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NALN’s Accomplishments

• Completed a statewide “needs assessment” to understand Nevada’s strengths and challenges in supporting adolescent literacy
• Developed collaborative relationships with , , and , and fostered new collaborative relationships with additional regional and statewide organizations committed to adolescent literacy.
• Created two graphic data reports, one on adolescent literacy achievement and on adolescent reading engagement, illustrating the “State of Adolescent Literacy” in Nevada
         
• Facilitated statewide professional learning on evidence-based practices for teaching reading comprehension in middle and high school, including a year of monthly webinar workshops with national literacy experts and a year of supporting teams of teachers and literacy leaders in implementing best practices in adolescent literacy instruction
• Formed Design Teams, which are groups of representative experts, community members, and adolescents from around Nevada, who design and facilitate NALN initiatives. Design teams have been formed to:
  • study issues in adolescent literacy in Nevada
  • identify promising reading engagement activities, including book clubs, currently in use in Nevada
  • develop new initiatives to engage adolescents in reading and writing in Nevada, including a Nevada Adolescent Writing Magazine
  • prepare resources on adolescent literacy for educators and leaders in Nevada, including two graphic data reports
  • create an online clearinghouse of adolescent literacy resources for educators in Nevada, including a draft website and social media presence

Themes from statewide data on adolescent literacy achievement

• Based on , fewer than half of Nevada’s eighth graders read at the proficient level.
• Based on , 38% of Nevada’s eighth grade students read below the basic level.
• Prominent racial disparities exist, with the scores of Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaskan Native students suggesting far fewer or lower-quality educational opportunities.

Themes from interviews of educators and leaders around Nevada who support adolescents

• Teachers need sustained, research-based professional learning opportunities to support adolescent literacy.
• Adolescents need choice and relevance in their reading and writing activities.
• Social emotional learning is a critical component of supporting adolescent literacy.

Themes from listening sessions with Nevada’s adolescents

• Teens need diversity in approaches to support their literacy habits and purposes – one size does not fit all.
• Teens wish teachers had more empathy and flexibility for their out-of-school lives.
• Social media is a “mixed bag”: it offers important opportunities for connection and learning at the same time as it promotes negative content and misinformation.
• Teens value writing and write for a variety of purposes in their personal lives.