Secondary School Literacy Instruction

by Betty D. Roe, Barbara Stoodt-Hill, Paul C. Burns

Well known for its detailed and practical explanations of reading, writing, and study strategies, SECONDARY SCHOOL LITERACY INSTRUCTION is required reading for all non-literacy teaching majors. Its motivational pedagogy especially appeals to pre-service teachers, who quickly realize that the text will help them improve their students' progress. Two hallmark chapters on content area teaching have brought this text wide acclaim for its unique application of literacy and study skills in all secondary subject areas. The text also is recognized for its proven pedagogy, including "Meeting the Challenge," which puts ideas into classroom practice, and "Focus on English Language Learners" and "Focus on Struggling Readers," which highlight important applications for these special needs learners in easy-to-locate sections in each chapter.

Genres: Education

480 pages, Hardcover

First published April 18, 2006

Reviews

[Jonathan Brammer · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is ironic that a textbook on literacy should be so unreadable. "Secondary School Literacy" is a perfect example of the moribund nature of current teacher education. A new copy costs $190, but it is barely worth the cost of paper and printing. Teachers across the country are being required to shell out for and read "Secondary School Literacy" to attain their state certifications (or to be recertified, in my case), and the authors seem to know that they have a captive audience. They have produced a boring and brainless hoop for educators to jump through.

Why so worthless? This book is a pile of context-free information; a collection of everything that pertains to high school literacy education, without a clear sense of what information is valuable or useful. This is a problem with textbooks in general, and the reason why a thoughtful teacher will favor primary sources. PLEASE, those of you who teach literacy courses, assemble a collection of primary source readings rather than making your students slog through this mindless textbook.