The Center for Literacy Education is proud to share information about recent publications and presentations by affiliated Wake Forest faculty, staff, and students.
“How AI is changing the documentary film process” was the topic of a Lunch and Learn for students in the Documentary Film Program. Professor of Practice Chris Sheridan and Assistant Professor in Computer Science William Cochran co-led the presentation with support from DFP Professor Cara Pilson.
During the two-hour presentation and demonstration, students and faculty had a spirited conversation on how filmmakers can responsibly use AI in the making of their thesis films. The conversation also touched on areas where the use of AI can quickly become problematic.
Professor Sheridan is also an affiliated faculty member of the Center for Literacy Education.
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At the intersection of Writing Studies and Education, Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) is a field of study that broadly asks (1) how writing might be used as a tool for learning and engagement and (2) how writing is a communicative tool that inscribes the ways of knowing and doing in our academic disciplines and corresponding professions.
This research project seeks to uncover how writing is defined, described, and taught by faculty who are part of different disciplinary communities. Understanding how writing works within various fields of study reveals the very nature of knowledge creation. Moreover, explicit and comparative descriptions of how writing works in various disciplines can improve our ability to teach students.
Dr. Russell joined the English Department & Writing Program as an Assistant Professor in Fall 2020. Her research explores how writing works in the world, and she especially focuses on how writing plays a role in shaping institutional access.
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Colleen Foy, Research & Instruction Librarian in Science, partnered with the Department of Health and Exercise Science to publish an article in the Journal of the Medical Library Association reporting on health literacy findings.
Colleen also recently started a project with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools facilitating health literacy workshops in health science career prep classes. This project is ongoing through May 2025.
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Dr. Jeremy Levine, Assistant Teaching Professor in the Writing Program, had a book chapter published over the summer titled “Motivating Lifespan Writing Research Toward Education Policy.”
In the introduction, Dr. Levine writes, “We must turn our research attention to the contexts around writers in schools to understand how state standards, zoning, class sizes, vouchers, teacher experience, district mandates, curriculum guides, pre-existing understandings of writing, and testing all do or do not create opportunities for teachers to cultivate a lifespan orientation in their classroom.”
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In January 2025, Dr. Keri Epps and Dr. Rowie Kirby-Straker along with Wake Forest alumnae Casey Beiswenger, Zoe Chamberlin, Hannah Hill, Lauren Robertson, and Kaitlyn Taylor published a chapter in the edited collection, Community Listening: Stories, Hauntings, Possibilities.
This chapter focuses on the importance of preparing undergraduate students with rhetorical listening skills before entering into community partnerships. The specific accountability group described in the chapter collaborated with the local arts-education nonprofit Authoring Action. It includes the students’ and community partner’s perspectives on the collaboration.
Dr. Epps is an associate teaching professor in the Writing Program and Dr. Kirby-Straker is an assistant professor in the Department of Communications.
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In October 2024, Dr. Caldwell’s student teachers were given the opportunity to take part in a professional development workshop through the Teaching and Learning Alliance.
Along with the student teachers, there were other professionals including local educators and local university professors from Salem College, Elon, Winston-Salem State University, and more in attendance, which allowed for greater professional connections.
One student said “The Pearson workshop provided necessary information as I prepare for my life post graduation. It helped me put myself at ease. This is because it gave me access to ample resources and information regarding the literacy exam. Before this session I felt overwhelmed and confused on the next steps after student teaching. However, I left the session feeling so much better because I had knowledge and resources regarding the next steps in the process.”
Another student said “It was amazing. We were provided with so many resources on all aspects of the test including format, practice questions and key concepts. The funding also gave us one year access to the online course. Jen was so personable and gave us the confidence we needed to begin test preparation.”
Dr. Caldwell serves as Assistant Teaching Professor and Director of Elementary Education in the Department of Education.
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Anna Leslie Miller-Fitzwater, MD, MPH, FAAP Clinical Associate Professor, Pediatrics – General, collaborated on a publication for the American Academy of Pediatrics titled “Literacy Promotion: An Essential Component of Primary Care Pediatric Practice: Policy Statement.”
Dr. Miller-Fitzwater’s research Interests include Children with Medical Complexity, Early Childhood, and Newborn and Public Health Innovations.
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Neelam Awan, Research Associate for Teacher Education Assessment and Licensure Officer for the Department of Education recently published a paper, “A Shift In Paradigm: From Adult Leadership Training to Youth Leadership Development” in The Journal of Student Leadership (Volume 4, Issues 1-2).
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Dr. Alan Brown and Dr. Brook Davis presented at the 2024 North Carolina Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (NCACTE) Fall Forum in Raleigh, North Carolina. The title of their presentation was “Lesson Planning Personified: Incorporating Movement and Performance to Teach Instructional Design,” which showcased their collaboration with 16 Wake Forest theatre and education students as well as seven classes of second grade students and teachers at a local elementary school. This partnership demonstrated the ways in which literacy and performance can connect to help pre-service teachers become content creators, translators, designers, and performers, in this case through lessons on weather patterns, the properties of liquids and solids, and other science topics. |
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This hands-on workshop provided tips and activities for making Shakespeare more user friendly for high school teachers and their students. Participants shared questions, texts and strategies for tackling Shakespeare in the classroom.
The goal of the workshop was to strengthen confidence and provide resources for teachers (particularly novice teachers) who may or may not have training or confidence in teaching Shakespeare. Teachers were invited to tackle text and work together to develop strategies for Shakespeare lesson planning. The workshop addressed historical context, scansion, text choice, and accessibility. At the end of the time together, old and new teachers shared resources and ideas.
Dr. Brook Davis is a professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance at WFU. One of her current research interests is theatre pedagogy and methods for teaching theatre history and dramatic literature.
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Dr. Michele Myers, Assistant Professor in Elementary Literacy Education in the Department of Education, recently authored a blog post for Education Week on a special issue that explores how educators can support student identities. Dr. Myers’s column is titled “Write What Matters Most.
Books by Dr. Myers include The Educator’s Guide to Building Child & Family Resilience and Revolutionary Love: Creating a Culturally Inclusive Literary Classroom
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Dr. Michele Myers authored a Scholastic blog post about sidestepping some of the challenges that parents and children might face with learning by creating a more homework-friendly environment. Whatever subject they’re working on, Myers suggests making sure your child is relaxed and has had the opportunity to unwind after a full school day before jumping into taking care of their schoolwork. Whether they take the time to play, read independently, or sit together with you for a read-aloud, giving your child the time they need before they practice their skills will benefit them in the long run.
Books by Dr. Myers include The Educator’s Guide to Building Child & Family Resilience and Revolutionary Love: Creating a Culturally Inclusive Literary Classroom
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Dr. Leni Caldwell and Brandi Brown presented Curiouser Interventions: Blending of Literacy Best Practices to Support Student Learning Needs at the North Carolina Reading Conference in March 2024.
During a clinical placement at a public school, undergraduate students tutor small groups of MTSS-identified students in third through fifth grades using a blend of literacy best practices. This session explored intervention materials including Phonics for Reading, science of reading supplemental materials, small group data-driven lessons, and more.
Dr. Caldwell serves as Assistant Teaching Professor and Director of Elementary Education in the Department of Education. Brandi Brown is a 3rd grade teacher and former MTSS coordinator at Brunson Elementary School.
Recent conventional wisdom in library instruction circles has tended to promote the SIFT Method as a replacement for the CRAAP Test. But is that right? This session provided practical instructional strategies for teaching source evaluation that are grounded in the presenters’ ongoing research study that has compared written source evaluations from 100+ students using both the CRAAP Test and the SIFT method.
Amanda Kaufman is the Learning and Instructional Services Librarian and Elizabeth Ellis is a Teaching Librarian at the Z. Smith Reynolds Library. Alan Brown is Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Education.
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Wake Forest Theatre & Dance Audience Coordinator Leslie Spencer and Professor Brook Davis worked with a team of students to build a full lobby poster presentation In Scales Fine Arts Center featuring profiles of 30 current and historical Civil Rights activists. Included in the presentation were timelines and historical data to educate the audience attending Wake Forest Department of Theatre and Dance’s production of Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom, a play based on the true story of a young woman who marched in Selma on her 15th birthday. Classroom materials were also created for schools that attended the performance.
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Dr. Alan Brown and colleagues, Dr. Luke Rodesiler (Purdue University Fort Wayne) and Dr. Mark Lewis (James Madison University), collaborated on a new book published by the National Council of Teachers of English called Reading the World through Sports and Young Adult Literature. Recommended and award-winning works of young adult literature featuring youth athletes—protagonists who are entangled not only in athletic competition but in the complications of life beyond the arena—offer secure footholds that students can use to explore contemporary sociopolitical issues. With chapters addressing timely topics, this book supports practicing and prospective teachers in using sports and literature to advance critical literacy and to help students reimagine the world as they know it.
Dr. Brown is Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Education.
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Dr. Alan Brown was published in EdNC highlighting a cohort of student-athletes who committed themselves to serving seventh and eighth grade students as part of the Paisley IB Magnet School Sports Literacy Program. To learn more, read “The Paisley 7: How Wake Forest University Athletes Brought New Life to a Middle School Literacy Program.”
Dr. Brown is Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Education.