Year: 2020
Talking Literacy webinar series continues
2020 Review of the Disability Standards for Education
We recently sought the input of teachers, parents, and students with learning difficulties to help inform AUSPELD’s submission to the 2020 Review of the Disability Standards for Education. We received almost 1,000 completed surveys from families and educators across Australia!
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the many teachers, parents and students who took the time to respond to the survey and who spoke so honestly about their experiences and views. Hopefully, we have captured your thoughts and voices in our submission.
AUSPELD’s submission can be viewed here.
Talking Literacy – first three speakers announced!
We are pleased to announce the first three speakers in this webinar series…
The first conversation with Carl Hendrick will be released at 3:00pm AWST (5:00pm AEST) on Tuesday 22 September.
If you have colleagues or friends who would like to view the Talking Literacy series, please encourage them to register via:
https://auspeld.org.au/events/talking-literacy/
Registered participants will receive an email link and access code to watch each webinar when it goes live on the scheduled date. If you are not able to view the webinar on the day of its release, please feel free to view (or listen to) the webinars via the link at a time convenient to you.
Carl Hendrick is the co-author of two books: What Does This Look Like in the Classroom: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Practice and How Learning Happens – Seminal Works in Educational Psychology and What They Mean in Practice. He holds a PhD in education from King’s College and lives in Berkshire, England where he teaches English at Wellington College.
Have Your Say – Help Us Improve Support for Students with Learning Difficulties
In schools, the Disability Standards for Education (2005) help guide decisions regarding reasonable adjustments for students so they can access and participate in education without disadvantage. The Standards are currently under review and AUSPELD are preparing a submission as part of the review process.
We are very interested in hearing about the experiences of parents, caregivers and teachers of children with learning difficulties, as well as students who have learning difficulties. To share your perspective, please complete the appropriate questionnaire linked below.
The survey can be completed anonymously and is open until Thursday 10 September, 2020.
Parent/Caregiver Survey:
https://form.jotform.com/dyslexiaSPELD/Parent_Carer_Questionnaire
Teacher/Educator Survey:
https://form.jotform.com/dyslexiaSPELD/Educator_Questionnaire
Student Survey:
https://form.jotform.com/dyslexiaSPELD/Student_Questionnaire
(All students under the age of 14 should seek their parent or caregiver’s permission to complete this questionnaire.)
Primary Reading Pledge
Launch of the Literacy Hub website and Year 1 Phonics Check
AUSPELD strongly supports evidence informed practice in the teaching of literacy. In order to read well, children need to be taught to read words accurately and fluently, and they need the knowledge and vocabulary to understand what they read.
The Phonics Check is one component of a high-quality structured literacy program. The recent announcement by the Federal Government that stage one of the Year 1 Phonics Check is now available to schools and families across Australia has been welcomed by AUSPELD. It is a simple tool which checks student progress in the second half of Year 1. The results of the Phonics Check provide teachers with a useful overview of students’ individual reading skills and assists teachers to identify students who need additional support.
The Phonics Check is available now via a new online portal for teachers, school leaders and families called the Literacy Hub. The Hub includes information on how students learn to read, as well as resources for schools and families to support literacy development. Additional resources will be added over the coming months.
Go to literacyhub.edu.au to find out more.
Talking Literacy Webinar Series
AUSPELD is excited to announce an upcoming new webinar series, featuring conversations with international experts as they share some of their acquired knowledge, key discoveries and thoughts for the future. The series focuses on the acquisition of language, literacy and numeracy and includes interviews with Louisa Moats, Mark Seidenberg, Kate Nation, Carl Hendrick, Paul Kirschner, Daniel Ansari, Pie Corbett, Emily Hanford and Pamela Snow.
These interviews (conducted by AUSPELD President Mandy Nayton) will be essential viewing for teachers, administrators, speech pathologists, psychologists and parents concerned with evidence-informed practice in the fields of literacy and learning. More information about how to register for – and contribute to – these free webinars will be shared soon. Be sure to follow AUSPELD on Facebook or Twitter for updates – https://www.facebook.com/AUSPELD/ https://twitter.com/auspeld
Registrations now open
Additional Updates to SPELD Services
Over the past few months, state SPELD associations have responded to the COVID-19 context by adapting their service delivery models to include online clinical services, professional development, and tutoring. As restrictions start to ease in some parts of the country, some state SPELDs have begun to return to face to face service delivery while online and tele-health options continue to be available at all state SPELDs.
To find out more about the services available at each state SPELD, please click here.
For further information, contact your local state SPELD.
Emily Hanford’s exploration of the science of reading
Journalist Emily Hanford (author of Hard Words: Why aren’t kids being taught to read) recently presented an online keynote presentation as part of the PaTTAN Literacy Symposium.
The presentation focuses on Emily’s exploration of the science of reading. She shares some important take-home messages about changing the way the message of effective evidence-informed instruction is delivered.
We are looking forward to hosting Emily soon as a guest on our upcoming webinar series featuring several exciting international speakers. More news coming soon!
In the meantime, please enjoy this webinar which is highly recommended for educators, parents, and anyone concerned about how children are taught to read.