Literacy 101 Course Outline Understanding makes reading worthwhile and fun... Designer: Ani Campbell

Introduction The purpose of Literacy 101 is to encourage and advance 9 th grade literacy

Course Outline Description Course Goal Objectives Performance Objectives Learning Activities Learning Assessment Tools Course Evaluation Click on a link to go directly to that section Literacy 101 is based on Moore and Kearsley’s theory of Transactional Distance. (Dick, Carey, & Carey, 2003, p. 96). It follows a constructivist approach, thus making it a ‘learner centered’ approach rather than a ‘job skills’ approach. Teaching modules are based on the following components:

Description Literacy 101 was designed for use by instructors of 9 th grade English. It may also be adapted for use in teaching literacy to other high school grades and adults.

Course Goal To lessen (and in the case of some students, eliminate) the gap between the national standard for reading, comprehension and/or writing abilities of 9 th grade students, and their actual abilities in the stated areas of literacy.

Objectives  Assess initial reading/comprehension abilities of students  Provide students with learning plan  Teach visualization  Teach recognition of genres  Increase student vocabulary  Provide students with appropriate literary works Setting objectives will ensure that instructors meet the goal of the course

Objectives -- (Continued)  Assess student progression  Advance levels of teaching as appropriate  Final analysis of student learning  Course evaluation

Performance Objectives  Obtain understanding of student level of ability  Student understands purpose of portfolio  Student to grasp concept of visualization  Student to recognize basic genres  Student increases vocabulary by minumum of 10 words Whether students are informed of performance objectives or not, they should be included in the lesson plan so that measurement may be taken at each teaching module.

Performance Objectives -- (Cont.)  Student reads minimum of 3 works during semester  Student to recognize his/her progression  Student is empowered to select advanced reading  Student is encouraged by his/her progress  Student adds input to improve the course

Learning Activities  Online literacy assessment exercise  Students maintain portfolio of their progress  Online activity associating words with appropriate visuals  Provide students with lecture or other description of various genre  Provide students with short pieces from each genre  Assess understanding with matching quiz  Select words from among works studied Learning activities are based on the course and performance objectives, and should be designed to meet those objectives while enhancing student learning. Learning should be fun!

Learning Activities (cont.)  Students to read from suggested works  Students may suggest alternative reading. Proceed upon approval of instructor  One-on-one discussion with students  Quiz (either oral or written) to assess comprehension  Provide advanced levels of reading as appropriate  Final one-on-one with students  Quiz or written essay to assess comprehension of latest work read  Students to complete online evaluation (eg. Zoomerang)

Learning Assessment Tools  Portfolio  Oral questions  Short answer and essay questions  Online assessments  Group discussions  Student-teacher discussions  Grading rubric  Written papers  Team projects Sources: These tools follow an holistic and constructivist approach to teaching. They mirror formats that students will face in the work environment.

Learning Objectives  Determine initial level of learner ability  Determine best exercise(s) to increase learner ability  Assess advanced abilities  Promote further learning  Bring students to 9 th grade ability and beyond (if applicable)

Course Evaluation  Online evaluation survey  Student self-assessments The success or failure of a course is made evident by the ability of students to learn, to gain confidence in the material studied, and to be motivated to continue learning. A well-designed end-of-course evaluation will provide the instructor with the necessary feedback that s/he needs to improve instruction.

References Brown University (2005, March). Literacy: Introduction. Retrieved March 21, 2005, from Dick, W., Carey, L., & Carey, J. O. (2003). Sections One - Six. In (Ed.), Courseware Authoring (Custom Edition for University of Phoenix ed., pp ). Boston, Massachusetts: Pearson Custom Publishing. Lewin, T. (2004, April 14). In Cities, a Battle to Improve Teenage Literacy. Retrieved February 21, 2005, from