Authors, Teachers and Researchers celebrate UKLA Awards
Friday, July 16, 2010 . Posted by Trish
UKLA recognises the best in literacy practice and research and children's literature at its International Conference in Winchester.
UKLA Children’s Book Awards 2010 Winners
3-11 Award: Morris Gleitzman Then (Puffin)
A powerful and beautifully written account of a young boy’s journey; touching, vulnerable, raw; a courageous yet crucial novel.
12-16 Award: Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell (illustrator) The Graveyard Book Bloomsbury
Wow! As soon as you’ve finished reading, you turn back to page one to re-live this tale of a classic rite of passage with plethora of surreal twists.
Special commendation; Shaun Tan Tales from Outer Suburbia Templar
Dip into this anywhere and you will come up with a gem. This is a truly unique book.
UKLA John Downing Award 2010 Winners
The panel was most impressed by the quality of the portfolios, and the evidence in each of innovative, creative teaching of literacy. After much deliberation it was decided to make two awards, one for primary and one for secondary, and also to award a Highly Commended certificate.
John Downing Award 3-11
Gill Robins Sunhill Junior School, Alresford
The panel was most impressed with Gill Robin’s thoroughly professional reflection on her practice. The portfolio was a joy to read and unanimously considered by the panel to be the award winner for the primary section. .
John Downing Award 12-16
Marion Hampton Lambeth Academy, London
Marion Hampton’s range of evaluative comments from the community is stunning. The panel was deeply moved by the evidence in Marion’s portfolio of making a difference to children’s lives .
Highly commended 3-11:
Roger Macdonald Saxon Way Primary School Gillingham
We were particularly impressed with Roger Macdonald’s insightful written responses to children’s writing.
UKLA/ Wiley-Blackwell Research in Literacy Education Award Winners
Deacon, S. Hélène; Wade-Woolley, Lesly; Kirby, John R.. Flexibility in young second-language learners: examining the language specificity of orthographic processing. Journal of Research in Reading, Vol. 32 (2) pp 215-229
This study looks at orthographic processing across two languages, English and French. The research is of very real relevance to an international readership; we are reminded that bilingual speakers are now the majority worldwide. The research is methodologically sound, and the authors situate their study thoughtfully, thoroughly within current research in the field. A very real strength of the article is the authors' clear indication s of ways forward for future research.
This study is innovative; as far as the authors are aware it is the first time a link has been made between orthographic processing skills in two languages. The panel congratulates the authors on this insightful research paper.
Clare Dowdall: Impressions, improvisations and compositions: reframing children's text production in social network sites. Literacy 43,2 pp. 91-99
This highly original small scale case study research into the social network worlds of one young writer raises interesting questions about text making in the C21st. The research is detailed, innovative and of very real relevance to an international audience.
Dowdall argues for an original new framework for assessing writing, a framework based on insights from the work of the Russian abstract painter Kandinsky. The panel was intrigued by the arguments raised and congratulates the author on her innovative contribution to research in the worlds of digital text making.
UKLA Student Research Award Winner
This year's winner is Dylan Yamada Rice, research student at the University of Sheffield for her study entitled: New media, new literacy, new vi8sual learning environment: A comparative study of images in the urban landscapes of Tokyo and London.
Our congratulations to all the winners.
UKLA Member and Past President Receives Prestigious International Award
Thursday, July 01, 2010 . Posted by Trish
Professor Colin Harrison, professor of literacy studies in education at the University of Nottingham has received the International Citation of Merit Award from the International Reading Association. This highly prestigious citation is awarded to a person who, through international activities in the field of literacy, benefits other countries as well as his or her own.
Colin has served as president of our association from 1990 -91 when it was known as the United Kingdom Reading association (UKRA) and was the founding editor and editor in chief of the Journal of Research in Reading.
Colin is still an active member of UKLA and currently co leads the Comprehension Special Interest Group with Sue Ellis.
UKLA seeks new editor for Literacy
Wednesday, May 26, 2010 . Posted by Trish
UKLA is seeking an editor with vision to continue developing the quality of content and international scope of the journal, building upon the excellent editorship of Professor Kathy Hall. The post will be from January 1st 2011.
The position requires someone with wide experience in the field of literacy education in a higher education institution with the ability to draw on and develop an extensive international network of contacts, writers and commentators and with an established publishing record and experience of editing.
The appointment will be for three years in the first instance, although this can be extended at the discretion of UKLA.
There are three issues of Literacy each year. The editor is responsible to UKLA and the Editorial Board of Literacy and works closely with Wiley-Blackwell who publish the journal worldwide.
The editor should be a member of UKLA at the time of taking up the post.
Closing date: 4.00 pm Thursday September 24th , 2010.
Interviews will take place during late October/early November in London.
For more details visit UKLA’s website www.ukla.org or email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Take part in HISTORY™ presents The People Speak, a new and exciting event in the West End
Posted by Trish
‘HISTORY™ presents The People Speak’
The UK Literacy Association has been informed about a new event which looks to provide a powerful purpose to develop spoken language. Called ‘HISTORY™ presents The People Speak’ it aims to provide teachers and students across the UK the chance to bring literacy to life in their classrooms.
Primary and secondary teachers can find out about new free resources for 7-18 year olds and how they and their pupils can win tickets to attend and have backstage passes for a celebrity-packed theatrical event in London’s West End.
The People Speak event is a unique and powerful theatre performance that will be produced and narrated by BAFTA-award winning actor Colin Firth in September. Some of the UK’s top performers will speak words from the voices of our past as written in actual letters, songs, poems, speeches and manifestos.
The People Speak education programme encourages teachers to ask their pupils to write their visions for their futures, for their community, themselves, and what they feel passionate about.
Among the free resources that explore various elements in social history and change, are an innovative series that looks at Victorian conditions for top primary pupils and a series that look at human rights and responsibilities in elections.
To find out more go to http://www.history.co.uk/thepeoplespeak
UKLA launches its vision for future literacy education
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 . Posted by Trish
As the election campaigning gets underway for the poll on May 6th UKLA has published its ‘Agenda for Action’ as a special supplement in the spring 2010 edition of English 4-11.
The ‘Agenda for Action’ will be sent to all the major political parties to make a strategic intervention in their thinking about future educational policy, particularly policy associated with literacy teaching and learning.
To ensure that literacy education in the UK is world class UKLA calls for:
- a more coherent approach to listening and talking as central to the curriculum
- learning opportunities that engage learners creatively and take account of the multiple modes of learning
- wider recognition of the vital role that digital literacy plays in the lives of children and young people
- greater awareness of the important role of language in learning and intercultural understanding
- teaching strategies and a curriculum that is locally relevant, respecting and valuing home literacy experience and cultural background
- attention to the needs of individual children as well as an integrated approach to interventions in literacy
- a more enlightened approach to assessment and testing
- greater emphasis on the role of literature in children’s emotional, intellectual and social development.
UKLA is recommending the establishment of a national working party to discuss and debate the shape and design of literacy policy, pedagogy and curriculum.
The full text of the Agenda for Action can also be downloaded as a pdf file below.
The ‘Agenda for Action’ is a work in progress, so comments and responses are encouraged and welcomed via the UKLA website members blog page: http://www.ukla.org/community
...joining UKLA is a unique opportunity... to read about exciting and thought provoking developments in the field of literacy ”
Carrie Ansell
Senior Lecturer
Read more >
Reasons to join UKLA
- Join a supportive professional network
- Keep up-to-date with the latest literacy news
- Be eligible for reduced conference fees and publications
- Access to cutting edge journals and practical magazines
- Opportunities to apply for research grants
- Get involved and make a difference
- Be part of the future of literacy learning and teaching
