UNC School of Education

Curriculum Vitae (PDF)

“I might fail, but you can’t say I didn’t learn something.”

– Alisa, an 8th grade science student, explaining why getting an F on a reading assignment was not a terrible thing.

Overview

Leigh A. Hall began her career teaching sixth-grade language arts and social studies in Houston, Texas where she found many of her students had difficulties comprehending expository text. Recognizing that little research addressed the needs of struggling middle school readers, she was inspired to further her education and contribute to the field.

Currently, Hall teaches literacy courses in the Elementary Education program, the M.Ed. for Experienced Teachers program and for students preparing to be scholars in the field of literacy.

Hall’s research addresses issues relevant to literacy, middle school and teacher education. Her work considers if and how students’ identities as readers influence the decisions they make when reading, and if how teachers can use information about students’ identities to inform their practice and improve students’ reading comprehension.

Hall’s work on adolescents challenges research and theory suggesting that struggling readers typically avoid text, are unmotivated to read and may not care about learning. Instead, Hall’s research suggests that struggling middle school readers like to read and would like to become better readers. She has found they tend to express continued interest and excitement in school despite their largely negative history with it.

In addition to conducting research on adolescents, Hall has studied how book clubs can help pre-service teachers understand how students’ identities, as well as their social and cultural backgrounds, impact the decisions they make with text.

Educational Background

• Ph.D. 2005 - Michigan State University, Teacher Education
• M.Ed. 1997 - Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, Elementary Education
• B.S. 1996 - University of South Florida, Elementary Education

Research Interests

• Literacy
• Comprehension
• Struggling Readers
• Adolescent Literacy

Teaching Areas

• Literacy Studies
• Early Childhood, Family and Literacy

Courses

• EDUC 513: Teaching Reading and Language Arts (K-6)
• EDUC 764: Current Issues in Literacy Research I
• EDUX 622: Content Area Reading and Writing
• EDUX 699: Study Group Research I

Honors & Awards

• 2010, Early Career Achievement Award Awarded by the Literacy Research Association (formerly National Reading Conference)
• 2009, Finalist for National Reading Conference Early Career Award
• 2008, Semi-Finalist for National Academy of Education/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship
• 2006, Outstanding Dissertation Award Awarded by the International Reading Association
• 2004, Semi-Finalist for Spencer Dissertation Fellowship
• 2002-2004, Spencer Research Training Grant

Funded Research

• Incorporating Popular Culture into the English Curriculum; Lezley and Jeff Hoffman Seed Grant Research Award; $9.450.00
• Instructional Innovation Grant with Janice Anderson, Julie Justice, Sharon Palsha and Rebecca New Center for Faculty Excellence/Lenovo 2010 Instructional
  Innovation Grants; $9.997.00
• The Role of Identity in Reading Comprehension Development; Junior Faculty Development Award, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; $7,500.00
• The Role of Identity in Reading Comprehension Development; Research Triangle Schools Partnership; $11,195.00
• The Effects of Discussion and Writing on the Comprehension Development of Middle School Students; Lezley and Jeff Hoffman Seed Grant Research Award; $14,280.00

Selected Professional Affiliations

• American Educational Research Association
• International Reading Association
• National Council for the Teachers of English
• National Middle School Association
• National Reading Conference

Selected Publications

Hall, L.A.  (in press). Moving Out of Silence: Helping Struggling Readers Find Their Voices in Text-Based Discussions. Reading and Writing Quarterly.

Hall, L.A. (in press). How Popular Culture Texts Inform and Shape Students’ Discussions of Social Studies Texts. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.

Hall, L.A. (in press). Rewriting Identities: Creating Spaces for Students and Teachers to Challenge the Norms of What It Means to be a Reader in School. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.

Hall, L. A. (2010). The negative consequences of becoming a good reader: Identity theory as a lens for understanding struggling readers, teachers, and reading instruction. Teachers College Record, 1792-1829.

Hall, L. A. & Piazza, S. V. (2010). Engaging with critical literacy: Reflections on teaching and learning. The English Journal, 99, 91-94.

Hall, L. A., Johnson, A., Juzwik, M. M., Wortham, S., & Mosley, M. (2010). Teacher Identity in the Context of Literacy Teaching: Three Explorations of Classroom Positioning and Interaction in Secondary Schools. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26, 234-243.