Reading and Spelling Development: Why Keep It A Secret? Teachers Can Help Parents Understand Literacy Development, Implications for Children's Growth

Education expert and Pearson author Shane Templeton discusses relationship between spelling knowledge and reading development

Framingham, MA, November 13, 2009 — Teachers play a key role in helping parents understand the important relationship between spelling knowledge and reading development and the implications for their children’s growth, according to a keynote address by leading education expert and Pearson author Dr. Shane Templeton. Dr. Templeton’s presentation, “Reading and Spelling Development: Why Keep It a Secret?” was delivered at Framingham State College’s Alpha Upsilon Alpha honor society initiation ceremony and was sponsored by Pearson, the global leader in education, education technology and services.

“Beginning with younger children and continuing throughout the grades, we can excite students about words-their sounds, how they feel when they’re spoken, their meanings and where they come from, how they are written and perhaps most important, understanding the power they can wield,” said Dr. Templeton.

Dr. Templeton is Foundation Professor of Literacy Studies in the Department of Educational Specialties at the University of Nevada, Reno and one of the lead authors of Pearson’s best-selling Words Their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction. Words Their Way provides educators with a practical, research-based approach to teaching word study, spelling, vocabulary and phonics.

A former classroom teacher at the elementary and high school levels, Dr. Templeton’s research has focused on developmental word knowledge in elementary, middle and high school students. He is widely published in a number of research and practitioner journals.

Alpha Upsilon Alpha, the honor society of the International Reading Association, recognizes and encourages scholarship, the development of personal and professional leadership, and service to the field of reading at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Pearson’s Teacher Education & Development Group is the only business in the education industry that is completely dedicated to supporting the education and professional development of teachers from preparation through practice, with content and services that represent the research and knowledge of America’s leading education researchers. Respected imprints and programs, including Allyn & Bacon, Merrill and MyEducationLab, provide today’s students who will be tomorrow’s teachers with powerful insights and applications into how real-world classrooms work. In fact, six out of ten teachers in the United States used Pearson content and services in their teacher preparation programs, including customized solutions for alternative certification along with graduate degree program offerings.

Practicing teachers also benefit from evidence-based professional development programs in mathematics, literacy, RTI and for English learners that help improve the academic achievement of diverse student populations, including the recently acquired A+RISE business. In addition, Pearson’s SIOP® Model offers a specific, proven pedagogical approach to teaching both content knowledge and

language skills, and has helped instruct millions of students in the United States. Pearson’s other research-based offering for educators and school improvement includes Learning Teams, which helps teachers focus the 21st Century skills of collaboration and problem solving on improving student achievement.

In addition, Pearson offers research and evaluation services in order to help school districts measure the impact of their professional development initiatives and provide critical insights to guide decisions about follow-up training and support. Pearson’s Evaluation Systems offers customized and off-the-shelf teacher certification assessments for more than 20 states, and partners with the National Board for Professional Teacher Standards to support their nationally recognized program.

About Pearson’s Teacher Education & Development Group

Pearson’s Teacher Education & Development Group is uniquely positioned to improve teaching effectiveness with content and services that shape teachers from their earliest undergraduate experiences up to and throughout their teaching careers. Our respected imprints and programs, including Allyn & Bacon, Merrill and MyEducationLab, provide today’s students who will be tomorrow’s teachers with powerful insight and applications into how real-world classrooms work. Practicing teachers benefit from evidence-based professional development programs in mathematics, literacy, RTI and for English learners that help improve the academic achievement of diverse student populations, including the recently acquired A+RISE business. Our Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP®) Model is a groundbreaking framework for teaching English language learners in a way that makes the concepts easier to understand, while at the same time strengthening a student’s English skills. Our other research-based professional development includes Pearson Learning Teams, which helps teachers focus the 21st Century skills of collaboration and problem solving on improving student achievement.

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Susan Aspey
Pearson
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