Literacy Facts Illiteracy costs American taxpayers an estimated $20 billion a year 42 million adult Americans can’t read 50 percent of American adults can’t read an eighth-grade- level book 20 percent of American adults are functionally illiterate and read below a fifth grade level Worldwide, approximately 500 million women are illiterate, making up two-thirds of the adult population that cannot read One billion children and adults, approximately 15 percent of the world’s population, lack basic literacy skills

…an international scaffold for disciplinary literacy.

Professional purposes: Immerse disciplinary literacy educators in breakthrough resources in research and appropriate instructional practices Provide on-line high quality materials, programs, and professional learning opportunities Engage university-based research scholars and school-based practitioner scholars in dialogic conversations Employ technology to disseminate and collect information Respond in a timely manner to ensure professional learning Demonstrate materials and access to models of appropriate instructional practices

Theoretical foundation: Literacy learning is complex (Clay, 2001) Literacy enterprises are an aesthetic as well as an efferent endeavor (Rosenblatt, 1978) Knowledge is socially constructed (Vygotsky, 1978) Attention, motivation, and situation need to be in harmony for learning to be productive (Csíkszentmihályi, 1997) Opposing views are seen as strengths rather than hurdles towards seeking solutions (Bakhtin, 1981) Adult learning is a solution-seeking endeavor (Knowles, 1984) Universal conditions of learning need to be in place for optimal literacy learning to occur (Cambourne, 1988)

A holistic PK-20 education consolidates established and research proven educational practices with current resources and future needs. The creation of a cohesive PK-20 system will better prepare students for the jobs of the 21st century.

Cooperation among educational levels has to be in place in order to equip and prepare students A cohesive PK-20 instructional plan identifies strengths and scaffolds students to ensure success Education is the common denominator

Why is disciplinary literacy acquisition and instruction important? Can add to one’s understanding of him or herself and others Can increase the habits of reflective thought and critical thinking Part of lifelong learning enjoyment

Purposes for disciplinary literacy acquisition and instruction To understand human endeavors, attitudes, and interactions To understand and appreciate human creativity To contemplate one’s own humanity To critically analyze perspectives about humankind and human endeavors To evaluate the quality of human endeavor

Past and Present activities Since July 2012 the MIRC has facilitated over 90 events with 22,250 attendees Developed partnerships with: Florida Alliance for Arts Education (FAAE) Florida Literacy Coaches Association (FLCA) Orange County Reading Council (OCRC) American Reading Forum (ARF) Adult Literacy League International Association of Hispanic Poets and Writers (AIPEH) Teaching to the Core, Series 2013 Literacy Coach Re-boot Camp

On the drawing board… STEAM e-journal A professional electronic journal addressing science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics Re-membering Literacy A literacy intervention for low-progress adolescents Continue rebranding as a “disciplinary literacy center”

The MIRC’s continual goals are to: 1.Change the language and lexicon; eliminate "classroom" from our vocabulary and talk about “professional learning environments” 2.Plan a diversity of responsive spaces for learning; no one space can realistically be "multipurpose" 3.Accept that the role of the imagination isn't just for the arts, and process isn't just for the sciences—seek the intersections that make sense for particular subject areas 4.Put the users, the teachers, and the students in control of their space, furniture, technology, and digital tools 5.Create spaces at every level that are: experiential, interactive, collaborative, active, and exciting.

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Ultimately… To serve as a conduit and a catalyst of information to : Improve disciplinary literacy acquisition and instruction Scaffold PK-20 student learning to think deeply and critically Highlight the importance of the humanities to learning