Challenges associated with reading in the disciplines are well documented. In this article, we report on a small-scale study that was part of a larger school-university design-based research collaboration focused on improving literacy learning in Australian high schools. We discuss Paired Wide Reading (PWR), an instructional innovation designed to…

The mandated introduction of a teaching performance assessment (TPA) into initial teacher education programs in Australia is one of the numerous and continual reforms that have impacted those who work in the field. The Assessment for Graduate Teaching (AfGT) is an approved TPA developed by a national consortium of higher education institutions to…

Debates about teaching reading have long been a part of educational vernacular, frequently reduced to polarised views about phonics. This attention can unnecessarily divert from the cumulative skills required for learning to read and comprehensive research, which indicates the positive influence of systematic phonics instruction on students'…

In this article, I respond creatively to the recent Australian Government Department of Education Teacher education expert panel [TEEP] report entitled "Strong Beginnings." Released in July 2023 and led by Professor Mark Scott AO, the report outlines problems pertaining to teacher education in Australia. It aims to improve student…

University websites and internet search engines were used to locate information about literacy units addressing early reading instruction offered in Australian primary and early childhood teacher preparation programs. Data concerning course organizational details, the content of literacy units, and the qualifications and research interests of unit…

This paper considers aspects of a course redesign that focuses on motivating Pre-service Teachers to engage in negotiating relevant literacy teaching pedagogies in their discipline. The purpose of this article is to describe how we approached the teaching of literacy with Pre-service Teachers, in ways that valued the Preservice Teachers'…

This paper engages with the central theme of this special issue, "From the Margins to the Centre," as a particular kind of narrative that occupies the imagination of literacy educators in the academy, particularly those who are located in the "centre," but whose experience ironically finds them "pinned to the margins"…

This research investigates critical thinking skills in reading comprehension of English as Second Language (ESL) students in an Australian context and proposes a number of pedagogical methods for ESL teachers and educators. The research has two aims: (1) to gain a thorough understanding of ESL students' ability to read English critically in their…

Much has been written about the decline in Australian literacy standards, as measured by international tests, and concerns have been expressed about the quality of teacher preparation for teaching early literacy to young children in their first years of school. Preservice teacher knowledge of research evidence supporting the essential components…

University educators have observed the concurrent problems of student attrition, higher than normal or desired failure rates and students struggling to complete assessable and non-assessable work, for instance, set readings. Recent public commentary has pointed to the widening participation agenda with its lowering of university entrance scores…

Individual telephone interviews with 11 Australian beginning teachers who were newly appointed, or seeking a teaching position, were used to explore their perceptions of their preparation to teach early reading. Interviewees provided self-ratings of preparedness and ability to teach early reading, information about their knowledge of early reading…

This article brings recent debates in literary studies regarding the practice of close reading into conversation with Derek Attridge's idea of "readerly hospitality" (2004) to diagnose the problem of students in undergraduate literary studies programme not completing set reading. We argue that the method of close reading depends on…

Children who cannot spell fluently are likely to encounter difficulty in writing texts across the curriculum. Furthermore, spelling is often a component in high stakes tests, the results of which have significant implications for students and schools. In the context of debates on teacher quality, it is pertinent to examine the views of early…

This study aims to investigate the extent to which reading comprehension and learning styles are related to perceived use of reading strategies among students studying French at an Australian university and a Turkish university. Ninety-one participants completed a background questionnaire, the Survey of Reading Strategies, the Kolb Learning Style…

This paper introduces the concept of "reading resilience": students' ability to read and interpret complex and demanding literary texts by drawing on advanced, engaged, critical reading skills. Reading resilience is a means for rethinking the place and pedagogies of close reading in the contemporary literary studies classroom. Our…