, 2008); Shanahan, T., & Lonigan, C., Early Childhood Literacy: The1National Early Literacy Panel and Beyond (Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes 2013).Phillips, L. M., Norris, S. P., & Mason, J. M., Longitudinal Effects of Early Literacy Concepts on Reading Achievement: A Kindergarten Intervention and Five-year Follow-up, Journal of Literacy Research, 28, no.21 (1996): 173-195.Snow, C., Burns, M. S., & Griffin, P., Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children (Washington DC: National Academy Press, 1998)3Scarborough, H. S., Connecting Early Language and Literacy to Later Reading (Dis)abilities: Evidence, Theory and Practice. In F. Fletcher-Campbell, J. Soler, & G. Reid (Eds.), Approaching Difficulties in Literacy4Development: Assessment, Pedagogy and Programmes (London: Sage; Whitehurst, 2009): 23-38; Whitehurst, G. J., & Lonigan, C. J., Child Development and Emergent Literacy, Child Development, 69, no. 1(1998): 848-872.Gambrell, L.B. & Morrow, L. M. (Eds.), Best Practices in Literacy Instruction (5th ed.) (New York: Guilford, 2015); National Early Literacy Panel, Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Panel5(Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy, 2008); Teale, W. H., et al.. What It Takes in Early Schooling to Have Adolescents Who Are Skilled and Eager Readers and Writers. In K. Hall, et al. (Eds.),Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Learning to Read: Culture, Cognition and Pedagogy (London: Routledge, 2010): 151-163.National Assessment of Educational Progress, Long-Term Trend Assessments (2012). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ltt_2012/.6National Assessment of Educational Progress, Gains by Group (2013). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2013/#/gains-by-group; National Assessment of Educational Progress, Writing7(2011). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/writing_2011/. National Assessment of Educational Progress, 2013 Mathematics and Reading (2013). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2013.8National Assessment of Educational Progress, Writing (2011). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/writing_2011/.9Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, PISA 2012 Results (2012). Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/unitedstates/PISA-2012-results-US.pdf10

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    programs for practicing teachers,and the preparation of leaders ofearly childhood educationcoordination of home and schoolearly literacy supports a coordinated early literacyresearch agenda for the childrenand families of Illinois

    The recommended actions indicated bythe analyses have implications acrossthe spectrum of participants in earlyliteracy education: state and cityleadership; local schools and early careentities; parents, teachers and child careproviders; researchers; and foundationsand other funders of programs andresearch.

    INTRODUCTIONThe need for effective policies andprograms in early literacy has neverbeen more critical. Early childhood,particularly the period frompreschool through third grade, is anespecially significant time forlearning to read and write. Researchindicates, for example, that a goodstart in reading and writing usuallymeans successful literacyachievement throughout elementaryand middle school2 and is also thebest defense against achievementdifficulties as one progressesthrough school and career.3 Thus,what happens in preschool (ages 3-4) and the primary grades (K-3)significantly sets the literacytrajectory for the rest of ones life.

    Research in emergent literacy andbeginning reading and writing hasbeen quite productive over the pasttwo decades, giving us clear ideasabout both the nature of earlyliteracy learning4 as well asevidence-based practices forinstruction during preschool and theprimary grades.5 Yet, national andinternational indicators suggest that,during these same decades, we havenot made significant strides inraising overall levels of earlyliteracy achievement in the U.S. orIllinois,6 or in eliminating theachievement gaps between variouscultural and social groups.7 Themost recent NAEP results show thatapproximately one-third of childrenat Grades 4 and 8 achieve at theProficient level in reading,8 and lessthan 30% at grades 8 and 12 write ata Proficient level.9 Internationally inreading literacy, the US ranked 17thin reading among the 34Organization for Economic Co-operation and Developmentcountries taking the test in 2012, notdiffering significantly from theaverage score of all participatingentities.10 Between the early 1970sand 1990 the differential literacyachievement gap between Whiteand African American or Latino/astudents decreased markedly. Sincethat time there has been little

    ...what happens inpreschool and theprimary grades setsthe literacytrajectory for therest of one's life.

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    progress toward lessening thosedifferences.11

    What is holding us back frommaking greater progress with earlyliteracy education efforts in Illinoisand nationally? The University ofIllinois at Chicago Center forLiteracy undertook a review ofexisting policies, practices, andresearch related to early literacylearning and teaching. Our findingsshow that a major issue is a lack ofcoordinated policy and practices fora comprehensive strategy addressingpreschool and early grades (P-3)language and literacy education.

    This lack of coordination has led togaps in three important areas thatneed to be addressed in order tosignificantly move the needle onearly literacy:

    To improve literacy achievementand build positive literacydispositions among the children ofIllinois and our country, leadershipis needed to bring together thepolicy, education, funding, andresearch communities to address P-3literacy in a coordinated, strategicway. We must recognize thenecessity of implementing a true P-3literacy continuum and not seepreschool as something separatefrom elementary school. We musthave the K-12 system work with

    early education and care. We mustincrease productive familyinvolvement in early literacydevelopment. For, in many senses,we know what to do but have notbeen able to put in place policies fordoing so effectively or doing so atscale across variousentities that eachcurrently play a rolein the literacyeducation of ouryoungest children.This policy briefreviews the mostcurrent body ofresearch on earlyliteracy and makesfiverecommendationsfor action that canenhance literacyeducation acrossour systems of earlycare and educationand elementaryschooling.

    Action 1:Consistentlyimplement comprehensive earlylanguage and literacy standardsand associated evidence-basedcurricula, instruction, andassessment, aligned frompreschool through grade 3.

    Illinois has recognized theimportance of the early years inchildrens overall literacy learningtrajectories, as evidenced in the2010 adoption of the Common Core

    State Standards12 (CCSS) and the2011 aligning of the Illinois EarlyLearning and DevelopmentStandards13 with the CCSS. Such apolicy can help promote a moreconsistent approach to literacy,which research has shown to be

    particularly important tostrengthening P-3 education acrossschools and school systems.14 Thishas resulted in a good foundation forearly literacy, for while most statesinvolved in the CCSS have workedto align curricula, materials,assessments, and professionaldevelopment from kindergartenonwards, there has been limitedattention nationally to suchalignment for the preschool years.15

    National Assessment of Educational Progress, Gains by Group (2013). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2013/#/gains-by-group; National Assessment of Educational Progress, Writing11(2011). Retrieved from http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/writing_2011/National Governors Association, Common Core State Standards (Washington DC: National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010).12Illinois State Board of Education, Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards for Preschool (3 Years Old to Kindergarten Enrollment Age) (2013). 13Patton, C. and Wang, J., Ready for Success: Creating Collaborative and Thoughtful Transitions into Kindergarten (Cambridge, MA: Harvard Family Research Project, Harvard Graduate School of Education,142012).Retrieved from http://www.hfrp.org/content/download/4287/116636/file/ReadyForSuccess.pdf.Hoffman, J. L., Paciga, K. A., & Teale, W. H., Common Core State Standards and Early Childhood Literacy Instruction: Confusions and Conclusions (Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago Center for Literacy, 2015)15

    Action 1 includes the followingrecommendations:1.1 Ensure that the standards reflect the threecritical areas of early language/literacydevelopment: foundational skills, language andcommunication skills, and content knowledge.1.2 Specify developmental steps across age levelsfor all standards. 1.3 Employ appropriate assessment instrumentsthat will gather needed student literacyachievement information for all standards.1.4 Identify appropriate curricula and instructionalactivities for all standards.1.5 Use assessment data to appropriately supportprogram quality improvement, inform studentinstructional needs, and identify early literacyintervention needs.

    Standards and curriculumCapacity of educationalleaders and teachersFamily involvement

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    Thus, the macro level structures forearly literacy that have been put inplace in Illinois provide a solidfoundation; what remains, asindicated in this recommendedaction, is work at theimplementation level throughout thestate to ensure that the content,attention to developmental learning,assessment instruments, and theprocedures that constitute thecurriculum and instruction enactedin classrooms afford children thebest chance for early literacysuccess.

    1.1 Ensure that the standardsreflect the three critical areas ofearly language/literacydevelopment: foundational skills,language and communicationskills, and content knowledge.

    Literacy learning begins in the veryfirst years of a childs life andrapidly develops through thepreschool and early schooling years.Decades of research have shownthat the roots of literacy formthrough childrens earliestexperiences16 and span three broad,

    but interconnected areas:foundational literacy skills,17 orallanguage and communication,18 andbackground/content knowledge.19The foundational skills associatedwith early reading and writing arereadily recognized and widelytaught in the early grades: letterknowledge, letter-sound knowledge,phonological awareness, and earlydecoding and spelling skills. Theseskills give children the tools totransition from emergent literacy tothe conventional literacy skillsexpected in early elementarygrades.20 Children lagging inacquiring these skills often find itdifficult to catch up later in school.21But what is equally important tonote is that these foundational skills,while absolutely necessary, areinsufficient for comprehensiveliteracy development.22

    Oral language and communicationare also fundamental to effectiveearly literacy learning. As childrenhear and speak words, phrases andsentences, they build sensitivity tothe sound system of language,vocabulary, and critically important

    listening comprehension andspeaking skills.23 Oral language andcommunication skills have oftenbeen placed on the backburner ofstandards because the link betweenoral language and literacy is notalways well understood.24 However,low levels of oral language abilityand poor overall language skillshave consistently been linked toreading comprehension difficultiesin third grade and beyond.25Children from economicallydisadvantaged backgrounds inparticular are in danger of nevercatching up to their moreadvantaged peers if they lack strongoral language in their early years.26

    Third, and perhaps the mostneglected area crucial for earlylanguage and literacy learning, is thedevelopment of content orbackground knowledge. Languageand literacy are tools used tocommunicate meaning the depthand breadth of meaningcommunicated hinges on childrensaccess to content, which forms thestrong knowledge base from whichcomprehension and writing abilities

    Burchinal, M., & Forestieri, N., Development of Early Literacy: Evidence from Major U.S. Longitudinal Studies. In S. Neuman & D. Dickinson (Eds.), Handbook of Early Literacy Research, Vol. 3 (New York: Guilford16Press, 2011): 85-96; National Early Literacy Panel, Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Literacy Panel (Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy, 2008); Teale, W. H., & Sulzby, E. (Eds.),Emergent Literacy: Writing and Reading (Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation, 1986).Dickinson, D. K., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K., Speaking Out for Language: Why Language Is Central to Reading Development, Educational Researcher, 39, no. 4 (2010): 305-310; Farran, D., Aydongan, C.,17Kanyg, S.J., & Lipsey, M., Preschool Classroom Environments and the Quantity and Quality of Childrens Language and Literacy Behaviors. In D.K. Dickinson & S.B. Neuman (Eds), Handbook of Early LiteracyResearch, Vol. II (New York: Guilford, 2006): 257-268; Foorman, B. R. & Connor, C. M., Primary Grade Reading. In M. L. Kamil, P. D. Pearson, E. B. Moje, & P. P. Afflerbach (Eds.), Handbook of Reading Research,Vol. IV (New York: Taylor & Francis, (2011): 136-156; Lesaux, N. K., Turning the Page: Refocusing Massachusetts for Reading Success Strategies for Improving Childrens Language and Literacy Development, Birth toAge 9 (Boston: Strategies for Children, 2012). Retrieved from http://www.strategiesforchildren.org/0reading.html.Dickinson, D. K., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K., Speaking Out for Language: Why Language Is Central to Reading Development, Educational Researcher, 39, no. 4 (2010): 305-31018Neuman, S. B., & Carta, J. J., Advancing the Measurement of Quality for Early Childhood Programs That Support Early Language and Literacy Development. In Zaslow, M., Martinez-Beck, I., Tout, K., & Halle, T.19(Eds.), Quality Measurement in Early Childhood Settings (Baltimore: Brookes Publishing, 2011); Neuman, S. B., N is for Nonsensical: Low-income Preschool Children Need Content-rich Instruction, Not Drill inProcedural Skills, Educational Leadership, 64, (2006, October): 28-31; Wasik, B. H. & Newman, B. A., Teaching and Learning to Read. In O. A. Barbarin & B. H. Wasik (Eds.), Handbook of Child Development andEarly Education (New York: Guilford, 2009): 303-327.Paris, S. G., Reinterpreting the Development of Reading Skills, Reading Research Quarterly, 40, no. 2 (2005): 184-202.20Chall, J. S., Jacobs, V., & Baldwin, L., The Reading Crisis (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1990).21Teale, W. H., Paciga, K. A., & Hoffman, J. L., Beginning Reading Instruction in Urban Schools: The Curriculum Gap Insures a Continuing Achievement Gap, The Reading Teacher, 61 (2007): 344-348.22McKeown, M. G., & Beck, I. L., Encouraging Young Childrens Language Interactions with Stories, Handbook of Early Literacy Research, 2 (2006): 281-294; Tomasello, M., & Farrar, M. J., Joint Attention and Early23Language, Child development, 57 (1986): 1454-1463Dickinson, D. K., McCabe, A., Anastasopoulos, L., Peisner-Feinberg, E. S., & Poe, M. D., The Comprehensive Language Approach to Early Literacy: The Interrelationships among Vocabulary, Phonological Sensitivity,24and Print Knowledge among Preschool-aged Children, Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, no. 3 (2003): 465-481.Storch, S. A., & Whitehurst, G. J., Oral Language and Code-related Precursors to Reading: Evidence from a Longitudinal Structural Model, Developmental Psychology, 38, no. 6 (2002): 934-947.25Hart, B., & Risley, T. R., The Early Catastrophe: The 30 Million Word Gap by Age 3, American Educator, 27, no. 1 (2003): 4-9.26

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    build. Coupling early literacy andlanguage instruction with the use ofliteracy and language to developstrong content knowledge willadvance all three elements necessaryfor early and later school success.

    The three-legged stool metaphor isapt for early literacy and languagedevelopment. The structure cannot besupported by one or even two ofthese elements. Instead, all three needadequate representation in earlychildhood learning standards,curriculum, and instruction. Thus, theimplementation of policies thatsupport an emphasis on all three canhelp to ensure that all children haveaccess to a fully developedfoundation.

    1.2 Specify developmental stepsacross all age levels for allstandards.

    The Common Core State Standardsare unique in that end-of-school (i.e.,College and Career Readiness) goalswere established first, and individualgrades standards were back-mappeddown to kindergarten. Aligning theIllinois Early Learning andDevelopment Standards with theCCSS means that we now have earlychildhood indicators of what childrenshould know and be able to do interms of English Language Arts ateach age/grade level from preschoolthrough grade 3.

    The standards documents claim theyare research and evidence based,aligned with college and workexpectations, rigorous, and

    internationally benchmarked.27 Ingeneral, this is true about thestandards. However, what needs to bekept in mind is the lack of empiricalevidence of developmental stepsarticulated from K to grade 1 to grade2 to grade 3 in the CCSS. Earlychildhood standards for the preschoolyears, like the Illinois Early Learningand Development Standards, havetypically included somedevelopmental benchmarks to guideteachers in identifying studentprogress toward mastery of standardsas well as appropriate instructionalactivities to meet those benchmarks.Lacking a strong research base ondevelopmental appropriateness, theauthors of the CCSS consulted anindependently identified group ofliteracy and early childhood scholarsto identify particular early languageand literacy standards at each gradelevel.28 Although the authors of thestandards were able to satisfy theexperts with whom they consulted ondevelopmental appropriateness, thereare benchmarking questions and needfor further clarity of developmentallyappropriate steps across age levelsfor all language and literacystandards P-3.

    The CCSS are ambitious standardsthat aim to prepare children to becapable, flexible and critically literateadults in order to succeed in the 21stcentury. The rising demands ofliteracy require careful effort toidentify the trajectory ofdevelopment through which childrenprogress in line with achieving theintended outcomes of the standards,especially given the non-linear nature

    National Governors Association, Common Core State Standards (Washington D.C.: National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010).27Beach, R., Analyzing How Formalist, Cognitive-processing, and Literacy Practices Learning Paradigms Are Shaping the Implementation of the Common Core State Standards. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting28of the Literacy Research Association, Jacksonville, FL (2011); Pearson, P. D., Research Foundations for the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts. In S. Neuman & L. Gambrell (Eds.), ReadingInstruction in the Age of Common Core State Standards (Newark, DE: International Reading Association, 2013): 237-262; Pearson, P. D., & Hiebert, E. H., Understanding the Common Core State Standards. In L.M. Morrow, T. Shanahan & K. Wixson (Eds.), Teaching with the Common Core Standards for English Language Arts: PreK-2 (New York: Guillford Press, 2013): 1-21.

    illinois can seize theopportunity tolaunch acoordinated effortto identifydevelopmentallyappropriatebenchmarks (and)activities forinstruction.

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    of development in these areasduring the early years.29

    Illinois (and other states) can seizethe opportunity to launch acoordinated effort to identifydevelopmentally appropriatebenchmarks aligned with the CCSS,as well as developmentallyappropriate activities for instruction.Individual schools and districts mayhave already attempted to establishsystems for guidance ondevelopmentally appropriatebenchmarks; however, this can leadto fractured and inconsistentinstruction and assessment across astate system. For Illinois to realizethe ultimate potential of the CCSS,we recommend the state coordinateresources to establish guidelinesschools and districts can use as theyimplement the CCSS in P-3.

    1.3 Employ assessmentinstruments that will gatherneeded student literacyachievement information for allstandards.

    Establishing developmentallyappropriate benchmarks is anecessary precursor to identifyingand employing assessmentinstruments that align with the waysyoung children develop as readersand writers.30 However, with theincreased demands foraccountability, the assessment ofyoung children in relation tolearning standards has emerged asperhaps the most controversialaspect of the implementation of theCommon Core State Standards.31

    The current assessment demands atstate and national levels point to thecrucial need for identification andcoordination of assessmentinstruments so that young childrenare not subjected to excessiveformal testing and end up losingneeded instructional time for thepurposes of generating data thatultimately do not help teachers teachbetter.

    Because young children acquire somany literacy skills and abilitiesbetween preschool and third grade,and because early childhooddevelopment trajectories do notmove in a straight line and varyacross different cultural and socialgroups, we caution against theimplementation of strict age-basedbenchmarks and instead advocatefor a progression framework thatoutlines a general developmentalroadmap that provides teachersand parents with profiles ofexpected early literacy and languagedevelopment in terms of broad andoverlapping age ranges. Thisdevelopmental roadmap would bealigned to continuum-drivenassessment data that would depictchildrens current abilities andcreate a portrait of child learningthat early childhood educators canuse to inform the logical next stepsin standards-based,developmentally-aligned instruction.

    In other words, what are needed arealternatives to static checklists of a4-year-old child should be able to A,B, C, and a 6-year-old should beable to X, Y, Z. Instead, we urge

    that Illinois help early childhoodteachers move closer to an If achild can do X, we should nextintroduce Y approach to decisionmaking. This assessment model foryoung children supports theimplementation of standards byearly childhood professionals in alogical manner consistent with whatwe know about early literacy andlanguage development.32Assessment must not live alone as aseparate entity, but become anintegrated component of all earlyliteracy environments thatintentionally create opportunities forearly educators to make informedinstructional decisions based on thegathering and interpretation ofassessment data.

    1.4 Identify appropriate curriculaand instructional activities for allstandards

    Illinois/CCSS English LanguageArts standards are not designed tospecify the instructional activitiesteachers should employ in the earlychildhood classroom to address astandard. On the one hand,standards that include concreteexplanations of classroom practicesoften restrict the robustness of whathappens in a classroom. On theother hand, standards with littleclarity are in danger of beingignored, reduced to simplified ordumbed-down versions, ortranslated into inappropriatepractices for young children likeskill & drill flashcards oroveremphasis on memorization.33 Inseeking to build ambitious early

    See discussion of early development in 1.3.29Teale, W. H., Developmentally Appropriate Assessment of Reading and Writing in the Early Childhood Classroom, The Elementary School Journal, 89, no. 2 (1988): 172-183.30U.S. Department of Education, Principles and Recommendations for Early Childhood Assessments (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, 1998).31Hamre, B. K., & Pianta, R.C., Learning Opportunities in Preschool and Early Elementary Classrooms, In R. Pianta, M. Cox, & K. Snow (Eds.), School Reading and the Transition to Kindergarten in the Era of32Accountability (Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes, 2007): 4984.Hoffman, J. L., Paciga, K. A., & Teale, W. H., Common Core State Standards and Early Childhood Literacy Instruction: Confusions and Conclusions (Chicago: University of Illinois at Chicago Center for Literacy, 2014).33

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    literacy instruction in Illinoisclassrooms, teachers would benefitfrom clear guidelines on how toidentify appropriate curricula andinstructional activities that arealigned to standards and reflect bestpractices for all three areas of earlyliteracy (i.e. foundational literacyskills, oral language andcommunication, andbackground/content knowledge).

    To this end, we recommend that astate-level process be developed toreview curricula and instructionalactivities so educators can haveaccess to reputable data on earlyliteracy program quality. At thesame time, we stress that this is atricky issue for state policy. Therehas never been any evidence that aparticular early literacy curriculumor one set of instructional activitiesis best for all children or allinstructional standards.34 And it isnot possible for one program tomeet the needs of all districts,schools, or classrooms across thestate. Instead, policy can turn toresearch to establish a set of corecomponents and practices35 thatconstitute a high quality earlyliteracy program. Such a set ofguidelines could then be employedat the local level to enable informeddecisions about which practices arebest suited to the needs of a schoolor district. Once standards, curriculaand assessments are aligned at thelocal level, teachers and districtpersonnel can more clearly identifyneeded professional developmentand program improvement.

    1.5 Use assessment data toappropriately support programquality improvement, informstudent instructional needs, andidentify early literacy interventionneeds.

    Illinois has recognized the need forsupporting overall program qualityimprovement in preschool,committing millions of dollars tocore supports and infrastructuresystems as part of its Race to theTop Early Learning Challengegrant, a central aspect of which iscomprehensive child and programassessment.36 A similar commitmentis needed to coordinate thecollection and use of literacyassessment data from preschoolthrough third grade. Thiscoordinated approach to earlyliteracy assessment would includetwo major dimensions:

    Collection and analysis of large-1.scale formalized assessmentdata that can be used for state-and district-wide evaluation ofchildrens literacy achievementlevels

    Recommended classroom-based2.assessment instruments andformative assessment processesthat teachers can use forinstructional planning

    Each of these dimensions willprovide information necessary to aneffective approach to early literacythat will then contribute to increasedstudent literacy achievement.Formal assessment results can be

    For example, the What Works Clearing House examined evidence of effectiveness of programs intended to increase literacy skills but did not determine any one program to be more effective than others. See34http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/topic.aspx?sid=8.National Early Literacy Panel, Developing Early Literacy: Report of the National Early Literacy Panel (Washington, DC: National Institute for Literacy, 2008); Strickland, D. S., & Shanahan, T., Laying the35Groundwork for Literacy, Educational Leadership, 61, no. 6 (2004): 74-77.Governors Office of Early Childhood Development, Early Learning Challenge. Retrieved from http://www2.illinois.gov/gov/OECD/Pages/EarlyLearningChallenge.aspx.36

    we recommendthat literacyassessment effortsat p-3 be focusedon helping teacherseffectively gatherand use assessmentinformation thatarises from thecontext of teachingand can be used toplan differentiatedinstruction.

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    used by district and schoolpersonnel as gross indicators ofprogram impact. Such results revealoverall achievement patterns acrossa number of dimensions of earlyreading and writing development(e.g., decoding skills, readingcomprehension, writing, spelling)and can also be used to examineprogram effects at different gradelevels or across schools. Theseoverall early literacy results are alsouseful in communicating with thepublic. Since Illinois is usingPARCC as the state assessment andaccountability measure for the NewIllinois Learning (Common Core)Standards in English Language Artsat grade 3, early literacy datacollected P-Grade 2 should alignwith the PARCC. However, researchsuggests that the reliability of large-scale, formal literacy assessmentsbefore grade 3 is largely suspect andtherefore, at best, an unwiseinvestment of resources and at worstdisruptive to instructional time thatwill benefit young children more.37Therefore, we recommend thatliteracy assessment efforts at P-3 befocused on helping teacherseffectively gather and useassessment information that arisesfrom the context of teaching and canbe used to plan differentiatedinstruction.

    Reliable classroom-basedassessment information is necessaryfor all age levels P-3 because it,unlike the aforementioned large-scale, formal early literacyassessment results, can be used byteachers to plan day-to-dayinstruction for the individualchildren in the classroom. Policyshould not seek to specify aparticular set of classroom-basedassessment instruments/proceduresbecause current research evidencehas not established a specificassessment regimen as contributingto enhanced student performance.38However, recommendations for theuse of student data to planinstruction are well established39 andearly literacy programimplementation evaluations haveshown that teachers can learn to usestudent data about vocabularyknowledge, alphabet knowledge,and reading fluency to planappropriate instruction.40

    Currently, the practice of regularlyusing classroom-based, teacher-gathered literacy assessment data toplan instruction is grosslyinconsistent across Illinois P-3classrooms. Hence, we recommendthat Illinois policy makers form astatewide task force that wouldcreate a plan for developing in thestates early childhood educators the

    expertise to employ classroom-based assessment data in the serviceof improving early literacyachievement.

    To implement this comprehensiveearly literacy assessment program,professional development will benecessary for many P-3 teachers. Itis our conclusion that thisinvestment can be a primary leverfor moving the needle on earlyliteracy achievement. We know thatthe instruction of individual teachersand school districts is influenced byassessment regimens;41 an Illinoisteacher workforce skilled inconducting and utilizing appropriateassessment data that arise from earlyliteracy instruction will result inhigher quality teaching.

    Action 2: Provide professionallearning experiences for earlychildhood teachers that enablethem to implement high-qualityearly language and literacyinstruction in their classrooms.

    There is a robust body of researchshowing that teachers matter tochildrens literacy achievement.42Teachers who completed initialteacher preparation programs withhigh quality attention to teachingreading were found to be moreeffective at teaching reading in the

    Petscher, Y., & Kim, Y. S., The Utility and Accuracy of Oral Reading Fluency Score Types in Predicting Reading Comprehension. Journal of School Psychology, 49, no. 1 (2011): 107-129; Riedel, B. W., The37Relation between DIBELS, Reading Comprehension, and Vocabulary in Urban First-grade Students, Reading Research Quarterly, 42, no. 4 (2007): 546-567; Roehrig, A. D., et al., Accuracy of the DIBELS OralReading Fluency Measure for Predicting Third Grade Reading Comprehension Outcomes, Journal of School Psychology, 46, no. 3 (2008): 343-366Garca, G. E., & Pearson, P. D., Assessment and Diversity, Review of Research in Education, 20 (1994): 337-391; Pearson, P. D., & Hamm, D. N., The Assessment of Reading Comprehension: A Review of38PracticesPast, Present, and Future. In. S. G. Paris & S. A. Stahl (Eds.), Childrens Reading Comprehension and Assessment (Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 2005): 13-69; Valencia, S., & Pearson, P. D., ReadingAssessment: Time for a Change, The Reading Teacher, 40, no. 8 (1987): 726-732.Mokhtari, K., Rosemary, C. A., & Edwards, P. A., Making Instructional Decisions Based on Data: What, How, and Why, The Reading Teacher, 61, no. 4 (2007): 354-359; National Center for Education Statistics,39Using Student Achievement Data to Support Instructional decision Making (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, 2009).DeStefano, L., Rempert, T., & ODell, L., Charting a Course to Literacy: Early Reading First in Chicago Charter Schools External Evaluation. Final Report (Champaign, IL: University of Illinois at Urbana-40Champaign, 2010); DeStefano, L., Rempert, T., Innes, E., & Glaze, C., Achieving Preschool Language and Literacy Excellence: Early Reading First in Chicago Archdiocese Schools External Evaluation-Year Four Report (Champaign, IL: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2012).Au, W., High-stakes Testing and Control: A Qualitative Metasynthesis, Educational Researcher, 36, no. 5 (2007): 258-267; Berliner, D., Rational Responses to High Stakes Testing: The Case of Curriculum41Narrowing and the Harm That Follows, Cambridge Journal of Education, 41, no. 3 (2011): 287-302.Darling-Hammond, L., Berry, B., & Thoreson, A., Does Teacher Certification Matter? Evaluating the Evidence, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 23, no. 1 (2001): 5777. 42

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    Hoffman, J. V., Roller, C., Maloch, B., Sailors, M., Duffy, G., & Beretvas, S. N., Teachers Preparation to Teach Reading and Their Experiences and Practices in the First Three Years of Teaching, The Elementary43School Journal, 105, no. 3 (2005): 267-287; International Reading Association, Teaching Reading Well: A Synthesis of the International Reading Associations Research on Teacher Preparation for ReadingInstruction (Newark, DE: International Reading Association, 2007).Goldhaber, D., Liddle, S., & Theobald, R., The Gateway to the Profession: Assessing Teacher Preparation Programs Based on Student Achievement, Economics of Education Review, 34 (2013): 29-44; Tennessee44Higher Education Commission, 2014 Report Card on the Effectiveness of Teacher Training Programs (Knoxville: Tennessee Higher Education Commission, 2014).Neuman, S.B. & Kamil, M. (Eds.), Professional Development for Early Childhood Educators: Principles and Strategies for Improving Practice (Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes, 2010).45Van Voorhis, F. L., Maier, M. F., Epstein, J. L., & Lloyd, C. M., The Impact of Family Involvement on the Education of Children Ages 3 to 8 (New York: MDRC, 2013).46See http://www2.illinois.gov/gov/OECD/Pages/EarlyLearningChallenge.aspx.47Section 24.130 - The Illinois Professional Teaching Standards. Retrieved from http://www.ilga.gov/commission/jcar/admincode/023/023000240001300R.html. 48

    primary grades, and their studentswere the beneficiaries of enhancedachievement.43 Data from statewideinitiatives examining teachereducation have shown substantivelinks between the quality of theteacher preparation program and theachievement of students taught bygraduates of the program.44 Alsoclear is the finding that the initialteacher preparation program, nomatter how good, cannot do it all;well-designed, ongoing, job-embedded professional developmentis needed in addition.45 And the finalcomponent that makes for anoutstanding early literacyinstructional program is howeffectively the teacher is able toengage families in their childrensliteracy development at home duringthe preschool and primary gradeyears.46

    2.1 Align teacherlicensure andprogramaccreditationrequirements toPreschool-Grade 3language andliteracy standards.

    The first step inteachersprofessionaldevelopment isinitial licensurethrough anaccreditedpreparationprogram. As of

    January 2014, 17 states requiredelementary teacher candidates topass an assessment measuring theirknowledge of evidence-basedreading instructional practices priorto certification; 13 states require thesame of early childhood teachers.Illinois does not require teachercandidates, either early childhood orearly elementary, either prior to orfollowing certification, todemonstrate knowledge of earlyliteracy on any such assessment.47

    Current professional teachingstandards in Illinois requireknowledge in reading instructionapproaches, including those thatdevelop word knowledge,vocabulary, comprehension, fluency,and strategy use in the contentareas.48 However, these standards

    in seeking to buildambitious earlyliteracy instructionin illinoisclassrooms,teachers wouldbenefit from clearguidelines on howto identifyappropriatecurricula andinstructionalactivities.

    Action 2 includes the followingrecommendations:2.1 Align teacher licensure and programaccreditation requirements to Preschool-Grade 3language and literacy standards.2.2 Provide in-service teachers (includingclassroom assistant teachers and paraprofessionals)with evidence-based professional learningprograms focused on early language and literacydevelopment and instruction.2.3 Ensure that classroom personnel develop theknowledge and skill needed to work effectivelywith families on childrens early language andliteracy development.

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  • are not currently robust enough toensure appropriate knowledge in thescience of reading instruction. Incertain respects what is needed is forIllinois teacher preparation standardsin the English Language Arts to catchup with Illinois student learningstandards in the English LanguageArts that are aligned with theCommon Core State Standards. Thisrecommended action for the P-3sector parallels Action 2.1 in theaccompanying UIC Center forLiteracy policy paper on CCSS.49

    2.2 Provide in-service teachers withevidence-based professionallearning programs focused onearly language and literacydevelopment and instruction

    Professional learning for practicingteachers has been an area of robustactivity in recent years, and this isespecially the case with respect toprofessional learning related to P-3education. This work has arisen frommultiple areas: over a decade ofEarly Reading First projects,50 theEarly Childhood EducatorProfessional Development Programfunded by the US Department ofEducation,51 work arising fromvarious sectors focused on providingonline professional learningexperiences for early childhoodeducators,52 studies of literacycoaching in the early grades,53 andmore. The work has provided us with

    solid research evidence that highquality professional learningopportunities make a significantdifference in improving teachersclassroom practice and raisingstudent achievement. It has alsoyielded a rich understanding of howto create professional learningcommunities focused on P-3 literacyeducation that are built on evidence-based adult learning principles andpractices.

    The evidence is compelling that acoordinated program of professionaldevelopment focused on P-3 earlyliteracy can make a significant,positive impact on instruction andthereby raise student achievementlevels to scale in the state. Effectiveearly literacy professional learningprograms for teachers are sustained(one-shot workshops or presentationshave no evidence of affectingpractice),54 based on sound principlesof adult learning, and embedded inthe contexts of teachers work. Anespecially effective feature of severalearly literacy professional learninginitiatives has been the use of literacycoaches who work in the classroomto support teachers instructionalchange efforts.55

    Our recommended policy action is tosystematically provide suchprofessional learning programsfocused on early language andliteracy to Illinois preschool and

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    the initial teacherpreparationprogram, no matterhow good, cannotdo it all; well-designed, ongoing,job-embeddedprofessionaldevelopment isneeded in addition.

    Woodard, R., & Kline, S., Moving Beyond Compliance: Implementing the Common Core State Standards in Literacy (Chicago: Research on Urban Education Policy Initiative and UIC Center for Literacy, 2015).49For example, see UIC Early Reading First. Retrieved from http://www.uic.edu/educ/erf/; Early Reading First/SmartStart. Retrieved from50http://www.smartstartga.org/_downloads/UWMA_SmartStart_READERS_Grant_2006-2010.pdf; Han, M., et al., Beating the Odds: Longitudinal Investigation of a Low-income, Dual-language and MonolingualChildrens English Language and Literacy Performance, Early Education and Development, 25, no. 6 (2014): 841-858.Neuman, S.B. & Kamil, M. (Eds.), Professional Development for Early Childhood Educators: Principles and Strategies for Improving Practice (Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes, 2010).51For example, see the My Teaching Partner Project. Henry, A. D., & Pianta, R. C., Effective Teacher-Child Interactions and Literacy: Evidence for Scalable, Aligned Approaches to Professional Development, In52S. Neuman & D. Dickinson (Eds.), Handbook of Early Literacy Research, Vol. 3 (New York: Guilford, 2011): 308-321. Atteberry, A. & Bryk, A. S., Analyzing Teacher Participation in Literacy Coaching Activities, The Elementary School Journal, 112, no. 2 (2011): 356-382.53Martin, S., Quatroche, D., & Bauserman, K. (Eds.), Handbook of Professional Development in Education (New York: Guilford, 2014).54UIC College of Education, UIC Early Reading First. Retrieved from http://www.uic.edu/educ/erf/; Atteberry, A. & Bryk, A. S., Analyzing Teacher Participation in Literacy Coaching Activities, The Elementary55School Journal, 112, no. 2 (2011): 356-382; Neuman, S. B., & Cunningham, L., The Impact of Professional Development and Coaching on Early Language and Literacy Instructional Practices, AmericanEducational Research Journal, 46, no. 2 (2009): 532-566.

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  • primary grade educators.

    Such a process is currentlyunderway in one sector. ThroughRace to the Top-Early LearningChallenge funding, the IllinoisGovernors Office of EarlyChildhood Development hasimplemented the PreschoolInstructional Excellence project,which, through grantee the Ounce ofPrevention, is helping earlychildhood programs throughout thestate strengthen organizationalsupports to structure and facilitateembedded professional developmentfor teachers in order to achievehigher levels of instructionalexcellence.56

    Extending this type of systematiceffort to other sectors for K-3teachers across the state is highlyrecommended. Such an effort couldbe coordinated at the state level andmade available to school districts.Another possibility is to tie suchprofessional development tolicensure renewal. The key is tomake early language and literacy anexplicit part of professional learningprograms for primary gradeteachers.

    2.3 Ensure that classroompersonnel develop the knowledgeand skill needed to workeffectively with families onchildrens early language andliteracy development.

    A 2013 meta-analysis of familyinvolvement research over a 10-yearperiod summarized the impact of

    family involvement on learning anddevelopment for children ages 3-8.57A main, not unexpected, findingwas that family involvementpositively impacts childrensdevelopment in literacy and math.However, it is important to note thatthe weakest influence was thevariable called Family Involvementin School attending open houses,parent-teacher conferences,participating in the classroom, andvolunteering. Yet, since theintroduction of Title 1, these havebeen the most frequent meansschools use to encourage parentinvolvement. The body of researchdid indicate benefits from familyliteracy programs and home visitingprograms that implement research-based literacy practices in the home,but such programs currently reachonly a limited number of parents.

    Thus, to have the best potentialbenefits of parent involvement, it isnecessary to prepare P-3 teachersand leaders to be able to collaboratewith parents in ways that go beyondthe typical outreach activities. Thismeans enhancing home-basedliteracy activities to effectively andefficiently extend familyengagement and thereby raisestudent achievement. In Action 4below, we discuss in more depthspecifics for engaging families intheir childrens early language andliteracy learning, but we raise theissue here also because of the needfor professional development thatwill equip P-3 educators with theknowledge and skill needed toengage and support families in

    productive ways that extend beyondthe typical school-basedinvolvement described in thepreceding paragraph. Most of thecurrent P-3 workforce in Illinois isunderprepared to accomplish therecommendations in Action 4without this targeted professionaldevelopment.

    Such professional developmentwould be based on sound practicesof adult learning and would targetareas such as:

    How to Select Good Bookswith Your ChildEffective and Fun HomeRead Alouds Having Conversations withYour Child: A Key to BuildingSchool ReadinessWords, Words, Words: BetterVocabulary Means BetterLearning throughout SchoolListening to Your(First/Second/Third) GraderRead To YouHow (P, K, Gr. 1/2/3) ChildrenDevelop in Writing, and WhatYou Can Do to Support It

    Key to the successful uptake of suchactivities in the home is making surethat each one includes attention tochildren/families who speaklanguages other than English andsensitivity to developmentaldifferences in young children.

    There are numerous research-basedexamples of effective home literacyactivities for family engagement.The policy challenge in this case is

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    See http://www.theounce.org/what-we-do/professional-development-LLE. 56Van Voorhis, F. L., Maier, M. F., Epstein, J. L., & Lloyd, C. M., The Impact of Family Involvement on the Education of Children Ages 3 to 8 (New York: MDRC, 2013).57

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    establishing means of gettingteachers/administrators familiar withthem and developing the capacity(and will) to implement them acrossP-3.

    Action 3: Build the capacity ofpreschool administrators,elementary school principals, andrelevant early education personnelto lead high-quality early languageand literacy programs thatimprove student learning.

    The vast majority of the current earlychildhood leadership workforce inIllinois is underprepared to engage inwhat is needed to create andsustain excellence in earlyliteracy education. Thissituation exists for a numberof reasons. Historically,preschool education and K-12 education have occupiedlargely separate universesand therefore what it meantto be an early childhoodprogram director and aschool principal were quitedifferent. Early normalschools and, later, teachereducation programs, offeredvery little in early childhoodeducation for professionalpreparation of teachers, andtodays prekindergartenteacher preparation oftentakes place in programs separatefrom K-12 programs. In addition,until relatively recently preschooleducation concerned itself largelywith fostering areas of earlychildhood development other thanacademic skills, whereas teachingchildren to read has been perhaps themost fundamental part of childrens

    first years in elementary school. Inthe past it was not typical for anelementary school to have aprekindergarten housed in itsbuilding, and even today rarely doelementary schools collaborate withpreschools in their surroundingcommunity. Thus, it is perhaps notsurprising that, from a leadershipstandpoint, the P-3 continuum that isso important to literacy developmentin the early years and beyond, isconsiderably underdeveloped.

    This situation needs immediateattention because, as current researchon school reform makes clear,

    organizational capacity is what is keyto high achievement; and leadershipis a prime lever for increasingorganizational capacity.58 A parallelsituation exists in early care:leadership is key to a high qualityearly childhood program.59 Withrespect to leadership and the P-3literacy agenda in Illinois, our hope is

    ...to have the bestpotential benefits ofparent involvement,it is necessary toprepare p-3teachers andleaders to be ableto collaborate withparents in ways thatgo beyond thetypical outreachactivities.

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    Cosner, S., Tozer, S.E., & Smylie, M.A., The Ed.D. Program at the University of Illinois Chicago: Using Continuous Improvement, Planning58and Changing, 43 (2012): 127-48; Leithwood, K. A., & Riehl, C., What Do We Already Know about Educational Leadership? In W. A.Firestone & C. Riehl (Eds.), A New Agenda for Research on Educational Leadership (New York: Teachers College Press, 2005): 12-27. National Association of Elementary School Principals, Leading Pre-K-3 Learning Communities: Competencies for Effective Principal Practice59(Alexandria, VA: National Association of Elementary School Principals, 2014).

    Action 3 includes the followingrecommendations:3.1 Ensure that preparation programs for leadersof learning organizations serving young childrenare based on program standards and activitiesthat foster leader knowledge, skills, anddispositions aligned with current early languageand literacy research.3.2 Implement policies that foster amongcurrent preschool leaders, elementary schoolprincipals, and district leadership necessaryknowledge, advocacy, and skill in instructionalleadership, organizational leadership, policy,and developing adult learning related to earlyliteracy education.

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    that policy changes will help allschool principals to become earlychildhood literacy educators and allearly education program directors tobecome literacy leaders. Our reviewof research and leadershippreparation programs indicates thata two-pronged approach will beeffective in realizing this goal.

    3.1 Ensure that preparationprograms for leaders of learningorganizations serving youngchildren are based on programstandards and activities thatfoster leader knowledge, skills,and dispositions aligned withcurrent early language andliteracy research.

    It can be argued that of the fivemajor Actions in this report, Actions1-4 are deeply dependent for theirsuccess on district, building, andcenter leadership. At the preschoollevel, the factors currentlyemphasized in Illinois licensure forChild Care Directors includepreparation in child care and/orchild development from birth to age660 and assume completion of acredentialing program focused onthe growth and education ofchildren zero to six years of age.61In the area of elementary schoolprincipal preparation, programstypically emphasize understandingthe learning environment, creating apositive school culture, curriculum,assessment, and resourcemanagement,62 although progresstoward a P-3 orientation has beenachieved with the passage of a new

    Illinois Pre-K-12 PrincipalEndorsement requiring earlychildhood education curriculumcontent, field experiences, andlicensure exam content for allcandidates who aspire to theprincipalship at any level.63 Theaforementioned content andexperiences are all critical togrooming competent educationalleadership, but, overall, preparationstandards and programs in bothareas are not comprehensiveenough: preschool leaderpreparation does not attendspecifically enough to early literacydevelopment and pays scantattention to the continuum of P-3development while school principalpreparation struggles for curricularspace to attend to the skills andstrategies necessary for preschoolleadership. Overall, currentstandards and requirements to lead alearning organization serving youngchildren understate the importanceof language and literacy. We needleaders in our systems of earlyeducation who can effectivelypromote and implement the P-3literacy agenda; such leaders:

    Embrace a P-3 early literacylearning and teachingcontinuumUnderstand early literacydevelopment and whatconstitutes high quality earlyliteracy curriculum andinstruction for the diversechildren served in theirprogram

    Foster teacher/staff teamworkthat addresses early literacyinstruction and assessment forthe diverse children served intheir programUse data to assess childrensearly literacy growth and toaddress explicitly the ongoingadult learning necessary toimprove that growth, P-3, ineach early educational settingConnect the center/school tofamilies and the community inorder to foster P-3 literacylearning

    Such standards and competenciesrequire infusion of enhanced earlyliteracy content into leaderpreparation in Illinois at the districtleadership as well as the buildingleadership levels. In the area ofschool principal preparation, weoffer the UIC Ed.D. in UrbanEducation Leadership as an exampleof what that can look like inpractice. This program has built inthe following features to enablefuture leaders of Chicago PublicSchools and other school districts toenact a P-3 early literacy agenda:

    An entire course on LeadingImprovement of LiteracyLearning designed to promoteeffective organizational andinstructional strategies for P-12 reading and writingeducation across thecurriculum.Attention to issues of principalleadership in early childhoodinfused into all principal

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    Illinois General Assembly. Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Section 407.130, Qualifications for Child Care Director. Retrieved from60http://www.ilga.gov/commission/jcar/admincode/089/089004070d01300r.html. Illinois General Assembly. Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Section 407, Appendix G: Early Childhood Teacher Credentialing Programs. Retrieved from61http://www.ilga.gov/commission/jcar/admincode/089/08900407ZZ9996gR.html. Illinois State Board of Education, Illinois Administrative Code (2013). Retrieved from http://www.isbe.net/rules/archive/pdfs/25ark.pdf.62For full information on the new Illinois principal licensure law P.A. 096-0903, see Illinois School Leader Taskforce, Working to Prepare Illinois School Leaders. Retrieved from http://illinoisschoolleader.org. 63

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  • policy BRIEFpreparation and developmentcoursework preservice andinservice through a faculty-implemented default rule:The default expectation is thatearly childhood education willbe included in the curriculumof every course in theprogram, whether ininstructional leadership,organizational leadership,practitioner inquiry, or othercontent area.Program field experiences areunusually extensive because ofa partnership with ChicagoPublic Schools that provides a12-month, full-time, full-salary leadership residency;and whether ones residency isin an elementary school withearly childhood programs or ina secondary school (withoutsuch programs), the residencyrequires structured site visitsto early childhood programs.

    Standards and programs enhancedfor early literacy content andexperience will set the stage forproviding leaders at both thepreschool and elementary schoollevels who will positively impactreading and writing achievement foryears to come. The focus on the P-3continuum has particular potentialfor bridging dialogue between earlychildhood directors and elementaryprincipals in ways that can build acommon vocabulary and moresystemic approaches to making thecontinuum an institutional reality.

    3.2 Implement policies that foster

    among current preschool leaders,elementary school principals anddistrict leadership necessaryknowledge, advocacy, and skill ininstructional leadership,organizational leadership, policy,and developing adult learningrelated to early literacy education.

    While the implementation of policyrecommendation 3.1 contributes tomore effective P-3 literacy programsin the immediate years to come,there also needs to be action takento upgrade existing leaders capacitywith respect to early literacy.Recently, both the NationalGovernors Association64 and theNational Association of ElementarySchool Principals65 have issuedpublications focused on leadingearly learning communities. Werecommend extending the initiativeof these organizations by launchinga campaign directed at currentpreschool leaders and elementaryschool principals focused onbuilding awareness of the criticalimportance of P-3 literacyachievement and districtleadership will be crucial to thesuccess of such an initiative. Thatcampaign can then be followed witha targeted program of high qualityprofessional development to helpcurrent Illinois leaders build theirskill in four areas specificallyrelated to early literacy education:

    Instructional leadershipOrganizational leadershipPolicyAdult learning for theirteaching staff

    In addition, professional supportshould be given to help district andbuilding leaders incorporate intotheir family/communityinvolvement efforts enhanced focuson early literacy. This professionaldevelopment initiative could beaccomplished through acollaboration among Illinois IHEs,ISBE, the Governors Office ofEarly Childhood Development, theIllinois Department of Children andFamily Services, Head Start,nonprofits in the early childhoodsector, the states professionalassociations for superintendents andprincipals, and foundations.

    Action 4: Engage and supportfamilies in their childrens earlylanguage and literacy learning.

    Virtually every preschool programin Illinois aims for familyinvolvement in their childrenseducation. In some cases, such asHead Start, regulations requireagencies to engage in a process ofcollaborative partnership-buildingwith parents toidentify familygoals, strengths, and necessaryservices and other supports.66 Atthe K-3 level, home-schoolconnections are stressed ascontributing significantly tochildrens academic achievement.The process of maintainingschool/center and home partnershipshas a deep research base,67 andvarious facets of family engagement health; parent employment,English language learning andeducation; childrens socialemotional and cognitive

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    National Governors Association, A Governors Guide to Early Literacy: Getting All Students Reading by Third Grade (Washington, DC: National Governors Association, 2013); National Governors Association.64Leading for Early Success: Building School Principals Capacity to Lead High-Quality Early Education. Retrieved fromhttp://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/2013/1306LeadingForEarlySuccessPaper.pdf.National Association of Elementary School Principals, Leading Pre-K-3 Learning Communities: Competencies for Effective Principal Practice (Alexandria, VA: Author.2014)65Head Start, Head Start Policy & Regulation. Retrieved from http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/standards/hspps/1304/1304.40%20Family%20partnerships..htm. 66Henderson, A., & Mapp, K., A New Wave of Evidence: The Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement (Austin, TX: Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, 2002); Van67Voorhis, F. L., Maier, M. F., Epstein, J. L., & Lloyd, C. M., The Impact of Family Involvement on the Education of Children Ages 3 to 8 (New York: MDRC, 2013).

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    development can be part ofpartnership activities.

    Our review of research indicatesthat attention to early language andliteracy development should be anintegral element in familyengagement at both the preschooland K-3 levels. This has certainlybeen the case throughout thepreschools and elementary schoolsof Illinois, but the research reviewresulted in three recommendationsfor how attention to early literacycan be enhanced to achieve betteroutcomes for children.

    4.1 Fund and implement acampaign designed to increasethe numbers of families activelyengaged in their childrens earlylanguage and literacydevelopment in the home.

    Research has indicated a number ofhome programs and activities thathave been shown to havesignificant positive impact onchildrens early literacydevelopment.68 Thus, in manyrespects, as a state we know whatto do, and we are in position tocontinue implementing suchprograms. A shortcoming at thistime, however, is that we have notsuccessfully engaged enoughfamilies in these early literacyfamily involvement activities totake overall early literacyachievement to the next level.Therefore, it is recommended thata campaign aimed at both familiesand educators be designed to raisesignificantly the number of familymembers who are actively engaged

    in supporting their young childrenslanguage and literacy developmentin conjunction with the early careinstitutions and schools that theirchildren attend. Ideally, thiscampaign would be a cross-sectorcollaboratively planned andconducted initiative. Both childcareentities and schools wouldparticipate, as would both thepublic and private sectors. Thisbroad-based approach is needed to(1) inform the public and educatorsabout the need for enhanced home-school collaboration, (2) increaseactual family engagement, and (3)equip teachers and administratorswith up-to-date, research-basedstrategies for workingcollaboratively and productivelywith families on early literacy.

    15

    For example, see Rodrguez-Brown, F. V., Project FLAME: A Parent Support Family Literacy Model. In B. Wasik (Ed.), Handbook of Family Literacy (Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2004): 213229. 68

    the vast majority ofthe current earlychildhoodleadershipworkforce in illinoisis underprepared toengage in what isneeded to createand sustainexcellence in earlyliteracy education.

    Action 4 includes the followingrecommendations:4.1 Fund and implement a campaign designed toincrease the numbers of families activelyengaged in their childrens early language andliteracy development in the home.4.2 Inform educators about home supports forfacilitating young childrens literacydevelopment during two critical learningtransitions that occur during P-3: from emergentto conventional literacy and from beginning tofluent reading.4.3 Embed evidence-based early language andliteracy supports as part of all home visitingprograms.

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    4.2 Inform educators and familiesabout home supports forfacilitating young childrensliteracy development during twocritical learning transitions thatoccur during P-3: from emergentto conventional literacy and frombeginning to fluent reading.

    We have already stressed the criticalimportance of the P-3 period forchildrens lifelong literacydevelopment. That said, researchshows that there are two especiallyimportant transitions during thistime of a childs literacy life. Onetypically occurs around age 5 as achild moves from emergentliteracy69 (engaging in such literacybehaviors as pretend readings70and invented spelling71) to beingable to read and writeconventionally (i.e., decoding thewords on the page, usingconventional spellings of words,etc.). The other usually happensduring second grade or the early partof third grade when the childtransitions from reading word byword to reading fluently withaccurate word recognition, adequatespeed, and expression.72 Each ofthese transitions represents asignificant leap forward forchildrens literacy development, buteach of them can also be a stallingpoint, causing a child to lag behindin literacy achievement and find itmuch harder to catch up again.

    A considerable amount is knownabout childrens developmentthrough each of these periods andabout effective supports that canhelp children develop the skillsneeded to smoothly go throughthese transitions.73 However,comparatively little has beensystematically implemented in earlyeducation with respect to howparents and others in the homeenvironment can support childrensliteracy development during theseperiods.

    Because these are such importantlearning phases and becauseeffective home and school/centercollaboration has been shown tosignificantly enhance childrensearly literacy development, werecommend that the Illinois EarlyLearning Council(http://www2.illinois.gov/gov/OECD/Pages/EarlyLearningCouncil.aspx) take the leadership in forming atask force that would (1) informpreschool and K-3 teachers andadministrators about the importanceof coordinated classroom and homesupport to help children make thesetransitions smoothly and (2)recommend afunding/development/distributionplan for making availableresources/activities that could beused by families at home to extendchildrens learning in these areas.

    4.3 Embed evidence-based earlylanguage and literacy supports as

    part of all home visitingprograms.

    Home visiting programs are widelyregarded as an evidence-basedpolicy choice for supportingfamilies with preschool children,74and current trends suggest that homevisiting initiatives will increase inthe coming years.75 At the federallevel under the Improving Access toHigh-Quality Child Care and EarlyEducation portion of PresidentObamas proposed 2015 budget,funding for voluntary, evidence-based home visiting is extendedand expanded.76 In general, homevisiting programs enable medicalpersonnel, social workers, and otherprofessionals to connect families toservices that support childrenshealth, development, and ability tolearn.

    We support the continuation inIllinois of evidence-based homevisiting, but our review of thelearning development contentrelated to the literacy developmentof 3/4-year-olds that is currentlyincluded in home visits indicates aneed for strengthening andsharpening that content in order toadequately support the P-3 earlyliteracy agenda addressed in thispolicy brief.

    We recommend that the HomeVisiting Task Force Subgroup of theIllinois Early Learning Council forma committee that would make

    Teale, W. H., & Sulzby, E. (Eds.). Emergent Literacy: Writing and Reading (Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation, 1986).69Sulzby, E., Childrens Emergent Reading of Favorite Storybooks: A Developmental Study, Reading Research Quarterly, 20, no. 1 (1985): 458481.70Read, C., Pre-school Childrens Knowledge of English Phonology, Harvard Educational Review, 41, (1975): 134. 71Kuhn, M.R., Schwanenflugel, P.J., & Meisinger, E.B., Aligning Theory and Assessment of Reading Fluency: Automaticity, Prosody, and Definitions of Fluency, Reading Research Quarterly, 45 (2010): 232-253.72Snow, C., Burns, M. S., & Griffin, P., Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children (Washington DC: National Academy Press, 1998).73Avellar, S., Paulsell, D., Sama-Miller, E., Del Grosso, P., Akers, L., and Kleinman, R. Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness Review: Executive Summary (Washington, D.C.: Office of Planning, Research and74Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014). National Conference of State Legislatures. Home Visiting Enacted Legislation in States (2014). Retrieved from http://www.ncsl.org/research/human-services/home-visiting-enacted-legislation-in-states.aspx. 75The White House Administration Office of Management and Budget. Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Overview (2015). Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/overview. 76

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  • recommendations for how attentionto early literacy supports could beincreased in the current homevisiting sessions. The UIC Center forLiteracy would be happy to partnerwith this committee of the HomeVisiting Task Force Subgroup tosuggest individuals and entities thatwould be able to offer concrete andevidence-based, practicalrecommendations for how theattention to early literacy supportscould be enhanced during homevisits.

    Action 5: Collaborate in andsupport the development of neededresearch in early language andliteracy.

    Policy and practice alike can andshould be informed by research.Research is useful for instrumentalpurposes, conceptual insight, andpolitical strategies; collaborating onresearch and evaluation projects alsooffers policymakers and practitionersinsights into the logic of research,which may ultimately inform theirown work in new and useful ways.77However, policymakers andpractitioners do not always turn toresearch as much as to otherresources to inform their work,78though not necessarily for lack ofinterest or desire,79 and thus there isfrequently a disconnect betweenresearch and policy/practice. Thedisconnect may be due to a numberof factors, but the following are oftenat work80:

    Research reports may becomplex and evencontradictory, thus inhibitingpolicymakers andpractitioners ability to use andapply research results in theirwork.Sifting through numerousstudies laden with caveats andlimitations to develop acoherent understanding of theresearch base on a particulartopic can be time-consumingand burdensome, especially forindividuals unused to researchnorms.Researchers may be unaware ofthe issues and questions thatpolicymakers and practitionersidentify as relevant or timely.

    Finding ways to bridge the divide iskey to developing better policy andpractice that are grounded in researchevidence.

    Given that early literacy is arguablythe most highly researched area ofany in the field of education, it mayseem odd that one of our policyrecommendations is to conduct moreearly literacy research. But, givennational results on NAEP,81international comparisons on literacyachievement,82 and the persistentachievement gaps in reading andwriting across cultural andsocioeconomic groups,83 we stillneed to know more about the P-3period, which sets the achievement

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    Nutley, S. M., Walter, I. & Davies, H. T. O., Using Evidence: How Research Can Inform Public Services (The Policy Press: Bristol: UK, 2007).77Elliot, J., Emlen, A., Tvedt, K., & Weber, B., Research and Child Care Policy A View from the States (1991). Retrieved from http://health.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/sbhs/pdf/1999-Research-and-78ChildCare-Policy.pdf.Bogenscheider, K. & Corbett,T. J., Evidence-Based Policymaking: Insights from Policy-Minded Researchers and Research-Minded Policymakers (Routledge: NY, 2010).79Nelson, S.R., Leffler, J.C., & Hansen, B.A., Toward a Research Agenda for Understanding and Improving the Use of Research Evidence (Portland, OR: Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 2009).80Retrieved from www.nwrel.org/researchuse/report.pdf.National Center for Education Statistics. The Nations Report Card: A First Look: 2013 Mathematics and Reading (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, 2013).81Fleischman, H. L., Hopstock, P. J., Pelczar, M. P., & Shelley, B. E., Highlights from PISA 2009: Performance of U.S. 15-year Old Students in Reading, Mathematics, and Science Literacy in an International82Context (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2010).National Center for Education Statistics. The Nations Report Card: Trends in Academic Progress 2012 (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, 2013).83

    we have notsuccessfullyengaged enoughfamilies inearlyliteracy familyinvolvementactivities to takeoverall early literacyachievement to thenext level.

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    trajectory for the rest of studentsschooling.

    5.1 Engage with researchers inIllinois, nationally, andinternationally to develop acoherent early language andliteracy research agenda forIllinois.

    The development of a coordinated,coherent early literacy researchagenda is key to addressing issuesfaced by the various sectors inapplying research to policy andpractice. First, the process ofengaging in concerted efforts todevelop an agenda offers animportant opportunity forcoordination across sectors. Simplyfacilitating opportunities forinteractions and dialogue betweenresearchers and policymakers canhelp build trust and mutuallyrespectful relationships. Indeed,policymakers and researcherssometimes hold erroneousassumptions about the ability orinterest of the other party to engagein such efforts. Yet policymakersindicate their use of research oftenhinges on access to reliable, expertintermediaries to distill and explainresearch findings.84 Researchersthemselves can benefit from directfeedback from policymakers andpractitioners to improve the format,style, and content of their work inorder to make it more useful to thepolicy and practice worlds. Withouta context and reason forcollaboration, however, suchinteractions are difficult tomanufacture.

    Thus, we recommend thedevelopment of the Illinois EarlyLiteracy Research Agenda throughcoordinated, intentional efforts toidentify and prioritize forresearchers topics and issues thatpolicymakers and practitioners findmost directly relevant to enhancingthe quality of home and schoolefforts to enhance young childrensearly literacy development. Such acoordinated effort helps researcherssee that what may seem mundane tothem may be enlightening to thepractitioner or what may begroundbreaking in the researchworld may be of little relevance topractice. Negotiating acommon set of questionsis a key means to breakthrough communicationand cultural barriersacross sectors.

    Once developed, a clearagenda can fostercoordination within theresearch community.Researchers, particularlyin academia, often workindependently, andindividual studies do not alwayscohere easily. Additionally,academic researchers are mostlyrewarded for peer-reviewpublications of studies with novelfindings. In the academic context,replications and seemingly mundaneresults are not always valued ordisseminated. As a result, bodies ofresearch can be slow to develop. Acoordinated agenda can bringtogether individual researchers intoa community focused on developing

    coherent sets of recommendationsabout early literacy issues.

    Recognizing such realities, the Data,Research, and Evaluation committeeof the Illinois Early LearningCouncil put forth in 2014 a researchagenda intended to communicate thedesired research and evaluationneeds of the Council. Althoughlanguage and literacy were not listedamong the primary areas ofinquiry,85 the committees agendacan serve as a foundation for thespecific efforts we recommend here.

    5.2 Develop a system for

    adequately funding the Illinoisearly language and literacyresearch agenda.

    Funding and support to build policy-and practice-relevant researchcapacity are clearly needed. Severalexisting models of research-policy/practice partnerships havehad noted success ininstitutionalizing partnerships,collaborations, and consortia bydrawing on various funding sources

    UIC Research on Urban Education Policy Initiative

    Bogenscheider, K. & Corbett,T. J., Evidence-Based Policymaking: Insights from Policy-Minded Researchers and Research-Minded Policymakers (Routledge: NY, 2010).84Early Learning Council, Annual Report (2014). Retrieved from http://www2.illinois.gov/gov/OECD/Documents/Early%20Learning%20Council/Council/ELC_AnnualReport_FY14.pdf.85

    Action 5 includes the followingrecommendations:5.1 Engage with researchers in Illinois,nationally, and internationally to develop acoherent early language and literacy researchagenda for Illinois.5.2 Develop a system for adequately funding theIllinois early language and literacy researchagenda.

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    Early Childhood Literacyhttp://ruepi.uic.edu

    and relying on local universitycapacity. For example, the OregonChild Care Research Partnership(OCCRP), founded in 1995 withinitial federal support from theChild Care Bureaus Child CarePolicy Research Consortium, hasbeen housed at various universitiesthroughout its history.86 Work isconducted in coordination withseveral state agencies andorganizations to carry out itsresearch agenda87, thus developingcritical research capacity amongstate childcare and early educationagencies. In Illinois, the IllinoisEducation Research Council (IERC)was created and designated bylegislation to function as theresearch arm of the P-20 Council.The IERC conducts policy-relevanteducational research, with projectsfunded through a variety ofpublic/private sources.88 The earlycare and education field in Illinois,however, currently lacks such aninstitutionalized body. Ourrecommendation is to bring togetheran Illinois Early Literacy ResearchTask Force comprised of state-levelearly education policymakers,representatives of foundations, andschool district, Preschool for All,and Head Start leadership personnelto explore ways to fund theintentionally developed earlylanguage and literacy researchagenda described in Action 5.1. Werecommend that this task force lookcarefully at recommendations andresearch from leading literacyprofessional organizations such asthe International LiteracyAssociation, the Literacy ResearchAssociation, and NationalAssociation for the Education of

    Young Children. Strategies for thetask force can include: (a)developing consensus around theshared vision articulated in 5.1 and(b) identifying human capital andfunding supports needed toimplement this coordinatedresearch.

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    Oregon State University, School of Social and Behavioral Health Sciences, History. Retrieved from http://health.oregonstate.edu/sbhs/family-policy/occrp-history. 86Oregon State University, School of Social and Behavioral Health Sciences, Research Activities. Retrieved from http://health.oregonstate.edu/sbhs/family-policy-program/occrp-research-activities. 87Illinois Education Research Council, Current Projects. Retrieved from http://www.siue.edu/ierc/projects/index.shtml. 88

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  • Early Childhood Literacy

    policy BRIEF

    http://ruepi.uic.edu

    about usThe Research on Urban Education Policy Initiative (RUEPI) is an education policy research project based in the Universityof Illinois at Chicago College of Education. RUEPI was created in response to one of the most significant problemsfacing urban education policy: dialogue about urban education policy consistently fails to reflect what we know and whatwe do not about the problems education policies are aimed at remedying. Instead of being polemic and groundedprimarily in ideology, public conversations about education should be constructive and informed by the best availableevidence.The UIC Center for Literacy is a public service and research center that works to improve literacy education, policy andresearch at the local, state and national levels. We provide leadership and technical assistance to Chicago area schoolsand community- based organizations for the purpose of enhancing the quality of literacy services. We also work withpublic and private entities to formulate policies that support effective literacy programs. The Center responds to issues inliteracy education by serving as a public clearinghouse for literacy information; establishing partnerships with universitydepartments and external agencies; contributing to enhanced graduate education for future leaders in literacy education;and creating innovative, research-based programs that serve as exemplary models for public practice. Our activities areespecially focused on helping to reduce literacy as a barrier to full societal participation for all individuals.our MissionRUEPIs work is aimed at fostering more informed dialogue and decision-making about education policy in Chicago andother urban areas. To achieve this, we engage in research and analysis on major policy issues facing these areas,including early childhood education, inclusion, testing, STEM education, and teacher workforce policy. We offer timelyanalysis and recommendations that are grounded in the best available evidence. our approaChGiven RUEPIs mission, the projects work is rooted in three guiding principles. While these principles are not grounded inany particular political ideology and do not specify any particular course of action, they lay a foundation for ensuring thatdebates about urban education policy are framed by an understanding of how education policies have fared in the past.The principles are as follows:

    Education policies should be coherent and strategic Education policies should directly engage with what happens in schools and classrooms Education policies should account for local context

    RUEPI policy briefs are rooted in these principles, written by faculty in the University of Illinois at Chicago College ofEducation and other affiliated parties, and go through a rigorous peer-review process.

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    The development and publication of this brief was supported by the University of Illinois College of Education and Centerfor Literacy.

    learn more at http://ruepi.uic.edu and http://cfl.uic.edu

    ContaCt [email protected]@uic.edu1040 West Harrison StreetChicago, Illinois 60607

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