by Nell Duke, University of Michigan
and P. David Pearson, University of California, Berkeley
May 6, 2014
A little over one year ago, in our first post for the IRA Literacy Research Panel blog, we (i.e., the IRA Literacy Research Panel) stated, “We believe that research can offer some insights that it is not practical for an individual literacy educator to glean on his or her own (Duke & Martin, 2011).
- Research can allow us to learn about what happens to students over much longer periods of time under a broader range of conditions than we can typically observe.
- Research enables us to see inside students’ home and community settings in ways that are not typically possible to gain insights that help us connect with students.
- Research can allow us to look at larger numbers of students to see patterns that may not be otherwise evident, as well as to look more deeply at the experiences of any one student.
- Research can help us see things—such as particular instructional moves that are particularly effective or specific gaps in instruction—that we may not have seen ourselves.”
Over the past year, we have attempted to make these affordances of research more evident to IRA members and the larger literacy education community through blog posts as well as a number of activities.
Panel members at the 2013 session
Toward that end, in this post we want to take the opportunity to draw your attention to the research strand of the forthcoming IRA Annual Conference to be held May 9-12 in New Orleans. As you will see, each day of the Conference includes sessions specifically focused on literacy research, and a review of the Conference program reveals many additional sessions with a strong research base. All of these sessions are worthy of your time and attention, but we want to particularly draw your attention to the many Research Poster Sessions being offered. These sessions provide an opportunity to examine literacy research of your choosing at your own pace and to interact directly with the researchers involved. We find the IRA Outstanding Dissertation posters to be especially rewarding. They often provide preview of where the field may be going and who may end up leading it there. And we would be remiss if we did not mention the sessions being given by the Literacy Research Panel, at which the audience will be invited to offer questions and comments related to literacy policy and practice:
The IRA Literacy Research Panel: Priorities for Literacy Policy and Practice
Sunday, May 11, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Co-Chairs: P. David Pearson, Peter Johnston
We also invite you to spend time with us at these sessions:
Literacy Research Panel Poster Session: Evidence-Based Practices for Literacy Education
Saturday, May 10, 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Co-Chairs: Virginia Goatley, John Guthrie
IRA Literacy Research Panel: Teacher Education Policy Issues
Saturday, May 10, 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Co-Chairs: Peter Afflerbach
We look forward to seeing you at the Conference!
Nell Duke and P. David Pearson are members of the International Reading Association’s Literacy Research Panel. Reader response is welcomed. E-mail your comments to LRP@/.