Adolescent Literacy, Episode 4: A proactive response to the adolescent literacy crisis, with Kymyona Burk, Ed.D.

In this final episode of our four-part adolescent literacy miniseries, Susan Lamber, Ed.D., is joined by Kymyona Burk, Ed.D., a senior policy fellow for literacy at ExcelinEd and former Mississippi state literacy director and secondary English teacher. Together, Susan and Kymyona connect what we know from early literacy to the urgent needs of middle school reading, including the policies, professional development, and practices it will take to reach the adolescent readers who need us most. They also explore what comprehensive adolescent literacy policy must include, what other states' legislative momentum for secondary literacy can teach us, and why literacy belongs in every content-area classroom.

Show notes:

• Check out our Science of Reading resources for grades 6–8.
• Read the Educator Preparation Program Literacy Policy Playbook.
• Learn more about the Advancing Adolescent Literacy Model Policy.
• Listen to Kymyona Burk's episode from Season 5.
• Learn more about Kymyona Burk.
• Connect with Kymyona Burk on LinkedIn.
• Get ready for Season 3 of the Amplify podcast Beyond My Years.
• Join our community Facebook group.
• Connect with Susan Lambert. 

Quotes:

There's a literacy crisis in middle and high school, too." —Kymyona Burk

"We've been ver proactive with early literacy, but more reactive, I believe, in adolescent literacy." —Kymyona Burk

"Think more about what the students need in response to data instead of pacing." —Kymyona Burk

Timestamps*:
0:00 Introduction: Adolescent literacy policy, with Kymyona Burk, Ed.D.
5:00 "I knew how to teach English, but I did not know how to teach reading."
7:00 Comparing and contrasting early literacy and adolescent literacy policy
12:00 What good adolescent literacy policy looks like
15:00 The case for universal screeners in middle school
18:00 The Virginia Literacy Act and other states building momentum
24:00 Professional development for middle and high school educators
28:00 Advice for secondary educators
33:00 "Think more about what students need in response to data instead of pacing"
35:00 Educator preparation programs: the next frontier
39:00 Closing thoughts
*Timestamps are approximate