It is imperative that districts uphold high standards in the selection of a supervisor for the practicum for the following reasons:

• the reading endorsement is a competency based certification
• teachers are required to generate evidence of increases in student achievement data in the practicum, the culminating demonstration of teacher competency

The supervisor must have reading expertise as evidenced by state reading certification or university status specifically for reading. Secondly, the supervisor must have completed Clinical Educator training or its equivalent (peer coaching, collegial coaching) for clinical supervisors of teachers and student services personnel. It is important that the supervisor have clinical skills in diagnosis of developing a professional's performance, feedback on performance, and the planning and implementation of professional development plans.

Through the approval process for the add-on, the Department, using a peer review process, will review the submitted programs and provide districts with a summary of the reviewers’ ratings and comments in addition to the official notification of the results of the review. The contact person for District Add-on Reading Programs is Patricia Cheavers from the Bureau of Educator Recruitment and Professional Development. Her contact information is 850-245-0435 and her email is patriciacheavers@fldoe.org

This training was provided at the beginning of the 2003-2004 school year for those reading coaches hired at schools funded by specific federal or state grants. The following reading coaches in your district would have attended the training:

• Reading First reading coaches (grades K-3) hired at Reading First schools with federal Reading First dollars
• Elementary or secondary reading coaches hired under the Reading Coaches Model Grant from this year’s state appropriations

This training focused on various aspects of the roles and responsibilities of a reading coach within a school and district.

Yes, the Department is pursuing such an effort. However, due to the complexity of the process and the volume of courses to be analyzed, it is anticipated that this undertaking will take a considerable amount of time. Once the analysis is completed, though, the identified reading courses will be posted on the appropriate Websites.

Additionally, the Just Read, Florida! Office has sponsored several university projects of reading course offerings specifically for the purpose of supporting district reading endorsement add-on programs in order for teachers to earn the reading endorsement and for teacher recertification. These projects are:

• Florida Online Reading Professional Development (FOR-PD) through the University of Central Florida (UCF). Identified as RED5147: Developmental Reading, this three-hour university online course aligns with competency 2 of the reading endorsement and is provided on an ongoing basis for Florida teachers to complete at their own pace.
• Summer Institute & Reading Coursework through Florida State University (FSU) includes a series of reading course offerings that align with the reading endorsement competencies. Once final approval of the course descriptions for the next round of offerings is completed, the Department will post information about specific course numbers and titles, their competency alignment, and each of the course locations throughout the state.

While certification is not required for college teaching, many college instructors do hold Florida certificates. If the individual holds a temporary or professional certificate, he or she can add the reading endorsement by completing the application and endorsement requirements. An endorsement can never stand alone on a Florida Educator's Certificate.