Athens, Ga. – Stephanie Jones, an award-winning researcher and professor from the University of Georgia College of Education, will offer two workshops for Macon-area educators-one on effective teaching methods to reach students from poor and working-class families and the other on high-quality reading instruction for all children-on Feb. 26-27 at the Macon Centreplex.
More than 1,500 Georgia educators have participated in “The Other Side of Poverty in Schools,” over the past few years. The one-day workshop will be held Feb. 26 and is designed to help teachers, administrators, counselors and teacher educators to:
• Explore the impacts of social class and poverty;
• Learn about the five principles for change to better meet the needs of working-class and poor students;
• Develop research-based teaching practices and curriculum sensitive to working-class and low income families;
• Learn to incorporate social class-related content in the classroom;
• Get ideas for establishing positive relationships with working-class and low-income families.
“The Reading Turn-Around Program,” a one-day workshop will be held Feb. 27. It is designed for teachers in elementary grades, instructional and literacy coaches, administrators, after-school specialists and tutors who want to learn about reading instruction for all children. Workshop participants will:
• Receive and review a copy of the book, “The Reading Turn-Around: A Five-Part Framework for Differentiated Instruction;”
• Learn about the social class-sensitive, five-part framework for differentiated instruction in reading;
• Examine how social class and poverty play a role in reading and language in the classroom;
• Analyze social class and poverty in popular culture, media and literature through critical reading practices;
• Design learning opportunities around working-class children’s literature;
• Create a concrete plan for individualizing reading instruction for “struggling” readers and enhancing literacy for all students.
The workshops are part of the CLASSroom Project @ UGA initiative developed by Jones, an associate professor in the department of educational theory and practice, and Mark Vagle, associate professor in elementary education at the University of Minnesota.
Jones, a former elementary school teacher, is author of the book, “Girls, Social Class and Literacy: What Teachers Can Do to Make a Difference” and co-author of “The Reading Turn-Around: A Five-Part Framework for Differentiated Instruction.”
Each workshop will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The cost for The Other Side of Poverty in Schools is $125, which includes workshop materials. The cost for The Reading Turn-Around is $150, which includes instructional materials and a copy of the book, The Reading Turn-Around: A Five-Part Framework for Differentiated Instruction. Registration deadline for both events is Feb. 19.
For more information on these or other workshops, or to register online see www.coe.uga.edu/events.
