Re-Centering Students and Teachers: Voices from Literacy Clinics

Abstract

A survey completed by 22 literacy clinic directors indicated that clinics share beliefs and instructional practices. Literacy clinics provide a context in which children are taught to read and write by clinicians who are training to be literacy teachers. As best practices in reading instruction are debated, effective clinical assessment and instructional practices have endured. Using a student-centered approach, literacy clinics help students become engaged, confident, and capable readers. Research results identified four themes: multiple literacy components, affective factors, a cyclical assessment and instruction process, and clinician and student agency. The article connects these themes and gives examples of the application of the themes for classroom instruction and assessment practices.