News and Events

“Can literacy, especially storytelling, change lives and the world? Absolutely! ” Dorothy Lee , Coyle Fellow and Executive Director of LitWorld , and Ernest Morrell and Jodene Morrell recently co-published the research brief “Why Stories Matter” which is now available as a downloadable PDF . In this...

Before we share our English education expertise on the CLE blog, get to know our team! We are pleased to meet you and so glad you are interested in our mission. Ernest Morrell // The new Notre Dame Center for Literacy Education is Directed by Dr. Ernest Morrell , a leader in the field of literacy...

In my last post on poetry, “ Poetry Matters // The Case for Teaching Poetry in Every ELA Classroom ,” I argued that poetry is an essential part of an English Language Arts education. I said that “poetry illuminates experience”—it can be the light within a microscope that helps us pause and...

As English Language Arts educators, we have high expectations for our students when it comes to the reading and writing skills they are meant to develop in our classrooms. While we expect that students can achieve reading and writing greatness while they are with us, we would never assume, at any...

Whole-class discussion tends to be a popular go-to strategy for middle and high school English teachers. On a simple level, it’s the easiest way to understand students’ thinking and to check for their understanding. Whole-class discussion can offer much more than this, however, and it can be...

Dr. Ernest Morrell , the Coyle Professor of Literacy Education and director of the Notre Dame Center for Literacy Education, was honored with the 2019 Distinguished Service Award from the National Council of Teachers of English. Established in 1950, the award recognizes a person or persons who have...

Dr. Ernest Morrell has published a new book for researchers and post-graduate academics entitled Stories from Inequity to Justice in Literacy Education: Confronting Digital Divides . The book, which Dr. Morrell co-edited with Dr. Jennifer Roswell, “challenges the assumption that access to technology...

"Education is the process of learning to create ourselves, and it is what the arts, both as a process and as the fruits of the process, promote. Work in the arts is not only a way of creating performances and products; it is a way of creating our lives by expanding our consciousness, shaping our...

The English as a New Language Program (ENL) equips educators to meet the unique needs of English Language Learners in Catholic schools. ENL has a threefold approach to helping Catholic schools ensure that their English language learners thrive. ENL helps schools and teachers develop a deep...