Exploring a Literacy Partnership to Inform Educational Leadership: The Story of Calgary Reads
Date
2019-07-22
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Abstract
Abstract. This study focuses on a significant challenge in an educational leader’s role; working to ensure success for all students. Consistent, strong leadership at both school and district levels can positively impact outcomes for students. While school leadership can create the conditions that encourage high-quality teaching and improved outcomes for students, education system leadership can create the conditions that allow school leaders to be successful. It is widely recognized that a child’s journey to becoming literate is closely linked to future learning. In such complex and demanding work, educational leaders often find themselves grappling for the best possible approaches and practices to improving literacy outcomes. In some instances, educational leaders seek opportunities to collaborate with community support. The purpose of this narrative inquiry was to investigate one such community program in an attempt to inform the literacy practices of school-based and system-based educational leaders. The community program examined in this study was Calgary Reads, a literacy-focused agency which collaborates with schools and school districts around literacy, including providing early literacy interventions in elementary school settings. Interviews with the organization’s executive director, one district leader, four school-based leaders, twelve classroom teachers and eight children, all who are supported by Calgary Reads, provided the study’s data. In total, 26 participant stories were gathered, presented, and thematically analyzed. The narrative analysis revealed the strongly expressed need for ongoing, meaningful professional learning opportunities in early literacy for leaders and teachers. From this overarching narrative theme, recommendations regarding system and school supports, leader and teacher professional learning needs and decision-making approaches regarding early literacy in schools and school systems are provided. Keywords: educational leadership, literacy, professional development, community.
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Literacy, Reading, Language Arts, Educational Leadership, Teachers, Teaching, Intervention, Early Literacy, Partnerships, System Leadership, Community, Professional Learning, Professional Development, Teaching
Citation
Devitt, L. (2019). Exploring a Literacy Partnership to Inform Educational Leadership: The Story of Calgary Reads (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.