Donna Alvermann
Encyclopedia
Donna Alvermann is a researcher and teacher educator whose work focuses on adolescents’ digital and media literacies and youth-initiated engagement with all kinds of texts both in and out of school. Currently she is University Appointed Distinguished Research Professor of Language and Literacy Education in the College of Education at the University of Georgia
. Currently, she serves on the Adolescent Literacy Advisory Group of the Alliance for Excellent Education. Alvermann is a noteworthy researcher and teacher educator as she has published over 100 articles. She was elected to the board of the National Reading Conference and is currently the co-chair of the International Reading Association
’s (IRA) Commission on Adolescent Literacy. She is currently an editor for Reading Research Quarterly, an IRA journal. Her research in the area of reading has been beneficial for educators working with struggling and adolescent readersm and is regarded as a voice that speaks for these readers. She has encouraged teachers to rethink critical literacy and incorporate new technology and social practices in their instruction of Language Arts.
in Education from the University of Texas at Austin
in 1965. She began her teaching career in Texas after graduating. She continued her education, graduating with her Master of Arts
in Education from the University of Texas at Austin
in 1968. She continued to teach in Texas until her move to New York. While in New York at Syracuse University
, she completed both her MLS in Information Studies and her PhD
in Reading and Language Arts Education in 1980.
. In 1982, she joined the faculty of the College of Education at the University of Georgia
, where she advanced through the ranks to Full Professor in 1990 and Distinguished Research Professor in 2001. She has been a Visiting Scholar at both the Institute for Research on Teaching at Michigan State University
(1982) and Louisiana State University
(1987), and a Lansdowne Lecturer at the University of Victoria, Canada (2001). She has done numerous consultations, some of which include the following: Carnegie Corporation of New York
; RAND Corporation; American Institutes for Research; RMC Research Corporation; Education Development Center/ Center for Children and Technology; Boys and Girls Club of America; Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation/Jobs for the Future; Spencer Foundation; WNET Channel Thirteen, New York City; WGBH Boston Public TV; and WETA, the flagship PBS station in Washington, DC. Alvermann has authored over 100 articles, 15 books, and 70 chapters related to adolescent literacy
. She has been principal or co-principal investigator of 22 grants, including the National Reading Research Center that she co-directed from 1992-1997 at the University of Georgia. Alvermann has been affiliated with the Institute for Behavioral Research at the University of Georgia since 1991, most recently as a Fellow in the Community, Ethnicity and Identity in Context Group.
reading, struggling readers, and a shift to the topics of new literacies to include the practice of using technology and reading.
In her work on adolescent reading, Alvermann has studied the literacy practices of adolescents who embed their reading within their technology and social practices. She has also recognized the benefit of gaming
in literacy as other researchers like James Paul Gee have done. She examined the role of gaming and popular media as well as their connections to affinity groups. In one of her publications she addresses recommendations to foster critical awareness and reading competency through playing. She urges teachers to rethink the way they address strategies for struggling readers to include various modalities of reading including technology.
Alvermann has also studied critical literacy and the importance of connecting popular culture to language arts. Many reading studies have proven that students comprehend more when they have a connection to what they read. The use of popular culture is a natural connection for students as they interact socially with peers using popular culture as an avenue to belong to a certain social group. Alvermann urges teachers to utilize this avenue to enhance students’ reading achievement, and admonishes them to recognize the usefulness of popular culture. In her studies of popular culture she has included magazines, comics, television programs, video games, music, graffiti, e-mail, and Internet communication as genres of reading in popular culture. She also has examined a link between professional wrestling and literacy practices through dramatic play.
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
. Currently, she serves on the Adolescent Literacy Advisory Group of the Alliance for Excellent Education. Alvermann is a noteworthy researcher and teacher educator as she has published over 100 articles. She was elected to the board of the National Reading Conference and is currently the co-chair of the International Reading Association
International Reading Association
The International Reading Association is an international professional organization that was created in 1956 to improve reading instruction, facilitate dialogue about research on reading, and encourage the habit of reading....
’s (IRA) Commission on Adolescent Literacy. She is currently an editor for Reading Research Quarterly, an IRA journal. Her research in the area of reading has been beneficial for educators working with struggling and adolescent readersm and is regarded as a voice that speaks for these readers. She has encouraged teachers to rethink critical literacy and incorporate new technology and social practices in their instruction of Language Arts.
Education
Alvermann received her Bachelor of ScienceBachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in Education from the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
in 1965. She began her teaching career in Texas after graduating. She continued her education, graduating with her Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
in Education from the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
in 1968. She continued to teach in Texas until her move to New York. While in New York at Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
, she completed both her MLS in Information Studies and her PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Reading and Language Arts Education in 1980.
Career
After her 12 years of experience as a classroom teacher in Texas and New York, Alvermann became an Assistant Principal in 1975 at Elmira City Schools in New York. Her first higher education appointment came in 1980 at University of Northern IowaUniversity of Northern Iowa
The University of Northern Iowa is a college located in Cedar Falls, Iowa, United States. UNI offers more than 120 majors across the colleges of Business Administration, Education, Humanities and Fine Arts, Natural Sciences, and Social and Behavioral sciences, and graduate college.UNI has...
. In 1982, she joined the faculty of the College of Education at the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
, where she advanced through the ranks to Full Professor in 1990 and Distinguished Research Professor in 2001. She has been a Visiting Scholar at both the Institute for Research on Teaching at Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
(1982) and Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
(1987), and a Lansdowne Lecturer at the University of Victoria, Canada (2001). She has done numerous consultations, some of which include the following: Carnegie Corporation of New York
Carnegie Corporation of New York
Carnegie Corporation of New York, which was established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 "to promote the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding," is one of the oldest, largest and most influential of American foundations...
; RAND Corporation; American Institutes for Research; RMC Research Corporation; Education Development Center/ Center for Children and Technology; Boys and Girls Club of America; Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation/Jobs for the Future; Spencer Foundation; WNET Channel Thirteen, New York City; WGBH Boston Public TV; and WETA, the flagship PBS station in Washington, DC. Alvermann has authored over 100 articles, 15 books, and 70 chapters related to adolescent literacy
Adolescent literacy
Adolescence, the period between age 12 and 20, is a time of rapid psychological and neurological development, during which children develop morally , cognitively , and socially...
. She has been principal or co-principal investigator of 22 grants, including the National Reading Research Center that she co-directed from 1992-1997 at the University of Georgia. Alvermann has been affiliated with the Institute for Behavioral Research at the University of Georgia since 1991, most recently as a Fellow in the Community, Ethnicity and Identity in Context Group.
National Reading Research Center
Alvermann co-directed the National Reading Research Center at the University of Georgia from 1992-1997. This center conducted studies and released publications in the areas of reading, writing, science and history learning assessment, and professional development.Awards and honors
Past president of the National Reading Conference (NRC), Alvermann was editor of Reading Research Quarterly from 2003-2007 (volumes 38-42). In 1999, she was elected to the Reading Hall of Fame. Alvermann is the recipient of numerous awards including the National Reaching Conference’s Oscar Causey Award for Outstanding Contributions to Reading Research and the Kingston Award for Distinguished Service; College Reading Association’s Laureate Award and the Herr Award for Contributions to Research in Reading Education, and the American Reading Forum’s Townsend Service Award. Alvermann holds the Honorary Doctorate of Pedagogy at Long Island University (2005). In 2006, she was awarded the International Reading Association’s William S. Gray Citation of Merit.Major research contributions
Alvermann has added to the field of reading with her work in adolescentAdolescence
Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and mental human development generally occurring between puberty and legal adulthood , but largely characterized as beginning and ending with the teenage stage...
reading, struggling readers, and a shift to the topics of new literacies to include the practice of using technology and reading.
In her work on adolescent reading, Alvermann has studied the literacy practices of adolescents who embed their reading within their technology and social practices. She has also recognized the benefit of gaming
Game
A game is structured playing, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more often an expression of aesthetic or ideological elements...
in literacy as other researchers like James Paul Gee have done. She examined the role of gaming and popular media as well as their connections to affinity groups. In one of her publications she addresses recommendations to foster critical awareness and reading competency through playing. She urges teachers to rethink the way they address strategies for struggling readers to include various modalities of reading including technology.
Alvermann has also studied critical literacy and the importance of connecting popular culture to language arts. Many reading studies have proven that students comprehend more when they have a connection to what they read. The use of popular culture is a natural connection for students as they interact socially with peers using popular culture as an avenue to belong to a certain social group. Alvermann urges teachers to utilize this avenue to enhance students’ reading achievement, and admonishes them to recognize the usefulness of popular culture. In her studies of popular culture she has included magazines, comics, television programs, video games, music, graffiti, e-mail, and Internet communication as genres of reading in popular culture. She also has examined a link between professional wrestling and literacy practices through dramatic play.