Dorchester School District Two & Charleston Southern University Partnership for the Read to Succeed Initiative for South Carolina Teachers and Students

Purpose Reading proficiency is a fundamental life skill vital for the educational and economic success of everyone. National research has documented that students unable to comprehend grade-level text struggle in all their courses. Reading is typically assessed through standardized tests beginning in grade 3 in South Carolina; however, research has found that many struggling readers reach preschool or kindergarten with low oral language skills and limited print awareness.

Purpose Students reading below grade level at the end of third grade are typically six times more likely to leave school without a high school diploma. Students who have difficulty comprehending text struggle academically in their content area courses but seldom receive effective instructional intervention during middle and high school to improve their reading comprehension. These students are the ones least likely to graduate. The South Carolina Supreme Court has ruled that all students must be given “an opportunity to read, write, speak, listen, and use language effectively across all content areas. To guarantee that all students exhibit these abilities and behaviors, the State of South Carolina must implement a comprehensive and strategic approach to reading proficiency for students in prekindergarten through twelfth grade that begins when each student enters the public school system and continues until he or she graduates.

Read To Succeed Program All licensed teachers, administrators and district staff must earn graduate credit or professional development hours toward the Read to Succeed requirements. The number of credits or professional development hours is dependent on the type of license you possess. Dorchester District Two and Charleston Southern University have entered into a partnership for ALL Dorchester School District Two teachers and administrators to complete this requirement.

Current Legislative Requirements Coursework must be completed within five or ten years or, beginning with the 2015-16 school year, before the next license/certificate renewal. The length of time depends on the your certification. For certificates/licenses expiring June 30, 2015, this requirement to have earned the literacy coursework does not apply, BUT, will apply for the next license renewal. Courses being offered by CSU have been approved by the Read to Succeed Office and align with IRA and SCDE requirements. http://ed.sc.gov/agency/se/Read-to- Succeed/ProvisionallyApprovedCollegeCourseworkforLiteracyTeac herEndorsementandLiteracyCoachEndo.cfm

Early Childhood Education Certified Classroom Teachers 12 hours of graduate coursework or 240 professional development hours (not currently an option) are required. Coursework must be completed within ten years of the most recent certification by taking at least two courses or six credit hours every five years beginning with the 2015-16 school year. For certificates/licenses expiring June 30, 2015, this requirement to have earned the literacy coursework does not apply, BUT, will apply for the next license renewal. Courses aligned to the R2S requirements are: Foundations of Literacy Reading and Writing in the Content Area Instructional Strategies for Reading and ELA Assessment Strategies for Reading and ELA

Early Childhood Education Certified Classroom Teachers Individuals who possess a reading teacher certification may take a content area reading course to obtain the Literacy Teacher add-on endorsement. Individuals who possess a literacy teacher add-on endorsement or who have earned a master’s or doctorate degree in reading are exempt from this requirement. Individuals who have completed an intensive and prolonged professional development program like Reading Recovery, Project Read, the South Carolina Reading Initiative, or another similar program should submit their transcripts to the Office of Educator Licensure to determine if they have completed the coursework required for the literacy teacher add-on certificate.

Early Childhood Education Certified Classroom Teachers Courses to be offered over three terms. Proposed course schedules are listed on the final slides. Class meetings, when required, will meet on Dorchester District Two sites. Course projects will be designed to accommodate classroom, building, or district initiatives.

Elementary Education Certified Classroom Teachers 12 hours of graduate coursework or 240 professional development hours (not currently an option) are required. Coursework must be completed within ten years of the most recent certification by taking at least two courses or six credit hours every five years beginning with the 2015-16 school year. For certificates/licenses expiring June 30, 2015, this requirement to have earned the literacy coursework does not apply, BUT, will apply for the next license renewal. Courses aligned to the R2S requirements are: Foundations of Literacy Reading and Writing in the Content Area Instructional Strategies for Reading and ELA Assessment Strategies for Reading and ELA

Elementary Education Certified Classroom Teachers Individuals who possess a reading teacher certification may take a content area reading course to obtain the Literacy Teacher add-on endorsement. Individuals who possess a literacy teacher add-on endorsement or who have earned a master’s or doctorate degree in reading are exempt from this requirement. Individuals who have completed an intensive and prolonged professional development program like Reading Recovery, Project Read, the South Carolina Reading Initiative, or another similar program should submit their transcripts to the Office of Educator Licensure to determine if they have completed the coursework required for the literacy teacher add-on certificate.

Elementary Education Certified Classroom Teachers Courses to be offered over three terms. Proposed course schedules are listed on the final slides. Class meetings, when required, will meet on Dorchester District Two sites. Course projects will be designed to accommodate classroom, building, or district initiatives.

Reading Interventionists, Special Education, and Speech Certified 12 hours of graduate coursework or 240 professional development hours (not currently an option) are required. Coursework must be completed within ten years of the most recent certification by taking at least two courses or six credit hours every five years beginning with the 2015-16 school year. For certificates/licenses expiring June 30, 2015, this requirement to have earned the literacy coursework does not apply, BUT, will apply for the next license renewal. Courses aligned to the R2S requirements are: Foundations of Literacy Reading and Writing in the Content Area Instructional Strategies for Reading and ELA Assessment Strategies for Reading and ELA

Reading Interventionists, Special Education, and Speech Certified Individuals who possess a reading teacher certification may take a content area reading course to obtain the Literacy Teacher add-on endorsement. Individuals who possess a literacy teacher add-on endorsement or who have earned a master’s or doctorate degree in reading are exempt from this requirement. Individuals who have completed an intensive and prolonged professional development program like Reading Recovery, Project Read, the South Carolina Reading Initiative, or another similar program should submit their transcripts to the Office of Educator Licensure to determine if they have completed the coursework required for the literacy teacher add-on certificate.

Reading Interventionists, Special Education, and Speech Certified Courses to be offered over three terms. Proposed course schedules are listed on the final slides. Class meetings, when required, will meet on Dorchester District Two sites. Course projects will be designed to accommodate classroom, building, or district initiatives.

Principals, Administrators, and School Psychologists One course [3 graduate credits] required, or 60 hours of professional development hours (not currently an option) are required. Coursework must be completed within five years, or beginning with the 2015-16 school year, before the next license/certificate renewal. For certificates/licenses expiring June 30, 2015, this requirement to have earned the literacy coursework does not apply, BUT, will apply for the next license renewal.

Principals, Administrators, and School Psychologists Reading and Writing in the Content Area is the recommended course to be offered by CSU. Proposed course schedules are listed on the final slides. Class meetings, when required, will meet on Dorchester District Two sites. Course projects will be designed to accommodate classroom, building, or district initiatives for Dorchester District Two.

Teachers with K-12 Certification (Non-Special Education) Legislation is not clear on the amount of coursework that must be completed or the timeframe in which it is to be completed. SDE is being contacted for additional information. For certificates/licenses expiring June 30, 2015, this requirement to have earned the literacy coursework does not apply, BUT, will apply for the next license renewal.

Teachers with K-12 Certification (Non-Special Education) Reading and Writing in the Content Area is the recommended course to be offered by CSU. Proposed course schedules are listed on the final slides. Class meetings, when required, will meet on Dorchester District Two sites. Course projects will be designed to accommodate classroom, building, or district initiatives for Dorchester District Two.

Dorchester School District Two Approach & Incentives A partnership has been created with Charleston Southern University who will serve as a Post Secondary Partner in fulfilling the requirements of Read to Succeed. Established a special tuition pricing of $395 for each of the courses offered for the Read to Succeed requirements. There is no application fee or transcript fee for this program. Established a proposed sequence of course offerings where courses may be offered over three terms (fall, spring, and summer). Each class is limited to a maximum of 35 teachers. Classes will be offered in a hybrid format (face-to-face and online via Blackboard)

Dorchester School District Two Approach & Incentives Class meetings, when required, will meet on Dorchester District Two sites. Course projects will be designed to accommodate classroom, building, or district initiatives. Dorchester Two will pay $195 to CSU to offset the cost of each class in this partnership with CSU ONLY. Teachers opting to use the courses toward the M.Ed. in Elementary Education at CSU will pay an additional separate fee to CSU [$500] per course. Registration forms will be at your school sites. Dorchester Two is currently developing a plan to determine the priority of seats for the courses.

OPTION 1 [three consecutive terms] Elementary Teachers Course Registration Deadlines Cohort Class Meeting Final Project EDUC 676 Foundations of Reading and Writing   September 17, 2014 EA [35] September 29, 2014 December 8, 2014 September 24, 2014 EB October 6, 2014 December 15, 2014 EDUC 673 Content Area Reading and Writing January 7, 2015 January 12, 2015 March 16, 2015 January 20, 2015 March 23, 2015 EDUC 677 Instructional Strategies for Reading and ELA May 27, 2015 June 8, 2015 8:30 – 11:30 a July 2, 2015 12:30 – 3:30 p EDUC 678 Assessment Strategies for Reading and ELA July 2, 2105 OPTION 1 [three consecutive terms] Elementary Teachers

Elementary Teachers OPTION 2 Course Registration Deadlines Cohort Class Meeting Final Project   EDUC 676 Foundations of Reading and Writing September 17, 2014 EC & ED [35 each] October 6, 2014 December 8, 2014 EDUC 673 Content Area Reading and Writing January 7, 2015 January 12, 2015 March 19, 2015 EDUC 677 Instructional Strategies for Reading and ELA September 9, 2015 September 30, 2015 December 14, 2015 EDUC 678 Assessment Strategies for Reading and ELA January 6, 2016 January 19, 2016 March 24, 2016 [four terms over two years – no summer session] Elementary Teachers OPTION 2