Teacher Research Transforms a School in Oakland
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Teachers in what was once one of the lowest performing elementary schools in Oakland have transformed their school through a combination of teacher research and innovative instructional strategies.
Teacher action research has a long history in the Oakland schools. The Mills Teacher Scholars program, under the guidance of Mills College professor Anna Richert, has been supporting teacher researchers here for more than a decade. We visited the scholars at New Highland Academy last spring and saw how they were investigating strategies for teaching their students to think critically about what they are reading. I also posted aninterview with Anna Richert. Last week I saw another presentation from this team. This is not just good teacher inquiry. This is work that is transforming their school in remarkable ways.
The following information is drawn from a presentation by Aija Simmons and Channon Neal-de-Stanton, and a paper by Ms. Simmons, entitled Reading Spaces: The Student, the Author, the Text; An Inquiry into Reading Comprehension. Ms. Simmons and her New Highland Academy colleagues will be among the 40 teacher scholars sharing their Mills Teacher Scholars inquiry work on the evening of June 5th at Mills College.
New Highland Academy is a Title 1 school in a working class neighborhood in East Oakland. More than 90% of
Teachers in what was once one of the lowest performing elementary schools in Oakland have transformed their school through a combination of teacher research and innovative instructional strategies.
Teacher action research has a long history in the Oakland schools. The Mills Teacher Scholars program, under the guidance of Mills College professor Anna Richert, has been supporting teacher researchers here for more than a decade. We visited the scholars at New Highland Academy last spring and saw how they were investigating strategies for teaching their students to think critically about what they are reading. I also posted aninterview with Anna Richert. Last week I saw another presentation from this team. This is not just good teacher inquiry. This is work that is transforming their school in remarkable ways.
The following information is drawn from a presentation by Aija Simmons and Channon Neal-de-Stanton, and a paper by Ms. Simmons, entitled Reading Spaces: The Student, the Author, the Text; An Inquiry into Reading Comprehension. Ms. Simmons and her New Highland Academy colleagues will be among the 40 teacher scholars sharing their Mills Teacher Scholars inquiry work on the evening of June 5th at Mills College.
New Highland Academy is a Title 1 school in a working class neighborhood in East Oakland. More than 90% of