#17 Stop Calling It "the Reading Wars" with Dr. Grant Atkins

Make It Mindful: An Education Podcast

In this enlightening episode, we are joined by Dr. Grant Atkins, educational researcher with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt as we discuss mindful approaches for professional learning and literacy instruction. Dr. Atkins shares invaluable insights gathered from observations of and conversations with a diverse range of teachers. He argues that administrators can leverage teacher buy-in to quality professional development by creating a system of improvement at schools, not just a series of thought provoking one-offs.
We also explore the current landscape of literacy instruction. Dr. Atkins passionately dismantles the concept of the "Reading Wars" - the active debate in literacy instruction that pits phonics instruction against the whole language approach. Dr. Atkins believes that this term is unhelpful and overly simplistic. He prefers a more nuanced discussion about evolving teaching methodologies in literacy education and how they match specific student populations. Specifically, says Dr. Atkins, there are five components of literacy - phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Teachers tend to be less concerned with the so-called Reading Wars when they are figuring out which of these components is most needed in their classrooms. Dr. Atkins also argues that there is not actually much of a disconnect between educational research and the teaching practices at most schools; rather, the disconnect is between what the research shows is actually happening and what the general public *thinks* is happening.

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Dr. Grant Atkins is an Education Research Director managing the Professional Services research work at HMH. He conducts efficacy studies to examine the effectiveness of ICLE, Math Solutions, and Literacy Solutions implementations. He manages studies that investigate various delivery models of professional development, including workshops, trainings, professional learning communities, and in-person, online, and blended coaching.
Prior to his work at HMH, he developed and conducted research on literacy intervention programs. Grant holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology focusing on literacy research from Columbia University Teachers College. He also holds an M.Ed. in Human Development and Psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.A. in Psychology from Princeton University.
Co-Host Links:

Seth Fleischauer
Founder and President of Banyan Global Learning
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seth-fleischauer/

Website: https://banyangloballearning.com/

Lauren Pinto
Cofounder of Ambitious Ed, Educational Technology Specialist
Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-s-pinto/

Website: https://www.ambitioused.com/

Komal Shah
Speaker, Author, & Entrepreneur
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/consultkomal

Website: https://thekomalshah.com

Book: https://www.amazon.com/Raise-Your-Hand-Consciousness-Education-ebook/dp/B09FNT6B45/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=