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The Science of Language and Reading - Intermediate

In stock

SKU
SC-15
Advance your knowledge and skills in the field of reading instruction and intervention through a cognitive psychology framework.

This course expands on the linguistic basis of reading and integrates the science of learning and reading, using the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework for identifying and supporting students with language disorder, reading and related literacy difficulties. 

$440.00

Key facts

Course category
Education, Professional Practice
Options
Option 1 Session 1: Wednesday 23 April 2025
Session 2: Wednesday 30 April 2025
Session 3: Wednesday 7 May 2025
Session 4: Wednesday 14 May 2025
Session 5: Wednesday 21 May 2025 		4:00 PM - 5:30 PM (AEST)Online (Live)
Duration
5 weeks
Group Bookings
Enquire now
Prerequisite/s
There are no prerequisites for this short course
Certification
Certificate of Attendance

Why this course?

This course is designed for primary and secondary teachers - and is also suitable for allied health professionals and parents who want to understand more about the Science of Language and Reading as this pertains to initial reading instruction and support for struggling learners.   
 
You will further develop your skills and knowledge about reading instruction and intervention for all children, through the integration of information from linguistics, cognitive science and neuroscience to derive best practice for reading instruction and intervention with a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework.

Why study a short course at La Trobe

Industry experience while you study

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Rising demand

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Powerful Collaborations

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Course content

Topics covered include:  

  • Oral language: a deeper dive. Vocabulary across the tiers, discourse genres, inferencing and metalanguage
  • Cognitive Load Theory, explicit instruction, and leveraging neuroscience research in the classroom.
  • Progress monitoring in reading: Making the most of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support.
  • Developmental Language Disorder: The most common disorder you've never heard of.
  • Learning Difficulties: Early identification and intervention to close the achievement gap.

This course is delivered by La Trobe University SOLAR Lab Directors; Professor Pamela Snow and Associate Professor Tanya Serry. 

About the La Trobe SOLAR Lab 
The SOLAR Lab was established in the School of Education at La Trobe University in 2020 to promote the scientific study of the role of oral language skills in the emergence and consolidation of reading skills across the school years (pre-school to secondary). We use the term “reading” to specifically identify core skills in text decoding and language comprehension that also promote success in writing and spelling. 
 
Research carried out in the SOLAR Lab emphasises interdisciplinary collaboration between researchers, teachers and allied health professionals such as speech-language pathologists and psychologists, with a view to promoting efficient translation of new knowledge into classroom practice and encouraging the cessation of practices for which the empirical evidence-base is weak or non-existent.

You’ll learn:

After completing this course, you will be able to:

  • Apply the concept of vocabulary tiers to their teaching and will understand how literal and non-literal language differ from each other
  • Design explicit teaching tasks and learning activities that take account of limited working memory capacity, to maximise long-term memory gains
  • Apply Response to Intervention tiers to teaching in their school and appropriately place this within a context-specific MTSS framework
  • Define and describe language disorder and developmental language disorder and consider the implications  and practical solutions for students with these diagnoses in the classroom.  
  • Define and describe learning difficulty and learning disability and examine the implications for students. We use a Response to Intervention framework alongside regular progress monitoring, to contextualise this topic. 

Your study experience

Delivered online over five 1.5-hour weekly webinars, which will also be made available as recordings, you will have the opportunity to engage with our subject matter experts for detailed responses, and access learning resources, discussion forums, and practical tools to support you in applying the techniques learned in the webinar.  The total time commitment will be up to 15 hours. 
 
Following each online session, you'll be able to access learning resources and practical tools to support you in applying the techniques learned in the seminar, the online weekly sessions are recorded and available as synchronous or asynchronous presentations.  You can also choose to undertake self-assessment quizzes to track your learning process and understanding.   

At the conclusion, you will receive a Certificate of Attendance for 7.5 hours of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). 

Who you'll learn from

Professor Pamela Snow

In 2020, Pamela established, with her colleague, Associate Professor Tanya Serry, the Science of Language and Reading (SOLAR) Lab in the School of Education at La Trobe University. The SOLAR Lab is a platform for research, teaching, advocacy and postgraduate supervision on a wide range of topics pertaining to developmental language and the transition to reading, writing and spelling in the school years. The SOLAR Lab was a finalist in the 2022 Australian Financial Review higher education awards in the Community Engagement category. https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/pcsnow 

Vanessa Rohlf 

Vanessa is a Research Officer in the School of Psychology and Public Health, and is a consultant, therapist, and educator specialising in compassion fatigue, stress management, pet loss, and animal bereavement.

Associate Professor Tanya Serry

In 2020, Tanya co-founded the SOLAR Lab (Science of Language and Reading) with Professor Pamela Snow in the School of Education at La Trobe University. The SOLAR Lab is a platform for research, teaching, advocacy and postgraduate supervision on a wide range of topics pertaining to developmental language and the transition to reading, writing and spelling in the school years. The SOLAR Lab was a finalist in the 2022 Australian Financial Review higher education awards in the Community Engagement category. https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/tserry 

Frequently Asked Questions

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Find out more about further education at La Trobe  View all FAQ

I would like information about a short course. Who can assist me?  

Email: LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au 

Phone: 1300 135 045

I have paid the fee for a short course. When will I be able to access it?  

On completion of your registration, you'll be provided with an account on our Learning Management System (LMS) and the course material will be made available at the advertised date, or as outlined on your registration confirmation email.  For our on-demand courses, access will be immediate.

What payment options are there?

  • You may arrange to pay by BPAY or EFT
  • For group bookings, we encourage purchase orders.  Contact us for a quote, and upon receipt of your purchase order we can make the course available to you.
  • Unfortunately, we are not able to arrange instalment payments.

Contact us on LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au for assistance. 

Can I arrange payment with a Purchase Order?

Yes, we accept Purchase Orders. Please email to LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au and our La Trobe Professional team will provide you with payment details and access to your course. 

I am getting an error when I try to log into my LMS account. Can you help? 

  • The first thing to check is your order confirmation email - it will contain your Learning Management System (LMS) account and password.  Note that this account may not be the same as your staff, student or previous short course participant account. 
  • The second thing to check is that you're logging on as a short course participant and not as a student - choose 'Other Users' - select Short Course as your institution and use your account and password as provided.

If you need any assistance, contact us on LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au. 

I want to enrol multiple staff in a short course. How do I go about this? 

Contact LaTrobeProfessional@latrobe.edu.au so that we can discuss options with you.  

What certification will I receive?

The type of certification depends on the assessment involved in the course. For example:

  • Microcredentials:  You will receive a digital credential that confirms the skills you’ve acquired, any assessments you’ve completed and potential pathways for credit or advanced standing towards a degree. 
  • Other assessed short courses:  This may include bridging programs or courses that prepare you for external certification from a professional body.  You might receive a certificate of achievement or a digital badge (a digital version of a certificate of achievement).
  • Non-assessed courses:  If a course doesn’t involve formal assessment, you’ll receive a certificate of attendance.
  • Single-subject enrolment: If you enrol in a single subject, you will receive an official transcript for that subject.

Please note that short courses or microcredentials are not formal qualifications under the Australian Qualifications Framework but may be eligible for consideration as advanced standing (credit) towards a degree.

What is a microcredential? 

Microcredentials are short courses that are assessed, carry academic credit, and to deliver specific skills or knowledge.  While they can be taken as standalone courses, many are designed to be combined or ‘stacked’ with other microcredentials to form the equivalent of a subject within a degree program.  Upon successful completion, you’ll earn a digital credential that outlines the skills and credit obtained, and any opportunities for stacking.

For La Trobe microcredentials, any advanced standing or stacking pathways are clearly expressed on the course page.   

What is advanced standing?

Advanced standing refers to credit for prior study or formal learning that can be credited towards a qualification, thereby reducing the number of subjects required to complete a course. For short courses or microcredentials (if these have been completed through recognised institutions or platforms and are deemed equivalent to La Trobe University subjects), credit may be granted either for specific La Trobe subjects or as unspecified credit towards elective requirements of a La Trobe course.

For La Trobe microcredentials, any advanced standing or stacking pathways are clearly expressed on the course page.   Upon successful completion of the course, you’ll receive a digital credential, which may be used when applying for credit for the relevant degree at La Trobe.

For more details, visit the University’s advanced standing web page.