Abstract
Teacher language plays a key role in literacy instruction because it shows what educators notice about students’ reading, how they interpret performance, and what they see as important for learning. However, common instructional phrases can sometimes reflect assumptions about what students know or can do or miss important parts of reading development. This article looks at teacher language as a way to reflect on these assumptions, especially when teaching students with dyslexia or those who are bilingual or multilingual. Using research on literacy development, teacher knowledge, classroom talk, and humanizing teaching, the article introduces the Language for Learning Tool. This tool supports teachers in examining familiar phrases in relation to students’ reading processes, language resources, and learning needs. It encourages educators to think about what a statement might suggest about a student, what it might miss, and how to rephrase it to offer clearer and more supportive instruction. The tool’s main feature, “What This Statement Overlooks,” focuses attention on the knowledge and reasoning behind everyday classroom talk. The article offers a framework for connecting teacher language with thoughtful, humanizing literacy instruction, while recognizing that language is just one part of the larger teaching environment that shapes student learning.
Recommended Citation
Mejia, Madeleine and Bechard, Amber
(2026)
"Language for Learning: Examining Teacher Language in Reading Instruction,"
Journal of Research Initiatives: Vol. 9:
Iss.
3, Article 2.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.uncfsu.edu/jri/vol9/iss3/2
Included in
Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Elementary Education and Teaching Commons