Best Practices for Secondary Literacy Instruction

By Eric Grant, ECI 540 - 601

10 October 2013
The problem of older students who struggle with reading comprehension is urgent, and we must
address it with systematic approaches that help schools focus on literacy growth for all students
across all subject areas. (Darwin).
In most schools, if a classroom teachers data trends downward, change is called for. The
most obvious options include replacing the teacher or addressing the gaps in his or her teaching
practices. When on a far grander scale this slippage occurs, like, for example, National 12thgrade reading scores were lower in 2009 than they were in 1992 (Zhao) with just 38%
performing at or above proficient (Fine), then just replacing the teacher is not an option. In short,
the change must focus on teaching practices.
Plenty of attention has been devoted of late to science and mathematics to demonstrate
our international competitiveness; however, success in science and mathematics does not happen
without strong literacy skills. No focus trumps that of literacy instruction. Additionally, plenty of
attention has been dedicated to elementary literacy; however, according to national tests,
secondary literacy is in need of just as much attention. High yield practices in secondary literacy
instruction are critical to reversing this trend and would certainly fill the gaps of the teacher
discussed previously.
The definition of literacy is quite simple - the ability to read and write, and for a long
time, that was about the long and the short of it. Recently, though, it has become more complex.
Ones ability to read Where the Wild Things Are and write a one paragraph summary is quite
different from the ability to read numerous accounts of the March to Montgomery tasked with
communicating an analysis of bias to peers, teachers, or community members. To be truly literate
one must be a critical, deliberate reader and an articulate communicator. Thus, equipped teachers
must be versed and skilled in effective literacy instructional practices. But what exactly are these
practices?
The first best practice in reading instruction is volume: The NAEP 1998 reading report

card for the nation and the states showed that at every level, reading more pages at home and at
school was associated with higher reading scores. Students in the classrooms of more effective
teachers read 10 times as much as students in classrooms of less effective teachers (Calkins 51).
Educational researcher Richard Allington recommends that students read for ninety minutes each
day and that students read texts that are of their choosing, at their level, and of high interest
(Calkins 51).
Literacy, as stated in the introduction, however, goes beyond volume and basic fluency
toward varying depths of comprehension. In order to develop the skills toward comprehension,
teachers must be strategic in their instruction. In a general sense, this means, Direct, explicit
comprehension instruction (Reading Next). This instruction involves strategies that engage the
reader prior to reading. Notably here, Richard Allington discusses the need for brevity in the prereading phase, Three to five minutes of this activity should be sufficient, noting that spending
much more time here would diminish the time with eyes on text (Allington, What Ive Learned).
The instruction also incorporates researched-based comprehension strategies including guided
reading, self-selected reading, reciprocal teaching, summarizing, questioning the author, graphic
organizers, collaborative reading, and writing to learn such that students are creating meaning
from the text while reading. These during-reading strategies support Allingtons notion that the
most effective comprehension strategies are modeled and taught in the context of what the
students are reading. This provides for increased immediacy and personalization (Allington, You
Can't Learn From). In terms of secondary content area literacy, providing complementary trade
books that present content textbooks' key facts and concepts in a more engaging style is
recommended to increase student interest and assure a more accurately leveled text (Darwin).
In order to assure that students are growing as readers, a multi-faceted approach is
necessary. This approach begins with putting appropriately challenging, high-interest texts in the
hands of students and providing ample time for them to read. It is sustained through the
application of research-based practices that nurture a readers growth and it is constantly
measured and adapted through ongoing formative and summative assessments (Reading Next).
Like with reading, the first best practice for effective writing instruction is volume, as the
authors of Pathways to the Common Core note, Writing is just like any other practice - playing
piano, running, knitting. The more opportunity you have for practice, the better you get. They

also note that the Common Core State Standards statement, Write routinely, demands the
development of a writing routine for effective instruction (105 - 106).
In terms of improving writing, a host of researched strategies have yielded results.
According to Writing Next, the Carnegie Corporation's sequel to Reading Next, the most
important step is instructing writers in the writing process: planning, which involves pre-writing
and organizing; drafting, including word processing; revising; and editing. Additionally, they
recommend the use of summarizing, collaborative writing, specific writing goals, extended
writing opportunities, writing for authentic audiences, sentence combining and the use of
exemplar writing models.
According to Richard Allington, however, none of these strategies will meet their optimal
effectiveness unless students are given the opportunity to write about subjects important to them.
While this may seem obvious to many, too often students are assigned personally irrelevent
topics for a single audience - the teacher. This diminishes the students interest in producing a
quality product. Conversely, if the topic and audience are meaningful, student writers will
concern themselves over word choice, punctuation, and structure because it matters to them that
their ideas are communicated (Allington 2013).
A last critical piece to literacy instruction is the use of discussion and collaboration to
support reading and writing. Classroom dialogue, provides measurable benefits in
comprehension, motivation, and even language competence.The task of switching between
writing, speaking, reading, and listening helps students make connections between, and thus
solidify, the skills they use in each (Allington 2013). It is important however to make a
distinction here. Effective classroom dialogue involves focused student to student interaction in
an environment where students feel safe to express their ideas. This is a departure for many
teachers whose classroom dialogue has traditionally been teacher centered.
Effective secondary literacy instruction is an integrated process. For the sake of
explanation it seems logical to break it into its three independent parts: reading, writing,
speaking. However, in order to create a literacy-rich instructional classroom, these three
components are not separate; they complement one another to support student growth. Likewise,
though it is logical here to isolate and identify best practice strategies that lead to improved
literacy for students, these strategies work best in complementing roles. Additionally, it is critical
that teachers not just teach strategies, but that they teach students to be strategic. Strategic

readers and writers will learn and apply strategies that will support their efforts beyond
secondary schools into university classrooms and careers. This supports each educators ultimate
goal: to provide each of our students the skills to lead successful and productive lives.
Works Cited
Allington, Richard L., and Rachael E. Gabriel. "Every Child, Every Day." Educational
Leadership 69.6 (2012): n. pag. Print.
Allington, Richard L. "What I've Learned about Effective Reading Instruction from a
Decade of Studying Exemplary Elementary Classroom Teachers." JSTOR. N.p., June
2002. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.
Allington, Richard L. "You Can't Learn Much from Books You Can't Read." Reading and
Writing in the Content Areas 60.3 (2002): 16-19. Print.
Calkins, Lucy, Mary Ehrenworth, and Christopher Lehman. Pathways to the Common
Core: Accelerating Achievement. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2012. Print.
Darwin, Marlene, and Steve Fleischman. "Research Matters / Fostering Adolescent
Literacy." The Adolescent Learner 62.7 (2005): 85-87. Print.
Fine, Victoria. "12th Grade Reading Scores Worse Than In 1992." The Huffington Post.
TheHuffingtonPost.com, 18 Nov. 2010. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.
"Reading Next." Carnegie Corporation of New York: Search Publications. N.p., 2004.
Web. 07 Oct. 2013.
Wendt, Jillian. ""Combating The Crisis In Adolescent Literacy: Exploring Literacy In The
Secondary Classroom."" American Secondary Education 41.2. N.p., 2013. Web. 1 Oct.
2013.
"Writing Next: Effective Strategies to Improve Writing of Adolescents in Middle and
High Schools." Alliance For Excellent Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2013.

Zhao, Emmeline. "American High School Students Are Reading Books At 5th-GradeAppropriate Levels: Report." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 22 Mar.
2012. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.