X425 and L525 focus on teaching struggling readers and English as a second language (ESL). The RELATE decision model is used in developing, implementing, and evaluating program progress for the learner(s). Instruction is planned for a classroom, s mall group, or one-to-one setting; and in each module the theoretical base for instructional techniques is discussed. At the conclusion of L525/X425, you will have the knowledge to:

1. Develop an individualized program appropriate to your learner's reading and writing needs.

2. Develop a plan for evaluating the learner and program and make recommendations for instructional revision.

3. Select and discuss particular strategies, organization plans, and resources that could be considered when working in intervention and remedial settings.

4. Develop a case report on your learner.

5. Develop projects directly related to your learner's needs and interests.

Required texts for all X425/L525 students:

• McCormick, S. (2002). Instructing students who have literacy problems, 4th edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. (Amazon.com lists used copies for $60).

In addition, students with an ESL focus should obtain:

• Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. (1999). The art of teaching ESL: Leader's guide. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.

It is required that each student choose one of the following based on a specific area of interest:

• Thematic Learning: Gamberg, R., Kwak, W., Hutchings, M. and Altheim, J. (1988). Learning and loving it: Theme studies in the classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Working with adolescents: Atwell, N. (1987). In the middle: Writing, reading, and learning with adolescents. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Writing: Calkins, L. (1986). The art of teaching writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Phonics and word analysis: Musstafa, M. (1997). Beyond traditional phonics: Research discoveries and reading instruction. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

In addition to textbook reading, most modules are accompanied by comments from the instructor. Some of the words in the comments are underlined links to other sites which might offer detailed explanations, examples, visuals, or samples of other's work. These sites are included to support your learning and are often helpful in preparing assignments.

How to Submit Your Assignments

         You may submit your written assignments directly to the appropriate Oncourse question within the discussion forums. You may also submit your projects in one of three ways: through the U.S. Post Office and another mail delivery service (Fed-Ex, etc.) to my home address (postmarked by due date for U.S.-based students), through e-mail to me using attached files*, or through “cut and paste” into an e-mail to me. You may only use the attached files option if your computer has Virex or another effective program for detecting/eliminating computer viruses. This has been a big problem in distance education courses I have taught in the past, so please take this requirement seriously!

         For non-U.S.-based distance education students, I suggest one of the two electronic submission options due to slow mail times.

         The discussion question responses will be submitted directly to the Oncourse learning management system.. More instructions on this will be provided later.

Late Work Policy

         Assignments are due by midnight of the due date. Exceptions will be made at the instructor’s discretion, but this is a rare occurrence and generally involves a serious medical or other personal emergency. Late assignments’ grades will be deducted one full letter grade for each weekday they are late. It is better to turn in a rough draft on time than to turn in a late assignment or no assignment at all! Assignments that need further work will be returned to you within ten (10) days for revision before a final grade is assigned.

Fall 2004 Semester L525 Assignments

         There will be six written assignments due this session, including your participation in Oncourse discussions.  A major assignment is the construction of a cross-curricular thematic unit.  You will also implement this unit with a student, and include it as part of a case study.   In addition, L525 students must complete a book review. (Students in X425 do not need to do the book review.)

ASSIGNMENTS in L525/X425

Students are also reminded of upcoming assignments and their due dates in weekly class e-mails. DO NOT use the assignment descriptions/instructions given in the Modules, as some of them have been modified or even omitted for this term. Specific directions will also be posted in Oncourse.

         Please note that most of your assignments are based on interviews, testing and other information you will have gathered from your tutorial sessions.

     All written assignments can be posted on Oncourse or sent to my e-mail address. More specific  instruction on how to submit assignments and other guidelines appear later on this web page.

L525 SYLLABUS for Spring 2005

Note: This syllabus is subject to change.  Current students should pay attention to Oncourse postings and email messages from the instructor for up-to-date information.

         Specifics on each assignment, plus your weekly readings (textbook and modules) assignments will be provided in whole-class weekly e-mail messages, and will also be posted at Oncourse Forum. A calendar of specific dates will be emailed to you, and will also be posted on Oncourse.

WEEK ONE

Please submit a one to two paragraph self-introduction, submitted to the appropriate Oncourse discussion forum under In Touch tab. This is a non-graded exercise.

Your other responsibilities: recruit your tutee (the person you will work with all session) and set the place, time and date for your first tutorial, purchase your textbooks and begin reading this week's assignments, navigate the L525/X425 web site and our Oncourse Forum (instructions and password will be sent in your second class e-mail) to familiarize yourself with these resources.

WEEK TWO

Self-Introductions due to instructor's e-mail In Box.

Continue tutee recruitment efforts; set up first meeting, establish tutorial schedule.

Assignment #1: Language Arts autobiography OR reading interview   ( Note: You have 2 weeks to complete this assignment.)

WEEK THREE

Tutees must be recruited by this week!

Oncourse discussions begin.

Continue working on Language Arts Autobiography or reading interview.

Assignment #2: Begin work on research bibliography. This assignment will be due at end of the course.

WEEK FOUR

DUE: Assignment #1

(New) Assignment #2: Case Study, Part One (Reading Interview and Informal Reading Inventory. Gathering data and student information.)

WEEK FIVE

Continue working on Assignment #2.

WEEK SIX

DUE: Assignment #2: Case Study Part One

(New) Assignment #3: Case Study Part Two. (Unit Proposal and Rationale. Planning Instruction.)

WEEK SEVEN

Continue work and planning on Unit Proposal.

Participate in Oncourse discussions

WEEK EIGHT

DUE: Assignment #3: Case Study Part Two.

(New) Assignment #4: Book Review

* Begin tutoring *

WEEK NINE

Continue tutoring. Implement unit.

WEEK TEN

Continue tutoring. Implement unit.

WEEK ELEVEN

Continue tutoring. Implement unit.

WEEK TWELVE

(New) Assignment #5: Case Study Part 3 (Completing the Case Study. Final Unit with Reactions and Predictions).

Continue tutoring. Implement unit.

WEEK THIRTEEN

Continue tutoring. Implement unit.

Continue working on Case Study

WEEK FOURTEEN

Continue tutoring. Implement unit.

Continue working on Case Study

DUE: Assignment #2: Research Bibliography.

WEEK FIFTEEN

DUE: Submit Case Study, Part Three

Self Assessment

WEEK SIXTEEN

All Assignments DUE!

Course evaluations due

BOOK REVIEW ASSIGNMENT

For L525 students only:

A review of one of the books (Atwell, Calkins or Mustapha, as mentioned in the syllabus). Other titles are negotiable.

                                    OR

4-5 journal articles relating to a similar topic or theme. Ex: Using young adult novels in the content area classroom. Ex: Modifying curriculum for the ESL student. Ex: Working with struggling middle school readers. Ex: Latino young adult literature. These journal articles must be available full-text on-line or you must mail photocopies of them in to me so that I may also read them.

ONCOURSE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

SUMMARY OF DISCUSSION QUESTION TOPICS and RESPONSE DUE DATES

You will be e-mailed during the second week of the course with instructions about where to find these questions and when/how to respond

HOW YOUR L525/X425 FINAL COURSE GRADE IS DETERMINED:

Grading for L525:

• Assignment #1: Autobiography or Student Interview 15%
• Assignment #2: Research Bibliography 15%
• Assignment #3: Case Study Part 1 15%
• Assignment #4: Case Study Part 2 15%
• Assignment #5: Case Study Part 3 15%
• Assignment #6: Oncourse Discussion Question Responses 20%

Grading for X425:

• Assignment #1: Autobiography or Student Interview 15%
• Assignment #2: Informal Interest Inventory 20%
• Assignment #3: Unit Proposal and Unit 30%
• Assignment #5: Case Study 20%
• Assignment #6: Oncourse Discussion Question Responses 15%

Note: No research bibliography (Assignment #2) is required in X425

DISCUSSION QUESTION RESPONSE DUE DATES

  You will  post your answers in Oncourse in the Discussion Forum under the In Touch tab. You do not have to wait until the due date to post an answer; you may respond and post at any time after receiving the question. Questions relate to readings and assignments from previous weeks.

Question #1                 To be announced--ask instructor

Question #2                 To be announced--ask instructor

Question #3                 To be announced--ask instructor

Question #4                 To be announced--ask instructor

Question #5                 To be announced--ask instructor

Reading Assignments

Each week's reading assignment(s) will be sent via email. Some reading assignments can be found in the required modules we are covering in that same week.

Feedback

The following rubric will be followed for grading assignments. If there are changed, students will be notified.

1. Followed all directions carefully.

2. Showed evidence of learning from reading modules, assignments, and textbooks. (Examples: quotes, important concepts cited, etc...)

3. Written clearly; well-organized.

4. Resulted in an exceptionally-thorough, professional product. (Examples: Unit is exceptional in both content, thoroughness, appearance. It is worthy of sharing with collegues or publishing for wide audience.)

5. Shows awareness of student needs.

6. Exhibits excellent creativity. (Unit or writing is motivating and unique. It does not draw primarily materials that have been published or copied from other sources.)

GRADING SCALE:

97.5-100%   =       A+

92.6-97.5%  =       A

90.1-92.5%  =       A-

87.6-90%     =       B+              

82.6-87.5%  =       B      

80.1-82.5%  =       B-              

77.6-80%     =       C+

72.6-77.5%  =       C      

Contacting the Instructor

The instructor will contact students once a week (generally on Mondays or Tuesdays) to touch base on student progress, etc. Assignment feedback/grades are generally provided within 7-10 days after receiving the work. These will be provided directly to students through an e-mail with the subject line: “L525/X425 Assignment #1 Feedback/Grade.”

Students are welcome to contact the instructor through e-mail at any time during the course with questions, comments, concerns, etc. The instructor usually responds to student e-mails within two days.

In the event that you have a computer-related emergency or other personal emergency, you may elect to contact me by telephone. My home number and address will be provided in an email message during the first full week of class.

 Students should write “L525: Personal” or “X425: Personal” on the subject line for all e-mails intended for the instructor only. If you would not mind the instructor sharing your e-mail message (if it pertains to the course, naturally!), omit the word “personal” on the subject line. An example of such an e-mail might be one about a book you want to recommend to classmates.

The instructor may request your permission to share a particularly outstanding assignment or project with your classmates.

Attached Files (Attachments) and Virus Protection

No attached files (attachments) may be submitted to the instructor by students who do not have Virex or another effective virus detection/elimination project on their computers. This is for the protection of all of us! If you do not have a virus protection program and will not be getting one this session, please submit your assignments and projects through the U.S. mail or other home delivery service or through the “cut and paste” e-mail method. If you need instructions for how to do a “cut and paste” e-mail submission, please e-mail me. IU students can download the Norton Antivirus protection program from IUWare, or purchase it at a discount from the IU Bookstore.

Following is a listing of course modules and major topics. Please note that some modules are required, and some are supplementary. Modules marked as "supplementary" should be read, but the assignments in these modules are extra credit.  Click on the underlined module to see an in-depth discussion of each topic, related readings, and assignments.

ONCOURSE & MODULE ACCESS INFORMATION Important Note!! The passwords for Oncourse and the modules are now the same. To login to Oncourse: Go to http://oncourse.iu.edu. Use your IU Network ID to enter Oncourse. If you do not have one, go to http://itaccounts.iu.edu and choose "I am a Student" and "I need to Create my first IU computing accounts and passwords." Then fill out the rest of the forms. To view the modules: When you click on the Module title listed below, you will need to login using your IU Network ID and password.

Module 1: (required)

Professionalism

The reading process

Principles of intervention/remediation

Module 2: (required)

RELATE Model

Selecting a learner

Describing learner characteristics

Setting goals and objectives

Lesson plans that make you think

Module 3: (required)

Informal interest inventory/reading interview

Building on interest

Using authentic literature in creative ways

Language Experience Approach

Module 4: (required)

The learner as inquirer

Designing theme units

High-interest/low-vocabulary

Rewriting materials

Readability formulas

Using audiotapes

Progress charts

Module 5: (required)

The case study process

Process writing

Literature circles

Story boards

Module 6: (supplementary)

Reading and writing for real purposes

Using newspapers and magazines

Comprehension strategies

Bookmaking

Module 7: (supplementary)

Phonics and word analysis and how they fit into the whole curriculum

Module 8: (required)

The affective component of reading

Creating a learning community

Teaching at-risk learners

Bibliotheraphy

Module 9: (supplementary)

Helping struggling readers in the content areas

Module 10: (supplementary)

What to remember when setting up a reading program

Module 11: (supplementary)

Evaluating your instruction

Reflecting on the course

Consultant: Jean Ann Behney

Jean Ann (Frazer) Behney is a 1980 summa cum laude graduate of Indiana University with a B.S. in secondary education (French major; English minor). She has taught French, ESL, English, language arts, reading (Title I), and gifted and talented classes at the elementary, middle school, and high school levels. She is currently a doctoral student in IU's Language Education Department, where she has taught courses in content area reading and adolescent literature. She also works with Dr. Hope Elkins through an Educate Indiana grant to help struggling readers in a rural school system. She lives in Bloomington with her husband and three teenagers. (Photo: Jean Ann with her youngest niece, Anna Katharine. May, 2001).

Course Author: Hope Elkins, Ph.D., Indiana University