Jeffrey Wilhelm

Jeffrey Wilhelm, Ph.D., is Distinguished Professor of English Education at Boise State University in Boise, Idaho.

He is the founding director of the Boise State Writing Project which supports over 3,000 teachers each year with over 110,000 contact hours of professional development. He is a highly-regarded author and co-author of over 32 books about literacy and literacy education.

Jeff has devoted his professional career to helping teachers help their students. He is particularly devoted to assisting students who are considered to be reluctant, struggling, or at-risk.

His research agenda is organized around creating supportive inquiry-oriented contexts for developing and performing literacy, literate behaviors, and literate identities. His research demonstrates how inquiry environments are powerful contexts for learning literacy and achieving deep understanding.

Jeff is a frequently-requested speaker at state, regional, national, and international conferences as well as providing professional development on a variety of topics to educators and administrators.

Reaching Boys: A Report from the READING DON’T FIX NO CHEVYS and GOING WITH THE FLOW studies

This interactive keynote will explore the major findings of two recent long-term studies of boys and their literate lives inside and outside of school. Implications for instructional practices that can engage and assist boys will be highlighted.

You Gotta BE The Book: Motivating the love and developing the competence for reading

This keynote will review the findings of several of the speaker’s studies on reading and engagement (E.G. “You Gotta BE The Book”, Imagining to Learn, “Reading Don’t Fix No Chevys”) and explore the teaching implications for developing student motivation and literate competence.

Meeting the Developmental Needs of Adolescent Learners: Young Adolescent Development and School Practices Reaching Boys: A Report from the READING DON’T FIX NO CHEVYS and GOING WITH THE FLOW studies.

This interactive keynote will explore the major findings of two recent long-term studies of boys and their literate lives inside and outside of school. Implications for instructional practices that can engage and assist boys will be highlighted.

Going with the Flow: Motivational Lessons from two studies about boys and literacy

This interactive keynote will review the findings from two award- winning studies on boys and literacy, particularly in regards to motivation and engagement, and will focus on what teachers can do to substantively engage students in learning sophisticated content and strategies.

Boys Composing: the importance of ‘meaningful making’

This interactive keynote will overview the findings of an award winning study on boys and literacy (“Reading Don’t Fix No Chevys”) and highlight the practical implications of the study for teachers of writing.

The Power of Teachers as Researchers: Promoting Teacher Research and Reflection Let Them Read Trash: the power of marginalized texts to promote imagination, satisfaction and social action

This interactive workshop will review an ongoing study about how passionate adolescent readers of non-traditional texts (such as graphic novels, manga, series books, video game novels, narrative video games, horror and fantasy) engage with such texts. We will explore the satisfactions and uses these readers have for such texts, and the implications for psychological development, reading, and learning inside and outside of school. Implications for instruction, reading programs, libraries and the like will be shared.

Let Them Read Trash: the power of marginalized texts to promote imagination, satisfaction and social action

This interactive workshop will review an ongoing study about how passionate adolescent readers of non-traditional texts (such as fantasy, dystopian (Hunger Games), vampire (twilight), horror graphic novels, manga, series books, video game novels, narrative video games ) engage with such texts.

We will explore the satisfactions and uses these readers have for such texts, and the implications for psychological development, reading, and learning inside and outside of school. Implications for instruction, reading programs, libraries and the like will be shared.

From BEING the Book to BEING the change: Teaching Literacy for Love and Wisdom

This interactive keynote will explore how the teaching of literary response in a context of inquiry can cultivate wisdom in ourselves and our students.

Wisdom being defined as becoming increasingly more conscious of interconnectedness (between people, between groups, and between people and creation); developing reflexivity, i.e. a profound respect for others and other perspectives; cultivating compassion; being guided by a greater good than materialism, status and image; valuing stillness and reflection – and seeking guidance from an inner versus outer locus of control; developing inner awareness of one’s own perceptions, motivation, possibilities and agency; and a commitment to service and social action for a communitarian good.

Inquiring Minds Learn to Read, Write, and Meet the CCSS

This interactive keynote will explore how inquiry is THE model of instruction for developing deep conceptual and procedural understanding that leads to transfer and application of learning in the real world. It will also explore how inquiry is uniquely suited to assist students to meet the Common Core State Standards and upcoming assessments modeled on the NAEP and PISA assessments of student knowledge and expertise.

Five Kinds of Knowledge; Five Kinds of Composing: What is necessary to meeting the CCSS in literacy?

This keynote will review what researchers in cognitive science and literacy education show is necessary to preparing students to meet and exceed the CCSS standards for literacy.