Damon Thomas

Senior Lecturer in Literacy Education at the University of Queensland. Interested in all things reading & writing theory, development, pedagogy, & assessment.

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

🎉 NEW POST: AERO has released a suite of new writing resources to improve writing instruction in every subject. Here are my key takeaways after completing the courses https://t.co/Jhjw0uHtsf

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

🎉 NEW POST🎉 In this blog post, I unpack what it means to score in coveted and much-reported Australian "Top 100 schools" lists following NAPLAN each year. https://t.co/9154p7G0qu

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

The NAPLAN results for 2023 have been released. It's a whole new world of testing, with new proficiency standards and an earlier test each year (March instead of May). Here's my analysis of the results with some unexpected findings:
https://t.co/R6CQQjleKM

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@NathanielRSwain That sums up academia very well! Yep, it’s much the same for me at UQ. In W3 of a new primary reading course underpinned by the SoR. It’s all going well so far. I look forward to hearing more about the good work you and your team are doing at LTU.

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@NathanielRSwain Sure have, thanks. How’s life in ITE? I’m sure you’re kicking all sorts of goals.

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

Really enjoyed listening to Steve Graham on SOR the Podcast. Many interesting points. One that stuck out was recent research showing grammar instruction done right ‘does’ enhance student writing. Will be tracking down that paper! https://t.co/XzRXxqZdta

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

The transition to secondary school was found to be a crucial period affecting boys' literacy outcomes. The developmental trajectory differed by test. You can dive in here: https://t.co/aSLEBNF64Y (2/2)

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

New article 🎉 @NathanielRSwain, Jack Walton, David Hicks and I explored gender gaps for all NAPLAN literacy tests from 2008 to 2021. Girls outperformed boys on all literacy tests. The biggest gap? Writing, followed by grammar and punctuation, then spelling, then reading. (1/2)

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

NEW POST 🎉 Figurative language is an underrated aspect of English, being taught from Year 1 to Year 10 and across all 3 strands of the curriculum. In this post, I outline a project that will investigate how successful young writers use figurative language https://t.co/zvIooDAEn2

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

Great take on grammar here. I'd just add that 'teaching grammar in context' should include the context of different genres (narratives, arguments etc.) that are distinguished by their grammar (and structural) choices. https://t.co/2l9OQj6OPJ

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@jollydiscoverie @RWheldall All going well here, Celeste. Settled into life in Brisbane and gearing up for a busy semester of teaching. Hope you're well too and have made a good start to 2023.

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@buckingham_j @KevinWheldall @RWheldall @FIVEfromFIVE Oh wow, thanks, Jen! That's wonderful. Thanks for your hard work on the new text - I know I'll be drawing on it for several purposes including my teaching in both semesters this year and will recommend it to my students.

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

Just finished reading the game-changing textbook "Effective Instruction in Reading and Spelling" for pre-service and in-service teachers. This book is a must-have resource for any undergrad in edu. 10/10 stars 🌟 Congrats to the editors @KevinWheldall @RWheldall @buckingham_j

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@tserry2504 @KevinWheldall @RWheldall @buckingham_j It's definitely an exciting time in initial teacher education!

[Emina McLean @EminaMcLean]

It's been great to see responses roll in from academics across Australia. If you'd like to share your views on the literacy skills of your #HigherEd students, please take a look at this survey. It's taking far less than the estimated 30 mins to complete. https://t.co/88Os1bl3MY

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@jettybe3 @EminaMcLean Thanks, Jeanette and I hope you're well. Yes, the sentence for an intended audience would be a particularly simple fix but could make the task easier for students and markers. Take care!

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@kav1948mary @EminaMcLean Super interesting (and troubling). Things in a field as complex as education are rarely as simple as 'this works and that doesn't'. It points to the desperate need for high quality, reliable research and replication.

[Damon Thomas @DamonPThomas]

@EminaMcLean There's a risk that people will look at poor implementations and use that as evidence to argue that SOR/SOL don't work as claimed. Access to high quality PL is very important for those who are just starting out.