Resources
Learn more about the 8 Demands and Oakland NAACP's campaign to improve reading outcomes.
FULCRUM is a co-petitioner on this call to action in Oakland to improve literacy rates and lower the number of referrals to special education by providing research-backed curriculum, teacher resources and student support for transitional kindergarten through 5th Grade for public schools in the Oakland Unified School District.
FULCRUM in the News
KQED's Forum talks to literacy experts Kareem Weaver (FULCRUM), Emily Hanford (American Public Media), and John Fensterwald (EdSource) about the science of reading and California's approach to teaching kids to read.
"In 2017, California became the first state to be sued for denying children the civil right to literacy. But the solutions to these problems are not simple. Controversy exists over how to teach reading and in recent years, a push to implement evidence-based reading instruction has caused schools around the country to re-evaluate their approach."
Read this Times Magazine article to learn more about the current state of literacy education and the hurdles to align how children are taught with the science behind how they learn to read.
"This debate was supposedly settled in 2000, when the National Reading Panel, a big group of literacy experts that examined hundreds of studies on what instruction kids need to read, released a report. It recommended explicit instruction in the things Weaver's petition asks for: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension."
The Right to Read follows the story of the early reading crisis in America and what we can do about it. The film shares the stories of a courageous activist, a teacher, and two American families who fight to provide our youngest generation with the most foundational indicator of life-long success: the ability to read.
Directed by Jenny Mackenzie and produced by LeVar Burton, Geralyn Dreyfous, Regina K. Scully, Amy Redford, Katy Drake Bettner and Allison Gushée Molkenthin.
In this episode, Melissa and Lori have a candid discussion about change with Kareem Weaver, co-founder of FULCRUM. FULCRUM’s goal is to ensure that every Oakland child is an 'on-time' reader provided with full LITERACY: a fundamental civil right, a powerful protection from the school to prison pipeline, and the cornerstone for a life of choice and fulfillment. In this episode, Kareem discusses the change he is fighting for and the elements he believes are necessary to make it happen.
In this episode, Susan Lambert sits down with Kareem Weaver to discuss what the Science of Reading is at the simplest level and why it’s important that educators are undivided in backing the research. He goes on to give an impassioned plea to educators to come together, because this is an issue that impacts all kids. Kareem also highlights the importance of meeting educators where they are and realizing that change cannot happen if teachers aren’t given the tools and support they need first. Lastly, Kareem calls for systemic changes to education so that teachers can do their jobs in a way that is balanced, sustainable, and ultimately benefits the students.
Science of Reading News
Researchers agree that with the proper interventions and instruction, the vast majority of students with dyslexia can learn to overcome academic challenges and rise to the reading level of their peers. This special series from LAist investigates how California's education system - from early childhood to college to adulthood - can achieve that goal.
The Science
The Realities of Early Childhood
Policy Meets Practice
Bringing Dyslexia to College
How Teachers are Prepared
Through the Cracks
Learn more about the impact of curriculum and how it has often ignored the reasearch in this NYT article titled In the Fight Over How to Teach Reading, This Guru Makes a Major Retreat.
Lucy Calkins, a leading literacy expert, has rewritten her curriculum to include a fuller embrace of phonics and the science of reading. Critics may not be appeased.
