Instructional Technology Resource Center at the University of Central Florida
866-227-7261 (FL only) 407-207-4965 (Fax)
FOR-PD Home forpd@orion.itrc.ucf.edu

Welcome to the "Florida Online Reading Professional Development Course."

Welcome! You are one of the many teachers in Florida who are part of this exciting new project. This course is designed to deliver current, relevant, scientifically-based, and classroom-based information in reading to preK-12 teachers. This course is designed with teachers' and students' needs in mind! You have been provided with the web address for this course because you have registered to take the FOR-PD course. This class is designed to help you learn more about: Principles of reading instruction and reading development Exemplary reading instruction Five elements of reading: phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary development, fluency, and comprehension strategies Motivating students to read Children’s and young adult literature Reflection and classroom inquiry Teaching for understanding in the content area Using technology in instruction Literacy instruction for non-native speakers of English Teaching the struggling reader Formal and informal assessment Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test (FCAT) As with any class, there are rules and protocols in place for the benefit of consistency and to make the course run smoothly. Please take a moment now and read these protocols. This class is offered for graduate credit or for 60 inservice points. As such, you should plan to spend several hours each week reading the course material, completing a short assignment and a brief quiz. Please read the rest of this page carefully before logging in to be sure you are in the right place and have the necessary prerequisites for taking this class.

Technical Support

The first line of support for you related to course content or online activities is your course facilitator. Your facilitator will probably tell you the best times to reach him/her and the best way(s) for reaching him/her. Email your facilitator with your questions, or, if you think it is a question others would like to have answers to, post it in the HELP discussion board. You will find that others in the class can be very supportive as well--even though you may not see them or know them. That's part of the fun of an online community.

If you need technical support beyond that which your facilitator or school technology coordinator can offer, please contact the FOR-PD Help Desk.

Don't allow yourself to be frustrated by the technology. Sometimes technology just doesn't work the way you want it to (or the way we want it to!) There are slow times on the Internet. There are technical glitches. Even our best techies won't always be able to tell if the glitch is in our server, our software, your network, your computer or somewhere in between! Often the best thing to do is to take a break, get a cup of coffee or a soft drink, relax for a bit, and then try again.

Class Description

The FOR-PD course consists of 14 lessons. The recommended pace is to complete one lesson per week. Your assignments are due by 11:55 pm EST on Saturday. Maintaining the suggested pace will improve the online experience for everyone. You will benefit by the discussions with your peers and pacing yourself will help to balance your workload.

At FOR-PD, we understand you are a busy professional and may not always be able to keep up with this pace. We encourage you to try, but please contact your facilitator when you have legitimate conflicts. She or he will be glad to work with you to assure your continued success in the course.

The lessons are:

• Lesson 1: Introduction to the FOR-PD Course
• Lesson 2: Reading and Learning to Read
• Lesson 3: Exemplary Reading Instruction
• Lesson 4: Language and Print-Rich Environments
• Lesson 5: Phonemic Awareness and Phonics
• Lesson 6: Bringing Students and Texts Together
• Lesson 7: Strengthening Vocabulary Development
• Lesson 8: Fluency and Comprehension Instruction
• Lesson 9: Integrating Reading and Writing Across the Curriculum
• Lesson 10: Teaching for Understanding in Content Areas
• Lesson 11: Literacy Instruction and Non-native Speakers of English
• Lesson 12: Instruction for Struggling Readers
• Lesson 13: Assessment
• Lesson 14: Becoming an Effective Literacy Leader

Evaluation

At the end of each lesson, you will get a checklist of requirements to complete for that lesson.

You will be able to earn staff development points when you complete the entire course (Lessons 1-14).

Prerequisite Skills

To take this class, you must have basic computer skills and familiarity with using the Internet. Specifically, the following skills are necessary:

• The ability to write (word processing) using a computer
• The ability to access and navigate web pages using a web browser
• The ability to send and receive email including attachments
• The ability to download documents
• The ability to print from a web page or document

If you are deficient on any of these skills, we strongly encourage you to identify a "tech buddy" to help you when your computer skills get in the way of your success in the class. Your tech buddy should be someone readily accessible to you and with enough time and skill to answer your questions.

Hardware and Software Requirements

You will need a computer with Internet access to complete this class. Your web browser should support Javascript. While many configurations will work, the following table indicates the absolute minimum and the recommended requirements for this course.