Each summer, the UVEI faculty engage in collective learning around a theme that will continue into the school year. Sometimes this takes the form of a “book club” or a series of discussions, but this year we’re merging the two into a “summer reading series” in which we will read and discuss a series (weekly) of articles around the theme of Student Voice in Schools. Each faculty member has chosen an article and will be facilitating a discussion of that article.

We invite alumni and partners who might share our interest to join us in person or virtually (it’s free!). This summer we’ll be reading articles around the theme of Student Voice in Schools. Discussions will take place from 9:30-10:30 am on Tuesdays. You are welcome to join for one particular session, all of the sessions, or something in between.. Typically we will use a text discussion structure, probably some version of “save the last word” or “the 4 As” to discuss an article. Facilitators will contact all participants in advance to share the article, the Zoom link (if needed), and any other necessary information. See the weekly topics below, and register here or below (all registration links are the same!).

June 30 – Teaching Students to Use Their Voice (the Responsive Classroom approach) – RSVP here
Article: Wilson, M.B. (2014). Chapter 2. Speaking Essentials. In The language for learning: Teaching students core thinking, speaking, and listening skills. Center for Responsive Schools, Inc.
Facilitator: Page Tompkins
Inspiration: “I’m interested in the question of how we teach and guide students to use their voice in ways that are embedded in the classroom. I’m not sure if “increasing student voice” in the absence of support and development is sustainable, and I don’t think specific lessons or subject areas are sufficient. I’ll be asking the questions: How do we make students’ using their voices an everyday thing? And how do we support students’ growth?”

July 7 – Student, Teacher, Researcher Collaboration – RSVP here
Article: Cook-Sather, A. (2020). Student voice across contexts: Fostering student agency in today’s schools. Theory Into Practice, 59(2), 182–191. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405841.2019.1705091
Facilitator: Adam Norwood
Inspiration: “This article explores how ‘student voice’ initiatives foster student agency by positioning students alongside educators as co-researchers/examiners of educational practice. By collaborating on classroom analysis, research, and coauthored texts, this approach connects student perspectives with the power to influence school decisions to democratize education for everyone involved. The author concluded with suggestions for educators on how to further support student voice as a means to increase student agency.”

July 14 – Teaching Democratic Participation – RSVP here
Article: Ottander, K., & Simon, S. (2021). Learning democratic participation? Meaning-making in discussion of socioscientific issues in science education. International Journal of Science Education, 43(12), 1895–1925. Retrieve from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/09500693.2021.1946200?needAccess=true
Facilitator: Chris Ward
Inspiration: “I’m eager to discuss the relationship between students’ democratic voice and their engagement with topics and questions that are meaningful and important to them. In this article, the authors collaborate with teachers to study how high school students engage in dialogue about issues related to energy consumption and scarcity of food, and they raise the question, can we expect and foster democratic participation “without empowering students to actually change or take actions that can make a difference?”

July 21 – Empowering Voices in the ESL Classroom (K-6 focus) – RSVP here
Article: Baker, M. (2023). Empowering the Voices of Young Multilingual Learners in the ESL Classroom. In E. Meletiadou (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Fostering Social Justice Through Intercultural and Multilingual Communication(pp. 362-380). IGI Global Scientific Publishing.
Facilitator: Monica Nachemja-Bunton
Inspiration: “This chapter examines strategies that support and empower elementary-level multilingual learners to use their voice across a variety of contexts: project-based learning, restorative circles, debate, exploring their identities, and publishing their work. These same strategies can be effective for all learners, regardless of their first language, as they engage with the work, thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and discipline of school. I am excited to explore the intersections of teaching academic language, fostering student voice and agency, and engaging students in deeper learning.”

July 28 – Synthesis: A Discussion of Themes and Take-Aways From Across the Articles – RSVP here
Facilitator: Page Tompkins