Cindy M. Bird, Ph. D.
Assistant Professor of Education--Literacy
Literacy Programs Coordinator
Reading Clinic
Office: TH E 296 Phone: (716)673-4756
Email: cindy.bird@fredonia.edu
Introduction
Dr. Bird is an Assistant Professor of Education in Literacy, with specialization at the adolescent level. Since Sept. 2007, Dr. Bird has served as the Coordinator of the COE Literacy Programs (Graduate Birth-Grade 6 and Grades 5-12, and the Undergraduate Literacy courses). She is also the current Supervisor of the SUNY Fredonia Reading Clinic, which is the practicum portion for the Master of Science in Education -- Literacy degree/certification programs.
Dr. Bird’s professional interests include exploring popular culture, media literacy, visual literacy, and literacy in most non-print forms as they relate to cognitive development and comprehension growth -- primarily in adolescents of all diversities.
Teaching Interests
Dr. Bird’s teaching interests are in training reading specialists for the elementary and high school levels, and in the professional development of all educators as literacy teachers through increased reflection and meta-cognitive growth.Research Interests
Dr. Bird’s research interests are in exploring the professional development of educators through increased reflection and meta-cognitive growth, especially in the areas of incorporating constructivist and meta-cognitive approaches for assisting struggling readers of all ages. She is enthusiastic about assisting teachers to incorporate elements of students’ non-school literacies (including technology-based multi-modal texts) into the classroom for use as reading intervention tactics with struggling readers.
Recent Publications
- Bird, C. M., & Kindberg, M. (in press) Reader’s Guide for Gail Jarrow’s Robert H. Jackson: New Deal Lawyer, Supreme Court Justice, Nuremberg Prosecutor.
- Magiera, K., Bird, C. M., Simmons, R., Geraci-Crandall, L., Beier, C., & Moon Ro, J. (accepted). Undergraduate teacher candidate beliefs and knowledge about reading: Does tutoring in an after-school program make a difference? Exceptional Individuals (New York State Council for Exceptional Children).
- Bird, C. M. (2007). The impact of the expansion of literacy on the teaching of reading: The meta-linguistic technique for proficiency. Forum on Public Policy: Literacy: The Public Imperative, 3(1), 1-12. (peer-reviewed).
- Bird, C. M. (in print). Fanfiction as a writing strategy: or The Gilmore Girls go to writing class. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.
- Bird, C. M. (2005). When cultures meet, what's a teacher to do? Highlighting the 'cultural' in 'literacy as a socio-cultural tool.' Language and Literacy Spectrum: New York State Reading Journal, 15, 40-52. Online edition
Recent Presentations
- Bird, C. M., & Thibodeau, A. (2007). Activating prior knowledge: How to incorporate diverse literacies into pre-reading strategies. Presentation at the Annual Convention of the National Council of Teachers for English (NCTE), Nov. 18, 2007, New York City.
- Bird, C. M., Chen, X., Fraccica, A., & Brachmann, C. (2007). The path to developing student expository voice. Workshop presentation at the Annual Convention of the New York State Reading Association (NYSRA), Nov. 8, 2007, Saratoga Springs, New York.
- Bird, C. M. (2007). Fanfiction writing: An empowering alternative to "Write about yourself." Workshop presented at the SUNY Fredonia Professional Development Writing Conference by the College of Education, October 27, 2007, at SUNY Fredonia.
- Bird, C. M. (2006). The impact of the expansion of literacy on the teaching of reading: The meta-linguistic technique for proficiency. Invited presentation for the Oxford Round Table on Literacy, at the Lady Margaret Hall College of Oxford University, England, July 23-28, 2006.
- Bird, C. M., Nenno, C., & McNamara, R. (2006). Reading the pictures: Visual literacy as critical literacy. Workshop presentation at the Annual Convention of the New York State Reading Association (NYSRA), Nov. 9, 2006, Saratoga Springs, New York.
Educational Background
Dr. Bird holds a Ph.D. in Education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE/UT) , Canada. Her thesis title is, Adolescent Understanding of Narrative Television. She earned her M.A. in English from the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, with her thesis entitled, An Application of Reader Response Critical Theory to 18th century Poetry. In addition, Dr. Bird holds a B. Ed. in Secondary English from the University of Regina and a Bachelor of Biblical Studies (BBS.) from the Canadian Bible College in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.