Teaching
Early Literacy in the Forefront
I am a teacher at heart, and that’s why I love what I do,” says Rebecca England, Literacy Coach and COEHS
Ed. D. candidate. Rebecca’s 7 years in a classroom provide her with a strong foundation to serve as an
Early Literacy and Learning Model (ELLM) Literacy Coach.

It has been shown that by the time children get to the 3rd grade, if they don’t have the necessary reading skills, it gets harder and harder to catch up with the children who do. The gap widens as they get older. The goal of the ELLM is to provide an early literacy curriculum and instructional support system for preschool, kindergarten, and first-grade children, their families and their teachers. Additionally, ELLM recognizes that, while parents are their children’s first and most important teachers, teachers play a critical role in the child’s development. ELLM also provides professionals with the tools necessary to build emergent literacy skills, thereby helping children prepare for future success in learning.

Rebecca spends roughly 75% of her time in pre-K through 1st grade classrooms as an ELLM Literacy Coach, working with teachers to share curriculum and teaching methods for improved literacy. The other 25% is also spent in the classroom-at UNF, teaching the role of family involvement in literacy, which is also the topic of her dissertation.

She says, “One of the reasons that I love what I do is because my work impacts literally hundreds of students. I coach in 15 classrooms a week, with an average of 25 students per class. That means that every week my work reaches out to about 375 children!”

As part of the UNF ELLM training, teachers and coaches attend classes, seminars and training sessions to learn the components of ELLM. During 2002-3, ELLM included 22 literacy coaches, 273 teachers and 4532 students in 5 Florida counties.

“I am a teacher at heart, and that’s why I love what I do.”
-Rebecca England, Literacy Coach and COEHS doctoral candidate

London Elementary School Welcomes UNF Interns

Part of good teacher preparation includes exposure to a wide variety of topics and experiences. For each of the last 15 years, the College of Education has sponsored school visits to primary schools in London, England. In recent years, this has expanded into an international internship program for UNF students.

The Gateway Infant and Primary School, located in the bustling London neighborhood of Westminster, hosts UNF students for 3 weeks as part of their intensive 15 week culminating internship experience. The Gateway School educates pre-K through 6th grade students from more than 30 different countries of origin, some of whom are refugees from troubled areas around the world. This year 4 students participated in the internship program, and that number is expected to increase by as many as 20 students next year. The program will be expanded to provide students with similar internship opportunities in schools in Belize, Northern Ireland, and South Korea, as well as two more schools in the London area.

Associate Professor Dr. Michael Smith, the coordinator of the program, says, “I am pleased to see so much interest from students who recognize how important it is to have a global perspective in education. One of the most valuable aspects of the program is that it enables students to return to UNF with an understanding of how teachers in schools in urban settings in other parts of the world work to overcome common problems and challenges.” He continues, “The opportunity for international learning is boundless, especially given technology today. One of the projects we hope to implement in the upcoming year will use today’s technology to allow pupils and teachers in the interns’ Florida classrooms to interact with pupils and teachers in their international classrooms in real time. They could share lessons, work out math problems, even share jokes. What an incredible experience for our student teachers and their classes!”

“The opportunity for international learning is boundless.”

-Dr. Michael Smith, Associate Professor,
Curriculum & Instruction

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