Reading Instruction
Competency Assessment
Preparing for the California RICA Exam
An on-line guide to general RICA content
and the literacy learning needs
of bilingual readers
Jill Kerper Mora, Ed.D.
San Diego State University
Dear CLAD Teacher Credential Candidates & Fellow Educators,
I provide you with this list of links to instructional modules and resources published on my website to help you prepare for the RICA examination. The RICA Standards have been recently revised (2009). The focus of these on-line materials is to better prepare you for teaching ALL California's readers and writers, but especially language minority students who are classified as limited English proficient. Twenty-five percent of California's students are classified as English language learners (ELLs) and 33% of all students in grades K-3 are classified as limited in English proficiency. Consequently, literacy instruction must address the particular characteristics and challenges of these learners.
Below, I have listed each domain and competency with the relevant MoraModule numbers indicated (e.g. MM 8.1). Go to the MoraModule Index to link to relevant Power Point slide shows and web pages to help you review the important concepts that may appear on the test. These on-line lessons for CLAD credential candidates will help you to become better teachers of our culturally and linguistically diverse student population.
I have included numerous resources for bilingual teachers and CLAD teachers to gain information about methods and approaches for teaching Spanish reading. These are included here because there is a high level of transferability between Spanish and English orthography. This is the basis of a biliteracy approach to teaching Spanish-speaking children to read in their native language. Spanish reading is taught in transitional bilingual education programs and dual immersion programs.
For information about how to register for the RICA with the National Evaluation Systems, click here.
I hope that you find these resources useful. I encourage you to e-mail me with your questions and comments.
Good luck on the RICA!
Jill Kerper Mora
RICA CONTENT DOMAINS AND COMPETENCIES
Guide to MoraModules for RICA Preparation
Click here to link to MoraModules Index to locate modules by numbers and title.
DOMAIN 1—PLANNING, ORGANIZING, AND MANAGING READING INSTRUCTION BASED ON ONGOING ASSESSMENT
001 Understand how to plan, organize, and manage standards-based reading instruction.
MM 4.2 Thematic Planning for ELLs
MM 6.1 Effective Lesson Planning for ELLs
MM 9.4 A Literacy Framework: Instructional Procedures
MM 12.8 Evaluating Language Arts/Reading Curriculum & Programs
MM 14.1 Organizing the Multilevel B/CLAD Classroom
MM 15.1 A Smooth Road to Biliteracy
MM 16.7 Road Map to Effective Biliteracy Instruction002 Understand the purposes of reading assessment and best practices related to standards-based entry-level assessment, monitoring of student progress, and summative assessment.
MM 7.1 Language Assessment
MM 12.1 Using Rubrics for Assessing L2 Writing
MM 12.11 Literacy Instruction for Second Language Readers
MM 16.17 Road Map to Effective Biliteracy InstructionDOMAIN 2—WORD ANALYSIS
003 Understand the role of phonological and phonemic awareness in reading development and how to develop students' phonological and phonemic awareness skills.
MM 5.1
MM 12.4
MM 16.8
MM 16.14004 Understand the role of concepts about print, letter recognition, and the alphabetic principle in reading development and how to develop students' knowledge and skills in these areas.
MM 15.2
MM 16.15005 Understand important terminology and concepts involved in phonics instruction and recognize the role of phonics and sight words in reading development.
MM 16.4
MM 16.14006 Understand how to develop students' phonics knowledge and skills and recognition of sight words to promote accurate word analysis that leads to automaticity in word recognition and contributes to spelling development.
MM 16.8
007 Understand the role of syllabic and structural analysis and orthographic knowledge in reading development and how to develop students' knowledge and skills in these areas to promote accurate word analysis that leads to automaticity in word recognition and contributes to spelling development.
MM 15.5
MM 16.10
MM 16.16
MM 16.20DOMAIN 3—FLUENCY
008 Understand the role of fluency in reading development and factors that affect students' development of fluency.
MM 12.7
MM 12.11009 Understand how to promote students' fluency development.
MM 14.2
DOMAIN 4—VOCABULARY, ACADEMIC LANGUAGE, AND BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE
010 Understand the role of vocabulary, academic language, and background knowledge in reading development and factors that affect students' development of vocabulary, academic language, and background knowledge.
MM 9.2
MM 10.1011 Understand how to promote students' development of vocabulary, academic language, and background knowledge.
MM 4.7
MM 10.2
MM 10.3DOMAIN 5—COMPREHENSION
012 Understand literal, inferential, and evaluative comprehension and factors affecting reading comprehension.
MM 12.12
013 Understand how to facilitate reading comprehension by providing instruction that prepares students for the reading task, scaffolds them as needed through the reading process, and prepares them to respond to what they have read.
MM 4.3
MM 10.5
MM 12.5014 Understand how to promote students' comprehension and analysis of narrative/literary texts and their development of literary response skills.
MM 12.2
MM 12.10015 Understand how to promote students' comprehension of expository/informational texts and their development of study skills and research skills.
MM 10.2
MM 10.5Recommended books for RICA preparation:
Birch, B. (2007). English L2 reading: Getting to the bottom. 2d Edition. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Publishers.
Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement (2003). Put reading first: The research building blocks for teaching children to read. Washington, D.C.: National Institute for Literacy. Available on-line at http://www.nifl.gov/publications/pdf/PRFbooklet.pdf
Gambrell, L.B., Morrow, L. M. & Pressley, M. (Eds). (2007). Best practices in literacy instruction, 3rd edition. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
The following questions to orient teacher credential candidates to the over-arching issues and program design aspects of the RICA domains. They represent a starting point and a summary and conclusion to test yourself for global understanding and application of the RICA content areas.
1. What is meant by a balanced approach to literacy instruction? Describe the components of a balanced literacy program. What components of a balanced literacy program must be in place to address the particular needs of language minority students?
2. What is phonemic awareness? What are the theories about why is PA important in teaching children to read and write? How does phonemic awareness relate to the alphabetic principle and phonics? Name some strategies for developing students' phonemic awareness. Can phonemic awareness transfer from a child's native language to English? What areas of phonemic awareness may need special attention in the case of bilingual learners?
3. How and when do we teach vocabulary? When it is effective and appropriate to pre-teach vocabulary directly before reading a text? What vocabulary teaching strategies are particularly appropriate for L2 learners of English?
4. Define structural analysis. What is its purpose? What facts and information about the history and structure of English does a teacher need to know in order to provide explicit instruction in structural analysis? What concepts of structural analysis apply to Spanish and English?
5. What are some of the impediments to full comprehension of written text? Describe strategies for aiding students' comprehension of text. Are the same strategies applicable to narrative text and literature as compared to expository (content-area) text? Elaborate on the similarities and differences between narrative and expository text reading tasks.
6. Describe the components of an effective spelling program. How do these components parallel the developmental sequence or stages children go through in learning to spell? What is the current perspective on the use of word lists for spelling?
7. What is the role of performance assessment in a balanced comprehensive approach to literacy instruction? What types of reading performance should be assessed? Describe tests and instruments that are commonly used and/or commercially available for each type of assessment. Beyond the instruments that are commercially available, what tools for assessment can a teacher employ to provide a complete picture of a particular student's reading performance?
8. In what ways are instruction in oral language, reading and writing linked? What is taught in an effective writing instruction program? What is the writing process and what is its role in a balanced literacy program?
Additional Resources on Biliteracy and L2 Reading
Click here to navigate Dr. Mora's Website
This page was last updated on 07/03/08