Need a Reading Teacher? We Can Help!

by Cathy A. Toll, Ph.D., Chair & Graduate Program Coordinator, Department of Literacy & Language, Center for Literacy Educators and Leaders University of Wisconsin Oshkosh

The Center for Literacy Educators & Leaders at UW Oshkosh has a new program to assist school districts struggling to find reading teachers.

Under Wisconsin’s revised licensing code, school districts that are unable to find a licensed reading teacher may request a Tier I district-sponsored license with stipulations for a teacher currently employed by the district, who then can serve as a reading teacher. The enabling rule, PI 34.029, explains how teachers licensed in this manner can develop their skills in order to be ready for licensure at the Tier II or Tier III levels:

The employing school district will provide appropriate professional development and supervision to assist the applicant in becoming proficient in the license program content guidelines for the new subject area or grade level. The employing school district may partner with an approved program to ensure the applicant attains proficiency in the content guidelines.

UW Oshkosh is an approved program eligible to offer assistance to beginning reading teachers, and the Center for Literacy Educators & Leaders at UW Oshkosh has a commitment to serving Wisconsin school districts. Therefore, we have developed the SERT program to help.

Personalized Professional Learning

Through our program, Support for Excellent Reading Teachers (SERT), we offer these services:

Initial evaluation of participating teachers based upon DPI content standards and standards of the International Literacy Association.
Development of a Personal Professional Plan (PPP) to establish goals based upon the initial evaluation.
Support for participating teachers to meet goals through learning modules, professional learning team collaboration, and one-to-one coaching.
Development of a digital portfolio to substantiate that all standards and goals are met.
Observation to assure appropriate classroom skills.
Endorsement for the 1316 Reading Teacher license at either Tier II or Tier III level (depending upon the participant’s current status).

For most teachers with the Tier I district-sponsored license, this support will occur over a two-year period. Some of our assistance will be in-person and some will be provided through online learning modules and virtual meetings.

High-Caliber Professional Partners

Each participant in the SERT program will be paired with a PPP Specialist who is a faculty or staff member affiliated with the Center for Literacy Educators & Leaders. Center faculty and staff have extensive experience in preparing reading teachers and are leading experts on teacher professional development and literacy coaching. What’s more, the Center has already supported teachers in several Wisconsin school districts to transition from the Tier I district-sponsored license with stipulations to a regular Tier II or Tier III license.

The District’s Responsibility

Participating school districts are asked for the following:

Employ the participant as a reading teacher during the time they are part of the SERT program.
Ensure that the participant is licensed either with a Tier I district-sponsored license with stipulations.
Pay $1500 per participant for the complete package of services, plus mileage for two round trips by auto, from Oshkosh to the school site, for the program specialist to visit the participant.
Support the presence of the program specialist in the school where the participant teaches, so that the specialist can provide coaching and observe progress of the participant as a reading teacher

For More Information

For more information, contact Dr. Cathy Toll at [email protected] or 920-424-2478