Cynthia McCallister is founding director of New York University’s program in Literacy Education with 15 years of experience as a teacher educator. She specializes in literacy assessment and instruction of diverse learners, reading and writing workshop theory and practice, and the comparative nature of teaching practices of highly- and minimally-successful teachers. Her work as a teacher educator is grounded in previous experience as a former elementary school teacher (grades k, 1, 2, 3, and 5). As a consultant and staff developer in the New York City metropolitan area, Cynthia has worked extensively in a wide range of culturally- and linguistically-diverse schools. Her staff development work emphasizes the following: development of teacher learning and expertise through careful student assessment; the use of reading and writing workshops to facilitate the development of students’ identities and competencies as readers and writers; implementation and improvement of literacy practices that strengthen classroom learning cultures; and planning and implementing literacy curricula that are differentiated to accommodate diverse student needs so as to provide sufficient opportunity for all students to meet expectations of a standards-based system of accountability. She is the author of Reconceptualizing Literacy Methods Instruction: To Build a House that Remembers Its Forest (Peter Lang) and numerous articles that focus on a range of issues relating to student-centered literacy practices within the contentious context of contemporary American schooling.
