Literacy Leadership Blog

News and reflections from experts and practitioners on the latest literacy research, events and daily practice

K-12 | Read to Achieve

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Welcome to Learning Ally's blog. You've come to the right place if you are an innovative teacher who wants to transform more struggling readers into grade-level achievers.


Learning Ally's Audiobook Solution Named Finalist 2022 'Cool Tool Award' by EdTech Digest
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April 26, 2022 by User

For Immediate Release   

April 26, 2022 - Princeton, NJ – Learning Ally, a national nonprofit and leading education solutions provider, has received a 2022 Finalist "Cool Tool Award," from EdTech Digest for its Audiobook Solution in the category of Literacy/Reading Solution. EdTech Digest Cool Tool Award Image

The Learning Ally Audiobook Solution, now a seven-time, award-winning, supplemental reading resource and literacy solution, provides equitable access to curriculum, literature, and popular titles that  students in grades 3-12 want and need to read for school. Evidence-based, it is proven to double the rate of reading growth for students who struggle to read and learn, in only 50 days. 

Informed by Whole Child LiteracyTM, Learning Ally’s unique approach to solutions design, the Audiobook Solution allows students to absorb content, vocabulary and contextual knowledge, facilitates fluency and reading comprehension and reduces stress caused by decoding.  With diverse libraries using authentic voices, students can enjoy reading about their areas of interest, complete their assignments, keep up with classmates and experience the confidence that comes with succeeding in school. 

Heather Wiederstein, V.P. of Solutions Design for Learning Ally said, "Our Audiobook Solution continues to win awards because of the versatility, accessibility, and flexibility it provides to teachers, and the unique way our skilled human narrators bring stories, literature and subject matter content to life to fully engage struggling students in the reading process." 

The EdTech Digest Awards recognize, acknowledge, and celebrate the most exceptional products, innovators, leaders, and trendsetters in education technology today. This year’s finalists and winners were judged on various criteria, including pedagogical workability, efficacy and results, support, clarity, value, and potential.  

"We're on a mission for ‘literacy-for-all,’” adds Wiederstein. "Our Audiobook Solution is a ‘Cool Tool’ and it is an extremely successful resource for educators eager to transform struggling readers into academic achievers."

About Learning Ally   

Learning Ally is a leading education nonprofit dedicated to empowering educators with proven solutions that help new and struggling learners reach their potential. Our range of literacy-focused offerings for students in Pre-K to 12th grade and catalog of professional learning allows us to support more than 1.6 million students and 260,000 educators across the United States. 

 

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Innovations in Audiobook Production: Learning Ally Volunteers Deliver a Highly Engaging Student Experience And Facilitate A Culture of Literacy
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April 25, 2022 by User

In Learning Ally’s continual mission to solve the literacy crisis, our audiobook production department plays a key role. Given a two year plus pandemic with lasting impact on student learning, educators are facing new obstacles to an already uphill battle towards improved literacy. Moving into the spotlight as both educational solution and mainstream entertainment, audiobooks have become a high demand resource for modern audiences. 

“Today’s readers are sophisticated media consumers. Teachers and librarians, looking for ways to encourage multimodal literacy and accommodate diverse learning styles, are increasingly looking to audiobooks and are using them in conjunction with print books. Transmedia Literacy is today’s literacy.”

~Danielle Quisenberry-Ruvolo, Audiobook Producer at Learning Ally.

 

From our ground-breaking beginning in 1948 as Recording for the Blind, Learning Ally continues to be a trailblazer in the audiobook industry, setting new standards for accessible storytelling, and taking on an even bigger vision of inclusivity.

Bringing together artists and activists, Learning Ally has restructured the entire process of production, hiring professional producers to work hand in hand with a community of over a thousand dedicated volunteers. With enthusiastic support, Learning Ally launched and sold out a Narration Workshop Series for legacy volunteers who were eager to hone their craft. In these workshops, volunteers got professional level training on the technology and performance of audiobook recording so they could dig further into specific coaching on their next project. On coaching narrators, producer Ivuoma Hall shared,

“The best part of my job is getting to work with narrators to understand the beauty of the story that they’re telling so that they can transmit it to students. …
Which is the power of audiobooks…bringing that human element of emotion…
A lot of our volunteers have been donating so much time. It’s really cool to see the passion they have to tell these stories”.

~Ivuoma Hall Audiobook Producer at Learning Ally.

 

With more developed audiobook narration, students can engage more deeply with the text and walk away with deeper learning. Learning Ally’s volunteer-centered approach, doesn’t only increase access for listeners; it’s also increasing access in what is a historically exclusive world of casting. Participating at conferences like Voice Over Atlanta, Learning Ally’s creative teams are providing valuable industry insight for voice artists who have not otherwise had access to training and portfolio building opportunities. 

 

And supported by a DEI partnership with the Audio Publishers Association, Learning Ally is making it a priority to cast authentic voices in their growing collection of diverse stories and award winning texts. 

“Audiobooks in an educational setting are already making an impact. Learning Ally is being leveraged by over 260k educators with 1.6M students. 
We are making a concerted effort to make sure we’re telling these stories correctly to ensure we’re moving the needle on comprehension and fluency”. 

~Dave Kozemchak, AVP of Operations at Learning Ally

 

Quisenberry- Ruvolo notes that readers are traditionally limited to their own voice narrating a text in their mind. However, when readers have the privilege of an authentic narrator who has been prepped by volunteers on plot and pronunciation, something new becomes available. A narrator not only shares their voice–they share a lived experience. 

“The higher the quality of narration–the more connected the performance–the greater the possibilities for an enriched understanding.
The performance becomes part of the fabric of our own experience. It becomes the basis for new learning”.

~Danielle Quisenberry-Ruvolo, Audiobook Producer at Learning Ally.


Learn more about volunteer community, and join us in our mission of "Literacy-for-All."  

By Guest Blogger Michael Manzi

Read More about Innovations in Audiobook Production: Learning Ally Volunteers Deliver a Highly Engaging Student Experience And Facilitate A Culture of Literacy

Dr. Terrie Noland Named EdTech Digest Global Leadership Award Finalist For Ed Tech Author/Speaker “Literacy and Leadership” Podcast
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April 20, 2022 by User

For Immediate Release:

Logo, company nameDescription automatically generatedApril 20, 2022 - Princeton, NJ – Dr. Terrie Noland, CALP and V.P. of Educator Initiatives for Learning Ally, a national nonprofit education solutions provider, is a 2022 EdTech Digest Global Leadership Award Finalist. Dr. Noland was selected for her outstanding contributions in transforming education through technology to enrich the lives of educators and learners.

Lee Peters, Chief Operating Officer of Learning Ally, said, "Terrie is well deserving of this Global Leadership Award. She is a fervent advocate for literacy. As a former educator, she understands the challenges educators face. Every day, she works diligently to advance evidence-based teaching practices so that more children can read and learn."

Through her podcast, Learning Ally Literacy Leadership, Dr. Noland has built a community of educators who seek to improve reading achievement in their classes and schools. She is a natural motivator who empowers her listeners through relationship building, storytelling, vulnerability, and intentionality. After devoting time each week to her podcast, educators say they view themselves as literacy leaders with new knowledge on best practices, and a renewed mindset for transforming learning. 

Victor Rivero, Editor-in-Chief of EdTech Digest said, "As events unfold on the world stage that seem to inch ever closer to a precipice unknown, we are reminded that the leaders and innovators of education technology have always worked on the edge. The future-focused work they do is inspired by the infinite potential of all people to learn and thrive."

In her work with Learning Ally, Dr. Noland leads and mentors K-12 educators drawing on Learning Ally’s unique Whole Child LiteracyTM approach to literacy solutions design. She is also the host of Learning Ally's Spotlight on Dyslexia and Spotlight on Early Literacy virtual conferences, and a keynote speaker on literacy at educational events. Dr Noland has written scholarly articles in publications such as ILA, NAEYC, and Language Magazine. She holds a Ph.D. in Literacy and Educational Leadership from St. John's University, and is a John Maxwell certified speaker, coach, trainer, and member of the President’s Advisory Council. 

About Learning Ally   

Learning Ally is a leading education nonprofit dedicated to empowering educators with proven solutions that help new and struggling learners reach their potential. Our range of literacy-focused offerings for students in Pre-K to 12th grade and catalog of professional learning allows us to support more than 1.6 million students and 260,000 educators in over 20,000 schools across the United States. 

 

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Leadership and the Science of Reading: An Honest Look at the Joys and Challenges of School Transformation
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April 12, 2022 by User

The C's of Literacy Leadership Transformation

When you think about 60% of our nation's children struggling to read, what comes to mind? Early childhood literacy? The Science of Reading? Professional development? School leadership? The need for transformational change? 

Dr. Terrie Noland recently hosted a panel with education thought leaders to share their thoughts about transformation, literacy, and leadership and what they have learned through research and implementation. 

You can listen to this edwebinar on-demand to learn about the eight Cs of literacy leadership, and how to make transformational change "stick" in your classroom, school and district. 

  • Clear vision

  • Cogs of systems and structures 

  • Community

  • Collaboration

  • Coherence

  • Capacity 

  • Consistency 

  • Courage

Attributes of a Transformational Leader  

Literacy leaders share a common vision. They unite their teams, possess great passion and are patient. They recognize the need for ongoing professional development in the Science of Reading. They put effective systems and structures in place to inform the mission. They don't shy away from data or make excuses. These leaders are reliable, vulnerable, honest, benevolent, kind, and transparent. They understand complexity and equity; are willing to pitch, punt, pull and push at the right times. They recognize what curriculum and routines should stay and what should go. They tap into emotions, compensate, celebrate, guide, and promote collective advocacy. They make shifts in their thinking from "teachers" to "instructional leaders," and make long-term, sustainable investments in literacy. What system will you tackle first?

  •  The critical need to understand the Science of Reading. 
  • Coherency in teaching literacy at all levels.

  • Getting the fundamentals of reading right.

  • Aligning the curriculum at all grade levels.

  • Using data to drive the mission.

  • Optimizing scheduling to work for teachers and students.

  • Ensuring evaluations and assessments are effective. 

  • Putting interventions for Tier II and Tier III in place. 

  • Making the PLN transferable for others.

Join the Movement

Change won’t happen overnight. It takes a village, a vision, commitment, time, and leadership, but the rewards are great! Transformational change happens when strong leaders and teams are "on the hook" for all students to be successful. They drive momentum, build capacity, continue dialogue, and influence practices. They establish new routines and scheduling, and carry forward the vision and plan. They stay for the hard stuff. They connect the dots and know over time the ripple effect is evident -- reading success -- reading at grade-level -- reading enjoyment -- reading independently -- reading for life. 

 

"We fail to the level of our systems,"
James Clear, Author of "Atomic Habits"

 

Read More about Leadership and the Science of Reading: An Honest Look at the Joys and Challenges of School Transformation

Celebrating Support Systems
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April 6, 2022 by User

Learning Ally Takes April to Recognize Invaluable Volunteers

By Michael Manzi

A photo collage of volunteers on zoom.As the adage goes, raising children “takes a village.” It’s no wonder, then, that providing literacy support to over 1.6 million students takes a community of over a thousand volunteers. These volunteers share a commitment to Learning Ally’s mission to solve the literacy crisis in the U.S. and to our unique approach Whole Child Literacy, which prioritizes an understanding of how each child learns. Volunteers at Learning Ally work hands-on, in a variety of roles ranging from the audiobook production process to school outreach and educator engagement, to create a system of support so that students can read, learn and thrive. 

Our library of high quality audiobooks ensure student engagement and reading success. Making a quality audiobook takes more than just a session in the studio. Before a project even reaches a microphone, it will already have passed through several waves of preparation. Volunteers help prepare audiobooks for recording, creating essential cheat sheets and outlines for narrators. Our volunteers perform research to provide essential information about characters, allowing the casting department to make sure they are choosing authentic performers who can accurately portray a variety of stories from a variety of cultural experiences. This work ensures that students from diverse backgrounds can hear and see themselves in the characters and in the stories they are reading. Once a book is recorded, it is passed through volunteers for post production and quality assurance. 

Thanks to the generosity of partnered corporations who share their time and employees with the cause, Learning Ally is able to train up to 200 new volunteers at once to help the quality assurance process run smoothly. New volunteers from corporate partnerships are given access to an exclusive catalog of un-released projects, ensuring quality control, smoother user experience and accessibility standards are met before the book hits the students’ bookshelves. 

As Learning Ally’s mission continues to grow and expand to meet the needs of struggling learners, our volunteer community has grown with us. "Our volunteer program has grown significantly over the past year” according to Maria Lelie, Community and Volunteer Engagement Coordinator.  “We're using volunteer support in ways we've never used before; in call campaigns, research, outreach, data entry. As needs in our community have evolved, Learning Ally volunteers have stuck by our side each step of the way, always willing to step up and lend a helping hand."

As the number of students increases and the volunteer community grows, so too does the quality of assistance that Learning Ally can provide. Volunteers play a vital role in supporting this network of students, parents, educators, and administrators. Many volunteers actively source contacts at high priority school districts while others support call campaigns that ensure students have continued access to Learning Ally’s solutions all year long. Volunteers are frequently responsible for welcoming new members to the educator community, and they assist at Learning Ally’s annual conferences by interacting and engaging with attendees who have come to learn more. 

This past year, volunteers further engaged schools by sending out more than 40 Valentines to educators around the country. Some volunteers even exercise their creative abilities by creating video trailers of books to excite students, and parents. These trailers provide a sneak preview of a book before it’s downloaded, piquing user’s interest before they even open the book.

With millions of students served, the impact of volunteers is felt and will continue to be felt around the country. Learning Ally extends their deepest appreciation to every person who has shared their time. As April is National Volunteer Appreciation Month, Learning Ally will continue to honor and recognize the hard work of volunteers throughout this month. Check out our Instagram accounts (@volunteernation_learningally and @learning_ally) for weekly spotlights of some exceptional volunteer projects. And if you’re a volunteer with Learning Ally, be sure to attend The Volunteer Appreciation Event on Thursday, April 21st. If you haven't had a chance to volunteer with Learning Ally, but would like to, connect with us on our volunteer web page to see how you can get involved!

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