EDRD 414

EDRD 414: Reading II: Upper Elementary Reading Instruction and Assessment  

Prerequisites: EDRD 314, EDUC 304 and admission to Teacher Education Program

Credit Hours: (3)

Designed to teach evidence-based reading instruction, including word study, fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension strategy instruction and developmentally appropriate assessment practices in the upper elementary grades. The course includes teaching reading in the content areas and small group reading instruction.

Detailed Description of Content of Course

This course is designed to teach evidence-based reading instruction, including word study, fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension strategy instruction and developmentally appropriate assessment practices in the upper elementary grades. The course focuses on:

• Scientific reading research and evidence-based practices using phonics instruction
• Small group reading instruction for transitional, intermediate, and advanced readers
• Fluency instruction
• Reading comprehension strategies using gradual release of responsibility in both literary and informational texts
• The integration of reading instruction with content area teaching (social studies, science, mathematics)
• The administration of assessment tools to inform reading instructional practices in the upper elementary grades

 

Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

This course will involve a lecture format with class discussion, observing videos of sample instructional practices, guest speakers, role-playing, hands-on activities and action assignments. Students will develop and implement reading lessons with students in various stages of reading development and will reflect on their personal instruction after reading professional readings addressing pertinent issues in the field of reading.  

 

Goals and Objectives of the Course

Goals, objectives, and assignments in this class address the Virginia Department of Education requirements for teacher preparation. This course also meets the International Reading Association and the International Dyslexia Association’s competencies for classroom teachers. This course is designed to enable students to:

1. Apply the Virginia Standards of Learning for English in reading when designing lessons.
2. Utilize the foundational knowledge that supports the successful development of reading skills.
3. Plan and implement research-based instructional approaches for elementary students that enhance reading skills across all essential areas of reading instruction (phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and text comprehension).
4. Differentiate instruction in both whole class and small group settings to improve the performance of learners at different stages of development and ability.
5. Implement both formal and informal reading assessments as screening diagnostic and progress monitoring measures for the essential components of reading: decoding, encoding, word recognition, fluency, vocabulary, reading levels, and comprehension.  Candidates use diagnostic data to inform instruction for acceleration, intervention, remediation, and differentiation.
6. Be proficient in the structure of the English language, including an understanding of syntax and semantics.
7. Be proficient in scientific reading research and evidence-based practices, using systematic phonics instruction, including an understanding of sound and symbol relationships, syllables, phonemes, word analysis, and decoding skills
8. Describe the characteristics of students with dyslexia and high-achieving readers and identify instructional practices that meet their needs.
9. Create literacy-rich learning environments that include contemporary digital and print resources.
10. Be proficient in strategies to increase vocabulary and background knowledge for concept development.
11. Implement reading comprehension strategies for literary and informational text, including questioning, predicting, inferring, summarizing, clarifying, evaluating, and making connections and understanding of text complexity and measures used to determine appropriate levels of text complexity.
12. Support students to read with fluency to improve reading rate, accuracy, and meaningful expression (prosody).
13. Integrate reading instructional methods with content areas, including science, social studies, mathematics, health, etc., that emphasize discipline-specific literacy processes.
14. Use effective strategies to enable the learning of standard English by speakers of other languages and dialects.

 

Assessment Measures

Assessment measures may include, but are not limited to: 

1. Final exams and quizzes
2. Participation in class discussions, graded small group activities, and reflective writing
3. Design and delivery of content area literacy lesson plans that include specific, research-based strategies
4. Analysis of VALLSS class-level data
5. Student assessment report of a second-fifth grader’s reading abilities, including their word recognition, fluency, spelling, comprehension, and reading motivation using a variety of assessments.

 

Other Course Information

None

Review and Approval
February, 1999: Revised
October 2008: Course description and official syllabus revised by Gaston Dembele and reviewed by Jennifer Jones and Mary Smith.

August 2020

April 27, 2026