June 2010

Tell Us!

How Did You Advocate for Literacy Education?
Did you write a letter to your legislator? Did you visit your congressional representative in the local office? Please complete this short survey and tell us about your participation in NCTE's Literacy Education Advocacy Day and Month.

Reflections on
Advocacy Day
by Clarissa West-White, Florida Council of Teachers of English
I was unable to attend this year's Advocacy Day, but don't fret, the Florida delegation consisting of three newbies and a veteran were able to attend and reported having life-altering experiences.

As I reflect on my prior trips to DC, life-altering doesn't seem to capture the essence of what happens to an attendee, yet this is as close to describing the transformation as possible using Webster's dictionary.

As English scholars, practitioners, and teachers, we know that clichés occur due to overuse and that they often lose their intended meaning and power. However, I can honestly say that attending Advocacy Day has altered my life and what I expect from the profession and as a professional in English education.
Read more.

NCTE Advocacy Resources
·  NCTE Position Statements  
· SLATE Website
· Speaking Out to the Media and to Legislators
· Take Action

Find Your Elected Representatives
· Congress.org

Mark Your Calendar!
2011 Literacy Education Advocacy Day: April 21

NCTE Voices Are Being Heard!

NCTE Speaks Out on Arizona Department of Education Ruling on Teacher Speech
On June 7 NCTE sent a statement to the Arizona Department of Education about its recent ruling that teachers whose spoken English it deems to be heavily accented or ungrammatical must be removed from classes for students still learning English. The statement emphasizes that Arizona should evaluate teachers on their competence, not on their accents.

Literacy Education Advocacy Day: Hundreds of
Letters and Visits
NCTE members sent more than 800 letters to their congressional representatives while more than 60 members visited their representatives in Washington, DC, on NCTE's Literacy Education Advocacy Day in April. And the Florida Council of Teachers of English held its first Advocacy Day on April 7!

Thoughts from an NCTE Advocacy Day First Timer
by Marjorie Weiffenbach, Florida Council of Teachers of English
As I learned about the ESEA Bill and the LEARN Act, my panic began to rise. Truthfully, this was the first time I had heard of either. How was I going to talk about these things to men in suits making decisions about my life? . . . Well, NCTE had anticipated my anxieties. . . . I felt armed and ready to meet my government representatives. . . . I left feeling I had a Congressman who cared about my future. I left feeling I had a voice. I left feeling that this was what FCTE and NCTE had been talking about: "This is your opportunity to build relationships, so that in the future you have a voice with your representative. Be positive, be passionate and knowledgeable." Read more.

What Members Are Saying about Their Advocacy Work
Barbara Wahlberg of the New England Association of Teachers of English recently told us: "Just took some time to write the wonderful people who met with me during Advocacy Day. I also wrote to Rele Abiade in Senator Whitehouse's office to give her an update, because she pointed me in Senator Reed's direction. It was quite rewarding to spend so much time with Seth Gerson, and to leave with a draft of the bill, the Teacher and Principal Improvement Act. I sent Rele my email and within two minutes she wrote me back. She was excited to hear about my experience, and she let me know that if I need any help with anything, to let her know. It is great to know how connected the aides are with the constituency, with education reform, and with recognizing how important our position as educators can be. This continues to be a very positive experience!"

Carol Pope of North Carolina State University in Raleigh sent this note to NCTE:  "I just had to write right now!!! I'm in my Teachers as Leaders class, and we are all writing as advocates to a large number of diverse audiences on a fairly large number of topics. Students are writing to national and state legislators, letters to the editor for our local newspaper, to advocacy sites, to school board members, to policymakers, and to administrators. Their topics are both literacy and student focused -- as well as on such controversial topics as support for ELL learners' being able to attend higher education institutions, the value of magnet schools, and the power of students as learners. I couldn't be happier with the buzz I'm hearing as the students both talk and help each other word their letters and messages. They are listening to each other and their drafts -- discussing critical education issues and constructing their own language of advocacy. I, of course, joined them as I wrote to my congressional aides with the message of our 2010 Legislative Platform."

Marilyn Hollman of the Illinois Association of Teachers of English met with her state Senator in May: "Race to the Top applications for the second round were due today, so I used that as a kind of lead-in. . . . Randy Hultgren (R, IL) took us to a conference room, turned his phone to vibrate and only looked at it twice. I didn’t quite do a story -- but here's what I did: handed him a copy of the NCTE 2010 Legislative Platform, suggested he look at the bullet points, and gave an account of the composition evaluation system my former Communication Arts Department used for over 12 years. (It's probably gone now.) 'What we did,' I said, 'encapsulates all the main items on that agenda.' And it did!"