Closing the Literacy Gap

At a time when so many pivotal education issues are closely tied to literacy and education policy, such as No Child Left Behind legislation, Tom Gunning provides critical insight into the key elements needed to close the literacy gap in America’s schools, from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.

Closing the Literacy Gap addresses the demands of the No Child Left Behind legislation and provides a wide range of recommendations and a great number of practical suggestions for closing the literacy gap.

Read Why Reviewers Can’t Put This Book Down.

“Tom Gunning provides support for his ideas by drawing from real, authentic literature! He does a fine job of including everything imaginable on the topic of Closing the Gap. . .he truly understands how students learn to read and write!”
—Diane Lapp, San Diego State University

“I would definitely use this book in my work in school districts because it really ties everything we are dealing with together in a concrete way. Everything in this book is important. . . . Gunning allows the reader to see the interconnectedness of all the subject matter contained in the book. He understands what students need and just cuts to it.”
—Maureen F. Ruby, Southern Connecticut State University

Thomas G. Gunning has taught courses in methods of teaching reading and writing for 20 years and was the director of the Reading Clinic at Southern Connecticut State University. Before that, as a secondary English teacher, secondary reading specialist, and an elementary school reading consultant, he worked extensively with achieving and struggling readers. Dr. Gunning has conducted research on phonics, and has created his own word analysis program, which is known as Word Building. He has also created a number of informal assessment devices and conducted research on reading interests. Dr. Gunning devised a collaborative comprehension approach known as Reading Seminar, and has also written several published comprehension programs.

He is the author of numerous textbooks, including Building Literacy in the Content Areas, Assessing and Correcting Reading and Writing Difficulties, Creating Literacy Instruction for All Students, Best Books for Beginning Readers, Best Books for Building Literacy for Elementary School Children, Building Words: A Resource Manual for Teaching Word Analysis and Spelling Skills and Strategies, and Phonological Awareness and Primary Phonics. All are Allyn & Bacon books.

At a time when so many pivotal education issues are closely tied to literacy and education policy, such as No Child Left Behind legislation, Tom Gunning provides critical insight into the key elements needed to close the literacy gap in America’s schools, from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.

Closing the Literacy Gap addresses the demands of the No Child Left Behind legislation and provides a wide range of recommendations and a great number of practical suggestions for closing the literacy gap. This much-awaited text builds from an early emphasis on creating a vision statement to implementing effective techniques and assessing for instruction. Unlike other texts, Gunning provides a coherent plan for program implementation that has proven to successfully close the literacy gap. The recommendations provided within the text are specific and detailed and are built on basic principles.