Luciano Cossi: Using Technology to Engage Reluctant Readers and Teach Literacy Elements and Vocabulary

My name is Luciano Cossi. I am the Florida account representative for McGraw-Hill/Contemporary. For many of you I have not met, I look forward to meeting you and working with you and your organizations as you begin to implement your Career Pathways programs. This past January I attended several of the state-wide Career Pathways Workshops. As a representative of McGraw-Hill Education Publishing I attended the workshops to better understand the goals and objectives of the Florida Career Pathways Initiative. I am pleased to say that McGraw-Hill continues to innovate and expand existing programs to deliver materials that meet your Career Pathways and Workforce Education program needs.

Recently, McGraw-Hill Education published two new free websites that support existing programs – the Critical Reading Series ( Jamestown’s The Outer Edge, The Wild Side, Critical Reading, and Above & Beyond-NEW) and the Reading Basics Series. Existing customers and new customers can access the websites for these programs free-of-charge and can access the new technology support materials that include MP3 audio files of reading passages, instructor’s materials, student activity worksheets, and much more.

Below is a detailed description of each program. In addition to the two free websites, McGraw-Hill has published technology support that can be purchased for the Words to Learn By vocabulary program app now available on iTunes® and in the Android Marketplace for phones and tablets and the revised Number Power math series now includes the ExamView® Assessment Suite CD-ROM test generator and worksheet generator.

Reading Basics – Revised for 2011 – motivates and engages students with real-life workforce, expository, and literacy readings.The revised Reading Basics program is based on current Evidence-Based Reading Instructional (EBRI) research in adult reading, introduces workplace skills to help students relate their reading skills to their working lives, aligns to the National Reporting System’s (NRS) Grade Level Equivalents (GLE) and CTB/McGraw-Hill Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE 9 & 10), includes modernized scenarios, real-world scenarios, emphasizes phonemic awareness, word analysis, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension, and technology support includes a no-charge website which includes MP3 audio files, instructor’s materials, activity worksheets. For more information, visit the Reading Basics information page.

Above and Beyond (RL 8-10) – New for 2011 –This series is fourth in the Jamestown Critical Reading series, which also includes The Outer Edge (RL 2-4), The Wild Side (RL 4-6), and Critical Reading (RL 6-8).  This series and the entire Critical Reading series stimulates students with high-interest selections at a grade 2-10 readability level, improves proficiency in reading narrative nonfiction, prepares students for state and national tests using critical thinking questions, offers follow-up questions to reinforce key comprehension skills and critical thinking questions that encourage students to consider the author’s purpose, make inferences, identify cause and effect, and make predictions, and and technology support includes a no-charge website which includes MP3 audio files, instructor’s materials, activity worksheets. For more information, visit the Above and Beyond information page .

McGraw-Hill Education will continue to listen to customers and to innovate with technology to engage students using the latest technology and materials. Please try out these resources and send me your feedback or comments as to how McGraw-Hill Education can continue to improve.