Ivannia Soto-Hinman, associate professor of education at Biola University, specializes in language acquisition, secondary literacy and urban education. She has presented on literacy and language topics at various conferences, including the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) and the American Educational Research Association (AERA).

Soto-Hinman, whose family emigrated to the U.S. from Costa Rica, began school in kindergarten as an English language learner (ELL). Soto-Hinman's firsthand experience as an ELL has shaped her entire career working with immigrants. She began her career in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), where she taught middle school English and English language development (ELD) at the second largest middle school in the country, Chester W. Nimitz Middle School. While in LAUSD, Soto-Hinman also served as a literacy coach, and later a literacy specialist, in LAUSD's Local District 6. She was a program administrator on a secondary reading grant at the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) before becoming a full-time faculty member in the School of Education at Biola University.

Soto-Hinman has also served as a consultant to WestEd on behalf of the California Department of Education (CDE), and a variety of school districts in California, providing technical assistance for systemic reform of ELL education and Title III. For the past three years, she has worked as a consultant at Stanford University's School Redesign Network (SRN) on systemic school and district redesign. Soto-Hinman is also a contributing author on Houghton Mifflin's newly California state-adopted reading intervention program for ELLs called Portals.

Acknowledgments
About the Authors
1. Introduction to the Achievement Gap and the "Literacy Gaps Model"
Demographic Patterns
Language Spoken and Socioeconomic Factors
ELL Achievement
Standard English Learners
The National Literacy Panel
The Literacy Gaps Model
Overview of Book Chapters
Summary
2. Decoding: Word Recognition Strategies and Fluency
Introduction
The Gap Between the Student and the Text
Decoding and Readability of Text
Decoding
English Language Development
Background Knowledge
Summary
3. Background Knowledge and Experiences
Schema Fit: Becoming a Text Participant
Context: Becoming a Text User (Active Participant)
Linkages: Becoming a Text Analyst (Reading Critically)
Summary
4. Comprehension
Comprehension Gap
Academic Language
Passage Comprehension
Summary
5. English Language Development and Academic English
Specialized Language Needs of ELLs
Needs of Standard English Learners
Academic Language Development Lesson Plan
Summary
6. Perceptions and Expectations
Were Called on Less Frequently and Were Provided Less Time to Respond
Were Given the Answer Rather Than Helped to Solve the Problem Themselves
Were Criticized More Often, and Praised Less
Were Paid Less Positive Attention, but Disciplined More Strictly
7. Cultural Differences
Connecting the Literacy Domains in Second Language Acquisition
Parental Involvement and the Literacy Domains
Culturally Responsive Teaching
Comprehensive Education
Multidimensional Approaches
Empowerment
Transformative Learning
Emancipatory Education
Summary
8. Socioeconomic Differences
Implicit and Explicit Codes
Discourse Patterns
Interactional Styles
Written Language Codes
Resource Access
Summary
9. Language Variables
Academic Language Competence
Summary
10. Grouping Strategies
Micro Structures That Bridge Language Proficiency Gaps
Macro Structures That Bridge Language Proficiency Gaps
Summary
11. Beyond the Gap/Envisioning the Future
The Literacy Gaps Model
Summary
Glossary
Index